Bank Accounts & Fees
Checking and savings accounts, bank fee changes, high-yield accounts, CD rates, neobanks, and policy changes that affect your money.
Latest in Bank Accounts & Fees
A payable-on-death beneficiary lets a bank account skip probate and reach heirs directly
Bank account holders who add a payable-on-death beneficiary to their deposit agreements create a direct transfer channel that bypasses probate court entirely. Three states, Massachusetts,...
Banks must make at least $225 of a deposited check available the next business day under federal rules
Anyone who deposits a check at a bank or credit union is protected by a federal floor that limits how long the institution can withhold...
The $35 overdraft fee is mostly gone at big banks, but small banks and credit unions still charge it
Consumers at the largest U.S. banks have seen the traditional $35 overdraft fee all but disappear after federal regulators rewrote the rules governing how those...
Top high-yield savings accounts now pay 4.50% while the national average sits at 0.38%
Savers who keep cash in a standard bank account are earning a fraction of what top-tier alternatives now pay. The gap between the best available...
Keeping deposits under $250,000 at each bank keeps every dollar covered by FDIC insurance
Anyone holding cash in a U.S. bank account faces a simple but high-stakes dividing line: deposits up to $250,000 per depositor, per FDIC-insured bank, per...
Your bank must refund an unauthorized debit-card charge, often within 10 business days
Anyone who has spotted a charge they did not authorize on a debit card knows the panic that follows: the money is already gone from...
$250,000 is FDIC-insured per bank, and using several banks covers more
Households holding more than $250,000 in deposits at a single bank risk losing the excess if that institution fails. Federal law caps deposit insurance at...
Cash App is mailing settlement checks automatically after a $175 million order, with nothing to sign up for
Millions of Cash App users who reported unauthorized transactions or account fraud are starting to see paper checks arrive in their mailboxes this year, tied...
Amazon is mailing new claim notices for Prime refunds of up to $51 under a $1.5 billion FTC settlement
A wave of official claim notices is landing in mailboxes and inboxes across the country, and many older Amazon customers are trying to work out...
Big banks’ overdraft fees are now capped at $5, a change expected to save households about $225 a year
Overdraft fees have long been one of the most resented lines on a bank statement. A single mistimed payment, a forgotten automatic withdrawal, or a...
A payable-on-death beneficiary on a bank account lets it skip probate and pass to heirs
Bank account holders across the United States can keep their deposits out of probate court by adding a payable-on-death beneficiary designation, a simple form that...
The CFPB is returning $140 million to bank customers hit by surprise overdraft fees
Bank customers who were charged fees on transactions they had enough money to cover are getting refunds. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s supervisory exams forced...
Overdraft fees have mostly vanished at big banks, now capped near $5 to $10
Millions of checking-account holders who once faced $35 overdraft penalties at the largest U.S. banks now stand to pay no more than $5 to $10...
A free state search can reunite you with forgotten bank accounts, paychecks and deposits held as unclaimed property
Forgotten bank accounts, uncashed paychecks and dormant deposits are sitting in state custody right now, waiting for their rightful owners to file a free claim....
Your bank deposits are insured up to $250,000 per depositor, and spreading money across banks covers more
Anyone holding more than $250,000 in a single bank account risks losing the excess if that institution fails. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation sets the...
Naming a payable-on-death beneficiary moves a bank account to heirs without probate
Bank account holders who die without a payable-on-death designation in place can leave their heirs waiting months for a probate court to release funds, even...
Congress killed the $5 overdraft cap, and $225 in yearly savings vanished
Households that regularly overdraw their bank accounts lost a projected $225 in annual savings on May 9, 2025, when the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s overdraft...
Your bank deposits are insured up to $250,000 per depositor, and spreading money across banks covers more
Anyone with more than $250,000 in a single bank account faces a real risk if that institution fails: the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation will cover...
Cardholders and merchants have until July 15 to claim a share of American Express’s $250 million card-fee deal
Cardholders who paid fees on non-rewards American Express credit cards or debit cards in certain states now face a July 15 deadline to file claims...
Who can still get a check from Capital One’s $425 million settlement? Anyone who held a 360 Savings account from 2019 to 2025.
Millions of Capital One customers who watched their savings account interest rates stagnate while the bank promoted higher yields on a nearly identical product now...