FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE   
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Tuesday, July 28, 2009        
          

National Survey Reveals Retail Merchants’ Bad-Check Fees
Double Consumer Penalties for Overdrafts
Moebs Services Research: Consumers Face Twice the Fees for Overdrafts

CHICAGO (July 28, 2009) – Consumers can expect to pay twice the amount they would normally be charged for a bank overdraft fee when they make a retail purchase with a bad check, according to a recent national survey by Moebs Services, an independent, nationally recognized economic research firm in Lake Bluff, Ill.

The survey findings conclude that the median cost of a merchant overdraft charge is $25. Added to the median $26 overdraft charge from Main Street community banks and credit unions or the $35 overdraft charge from Wall Street banks, consumers will pay between $51 to $60 for writing a bad check at a retail location.

The research, conducted in June 2009, surveyed more than 350 retail merchants with more than 1100 outlets in two or more U.S. regions. Among the merchants surveyed were Banana Republic, Staples, Walgreen’s, Northwest Airlines and Marriott.

Some national retail merchants charge more than $35 for a bad check exceeding even the Wall Street Banks.

“We believe that this is the most comprehensive study of bad- check practices of these companies that has ever been done,” said Mike Moebs, CEO of Moebs Services. “The findings indicate that a few bad checks written at merchants, combined with bank charges, could mean hundreds of dollars in fees for a consumer.”

Additional results for the merchant survey include the following:

• The median charge by merchants for a returned check was $25.  This is similar to the $26 charged by community banks and credit unions and is 28 percent less than Wall Street banks’ OD fees.
• One out of five merchants don’t charge for a returned bad check
• Only 34 percent of merchants will take a paper check without verification.

Moebs Services, an independent economic research firm founded in 1983, has a national reputation for its research and analysis of financial institutions’ pricing, profitability and economies of scale.  Moebs’ clients include depositories and government agencies.  

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