We’ve all had it happen; you’re out with your friends having fun and an email pings into your inbox. You see the subject line and you feel a lead weight settle into the pit of your stomach. You’ve overdrafted your account, and now you’re going to be stuck having to pay an exorbitant overdraft fee.
The good news is that if you’re a customer of Wells Fargo, you may be able to get your overdraft fees waived. Read on to learn more about these fees and how you may be able to avoid them once or twice.
What Are Overdraft Fees?
Before we dive into the process to get your overdraft fees waived, let’s talk some about what these fees are. Your bank charges you overdraft fees when you spend more money than you have in your account. The bank must provide the extra funds to cover the charge, so they charge you a steep fine for that service.
Overdraft fees usually apply only to checking accounts, and they can be quite expensive, especially if you have to pay them repeatedly. They get deducted straight from your (negative) bank balance, and each time you make another purchase with that account, you’ll get charged another fee. It’s very important to note that the single best way to avoid having to pay overdraft fees is to make sure you don’t overdraft your account.
How Much Can They Cost You?
Now that we know more about bank overdraft fees, let’s take a look at how much they can cost you. Specific overdraft fees will vary by bank; some banks have even started offering services that don’t include overdraft fees. However, at Wells Fargo, you’ll pay $35 for an overdraft charge.
Now $35 as a one-time expense may not sound terrible, but keep in mind that each time you spend more than you have in your account, you’ll have to pay that fee. If you’re out shopping and you visit three stores, not realizing that you don’t have enough money in your account, you’re looking at $105 in overdraft fees. This can get even more problematic if you have any checks outstanding at the time you overdraft your account.
Call Wells Fargo
If you realize you’ve overdrafted and you want to try to get your fees waived, the first thing you need to do is call Wells Fargo. You’ll need to talk to somebody at their call center; tellers and bank branch managers will not have the power to waive those fees. It’s also better to talk to someone, rather than working through a chat.
Make sure you call Wells Fargo as soon as you realize you’ve overdrafted so there aren’t any questions later about delays. You can reach the Wells Fargo call centre at 1-800-869-3557. Even if it’s outside business hours, go ahead and make the call; many call centres operate on a twenty-four-hour basis.
Be Polite
When you’re dealing with overdraft fees, it’s normal to feel flustered, upset, and even angry. A negative account balance is very stressful, and overdraft fees can be a serious financial burden. However, it’s important to stay calm and polite while you’re speaking with the Wells Fargo customer service representative.
You need to explain your situation calmly and always answer questions politely and as pleasantly as possible. If you start acting rude or upset, the person you’re speaking with won’t be as motivated to help you out. Keep your emotions in check and remember that your goal is to get them on your side and convince them to help you out.
Explain Your Situation
Once you’ve connected with a customer service representative, take a few minutes to explain your situation with your overdrafted account. It’s important to remember that this shouldn’t be a long, rambling explanation of every expense you’ve had this month. Just a few details about the expenses that caused the overdraft will be plenty.
Tell the customer service representative which charges overdrafted your account and when you realized you didn’t have enough funds to cover the charge. If you’ve had any extraordinary expenses or hardships this month, give them a brief summary of those situations. Once again, don’t get emotional or long-winded; stay calm, polite, and professional during these explanations.
Discuss Your History as a Customer
Once you’ve finished your brief explanation of the situation, it may be a good idea to discuss your history as a customer of Wells Fargo. Banks make money off of customer loyalty, and at the end of the day, it will cost Wells Fargo less to waive your overdraft fees than to lose a valuable and reliable customer. However, this conversation will need to be carefully handled.
Approach this portion of the discussion from a standpoint of explaining why they can trust that you’re a reliable customer who brings value to Wells Fargo. Under no circumstances should you attempt a “Don’t you know who I am” attitude. Simply state how many years you’ve been a customer with Wells Fargo and that it’s rare or unheard of for you to overdraft your account.
Give a Timeline
While it’s good to discuss your past value as a customer, Wells Fargo also needs to know that you’ll provide them with future value. They need to know how long they can expect to wait for you to pay back the money you owe from the overdraft. Providing a solid timeline for when you’ll have more money in that account can reassure customer service representatives who don’t know or necessarily trust you.
Before you call, set out a plan for exactly when and how you’ll get money back in that account. This may include transferring funds from a savings account, borrowing from a loved one, or depositing some additional money. Give the customer service representative specific details about when you’ll have the overdraft covered and some basics about where the money will come from.
Ask for a Supervisor
At this point in the call, hopefully, the representative that you’re working with will agree to waive your overdraft fees. You’ve stayed polite, explained your situation, discussed your value as a customer, and given them a timeline for when the overdraft will be covered. However, none of this is a guarantee of success, and the representative may still be refusing to waive your overdraft fees.
If you run into this situation, it may be a good idea to ask to speak with a supervisor. The representative may not feel like they have enough authority to waive those fees, or they may be hesitant to make that call themselves. Stay polite, and do not give the impression that you’re going to report this person to their supervisor, but ask to speak with someone in a higher tier of management.
Pull Your Business
If you’ve spoken to a supervisor and they, too, have denied your request to waive your fees, there is one final play you can make. You can say that if these fees are not waived then once you’ve settled all expenses, you’ll be moving your business to a different bank. However, it is very important to remember that this is a last resort and should not be used lightly.
Many banks, when faced with losing your business, will choose to waive those fees rather than giving up the money they make off of you. Like the rest of these negotiations, this statement should be made calmly, professionally, and without making it sound like a threat. You should also be willing to follow through on this if they continue to deny this request.
Avoid Overdraft Fees
Of course, the best way to avoid having to pay overdraft fees is to not overdraft in the first place. The best thing you can do to keep from overdrafting is to check your bank account balance often. This is especially important during times when you’re spending larger amounts of money or towards the end of your pay period.
Some banks will even let you set up an overdraft protection program designed to help you avoid these fees. These programs will pull money from a designated savings account if your checking account is in danger of overdrafting. There will be a fee for this service, but it will be much less expensive than the cost of an overdraft fee.
Get Your Overdraft Fees Waived
Overdraft fees are one of the most frustrating aspects of modern banking, but you may not always have to pay them. With the right negotiations, you might be able to convince Wells Fargo to waive your overdraft fees. But remember, even if this approach works, you’re not likely to get those fees waived more than once or twice.
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