Why should we pay a fee for withdrawing money from a bank ATM machine?

[glarius]

This has always bothered me. My logic is that we do not have to pay the teller for service when we do business inside the bank, so why should we pay the machine. We are not costing the bank any more.
I just saw a feature on TV telling about a man who was being gouged by his bank for ATM services...that's why I posted this.:shrug:

I figure the bank must be making money from them or they wouldn't have them.

[damntexdem]

1. Because the banks have been allowed to rob us in this way.

And there's no prospect that they will be stopped from doing so.

[HereSince1628]

4. Yes, they CAN so they DO

And most banks would much prefer that you go to the ATM or bank on-line.

[kentuck]

2. Was that part of the new "financial reform"?

Or did they conveniently overlook that small detail?

[SamW]

3. ATM Fees

Banks need money for their xmas parties.... Its always been highway robbery. Just like overdraft protection.

[muriel_volestrangler]

5. You do in Canada, then? It's just what banks think the market will bear - no charges in the UK

for ATM withdrawals. However, many banks try to get people to accept regular charges for a current account, and they gouge people whenever they are overdrawn without prior permission.

[glarius]

9. There's no charge here for seniors but everyone else pays.n/t

[BadgerKid]

6. Doesn't this depend on which bank owns the ATM?

Usually there can be up to two fees charged: one by the ATM owner who's not your bank, the other by your bank.

BTW didn't all this nickel-and-diming crap start with the S&L debacle from the 80's?

[pampango]

7. You have to pay a fee to withdraw from your own bank's ATM? I would go inside and use the teller.

Around here withdrawing from an ATM is free unless you withdraw funds from a different bank, not your own.

[gratuitous]

8. Because they can, plain and simple

I closed my Bank of America account years ago when I couldn't get a straight answer out of them. ATMs were touted as being convenient and open all the time. What wasn't touted was the number of people put out of work by these little marvels. Yes, ATMs cost money to install and maintain, but it's considerably less than the expense of a person at the branch who needs a salary, benefits, and paid time off. So banks made a business decision to phase out their human employees and beef up their mechanical employees, and pocket the savings. Then some bright suit in an office said, "Hey, why should we be providing ATMs to everyone to use? Let's charge folks unless they have an account with us. Or even if they do." And after a round of back-slapping they all adjourned for hookers and blow, and stuck it to the small depositors once again.

Next bank "crisis"? That's going to be me holding the sign that says, "Jump, You Fuckers!"

[HopeHoops]

10. I refuse to do it. I only use my own bank's ATMs and wouldn't bank with one that charged for that.

[fizzgig]

11. i don't pay fees to use my bank's atm

nor would i use a bank that charged me to use their atms

[johnaries]

12. Actually, it costs them quite a bit.

My company used to do ATM services for our customers as a "loss-leader". Meaning, we lost money on the ATM's but provided them as a service in order to keep our customer's using our profitable services.

Every time you run an ATM transaction, it has to go across several different networks. Each of these networks charges their own "interchange fee". Then, you have to keep the machines filled with cash, and Loomis, Wells-Fargo, et al are NOT cheap. and you have to pay a local bank to supply the cash that the armored car service uses. Then, of course, you have to pay some kind of rental for the space. Usually that's done by a per transaction payment. Then there's maintenance costs on the machines themselves - and these things jam and breakdown quite a bit (especially Diebolds. Tritons aren't much better, but they have better monitoring - which is another cost).

ATM service is far from cheap.

[CatWoman]

13. thanks for this

explains quite a bit :hi:

[zipplewrath]

17. Loss leader as compared to what

Yes, I understand that they are not "free". As one banker I knew described them, they were were "unmanned branches". They took similar costs to a branch bank to own and operate. But there were very significant costs that they DIDN'T take that saved the bank a boat load. Even more, if their existence and placement can justify reducing the numbers of branches, all the better.

From a banks point of view, anything that doesn't generate revenues is a "loss leader". People taking their money out of a bank doesn't generate revenue, so it will always be classified as a loss leader. Until they teach them to generate loans, or open new accounts, they will be loss leaders. However, they can and do reduce the number of tellers needed to be employed and that, although not a revenue generator, does "save" them money.

[Hannah Bell]

18. it's cheaper than employees, or they wouldn't do it.

[The Straight Story]

28. And I used to manage the data center that housed many of the high end systems

That kept those atm's running. 2 guys per shift at 65k/year plus benefits (to be fair, that cost was spread out over all our servers, but we also were manned 24x7x365). Electricity and cooling costs. Network hardware, etc and so on .

[dkf]

14. Take out cash when you use your debit card at the grocery store.

That's how my sister does it. Of course I don't have a debit card as I am leery of them.

[robcon]

15. If you don't have money in a bank, they are not required to get it for you.

simple.

[cbdo2007]

16. You don't think bank employees deserve to get paid??

[Roon]

19. i get free ATM service from my bank

If I am charged an ATM fee,my bank reimburses me
.

[walldude]

21. Me too, one of the reasons I went with them...

I travel a lot and use a lot of ATM's...

[Dorian Gray]

26. Me too....

[Codeine]

20. Get a better bank. Mine doesn't charge me when I use their machines.

The only time I've ever paid an ATM fee was when I used a third-party machine.

[AnneD]

23. Wisest words from my Mom.....

"Never forget, it is your money.

They try to humble you with their fine wood and marble, but never forget, it is your money and you can always take your money elsewhere".

I shop around and for my money, credit unions are the best thing going.

[yellowcanine]

25. I agree that credit unions have the best deals.

Savings, checking, car loans, equity loans, home mortgages. And yes, free ATMs

[Recursion]

22. I don't pay fees at any ATM

Well, I might pay them at the time of withdrawing, but my bank refunds them.

[yellowcanine]

24. Don't use the ATM if you don't want to pay the fee. It is that simple.

The machine tells you what the fee will be and asks you if you want to proceed. You have a choice.

Most banks don't charge if you have an account at that bank so that is the same as using a teller.

If your bank charges, change banks.

[EmeraldCityGrl]

27. They can only because enough people like you haven't asked WTF?

Maybe now things will change.

[Rex]

29. We have no say in it. Has to do with making an extra layer of income

like credit cards and payday cash loans. Like your credit score and debit cards. Another way the huge conglomerates can make a fee off your money and revenue on your assets. People should learn how banks function, they would be surprised to find their money is used as collateral on larger investments.