Democratic Senators Demand Banks Disclose Policies on Predatory Overdraft Fees

A group of Democratic senators is demanding information from more than two dozen banks on their overdraft policies and profits from overdraft fees.

“Overdraft and non-sufficient fund (NSF) fees are ‘one of the most common exploitative mechanisms big banks use to target the poor,’” Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Massachusetts), Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut), and Bernie Sanders (I-Vermont) wrote to 25 banks on August 28, including JPMorgan Chase , Wells Fargo , PNC Bank , TD Bank , and Bank of America .

“When consumers’ finances are already stretched thin, exorbitant overdraft fees can cause other payments to bounce — leading to even more fees in a vicious circle that can ‘turn setbacks into crises,’” they continued, noting that several banks have eliminated overdraft fees,