Overheard a small business owner talking about ACH fees and it got me worried

Guy at the supply shop said his bank upped their ACH return fee from $3 to $8 last month without any notice, and now he's checking every statement line by line. Has anyone else's bank snuck in higher fees on business accounts lately?

3 comments

3 Comments

david_jones381mo ago

Ask @bennett.evan if he's seen banks mess with the way they post ACH fees to statements lately. My credit union started grouping all ACH activity together under one lump charge last quarter, made it impossible to tell what was a return fee versus a regular transaction. I'm curious if this is something other banks are doing too.

the_lisa1mo ago

Wait, you're saying your credit union is actually lumping all ACH fees into one giant line item so you can't tell the returns from the regular ones? That's shady as hell, @david_jones38, I've never heard of anyone doing that before. Sounds like they're hoping you don't notice when a return fee sneaks through.

bennett.evan1mo ago

Hang on, gotta correct one thing first. ACH return fees and regular ACH fees are two different things. Return fees are what you get charged when a payment bounces, not for just processing one. So the guy might be paying more for bounces, but that doesn't mean his standard ACH transaction fees went up too. Lots of banks do jack up return fees without telling anyone, it's been a dirty trick for years. But don't mix up the two or you'll be checking for the wrong thing on your statements. Still sucks that they do it, you're right to watch your account like a hawk now.