Citi is following through on its promises to eliminate overdraft fees. The financial institution is now one of the only top five banks in the U.S. (based on assets) to completely get rid of various charges affecting consumers daily.
Now, those with Citi Retail Banking consumer deposit accounts no longer have to worry about overdraft fees, returned item fees, or overdraft protection fees. The move is a part of the bank’s ongoing commitment to providing financial inclusion for individuals in underserved communities. As previously shared by AfroTech, the bank is also on a mission to advance economic progress across the nation.
Protection from overdraft fees doesn’t just stop at consumers seeing an extra charge or two on their bank account. Citi provides options for combating the issues. As a part of the new overdraft protection services, they will offer two choices for consumers looking to cover negative balance transactions. One includes Safety Check, which transfers available funds from a linked Citibank savings account in order to cover banker’s overdraft as well as any additional fees.
The second option is Checking Plus. Consumers who are approved for this feature have the ability for the line of credit account to transfer funds into their checking account in order to cover those same overdrafts and/ or any other extra charges.
Other features include what the financial institution calls Common-Sense Protection measures like not authorizing ATM or point-of-sale debit transactions when the funds are not available in a consumer’s account. Citi has also unveiled the Access Account Package. This is their checkless account package that includes features like low or avoidable monthly charges. The package, launched in 2014, is considered one of the nation’s leading in the industry because of the flexible nature of the account and its automatic protection against debit card overdrafts.
Lastly, consumers can enroll in Low Balance Alerts via Citi’s online services or the mobile app in order to get that extra nudge when funds are low in their account.
Click here for more on the new policy.