Tuesday, August 17, 2010

Overdrafts! Again!

GAK!

I haven't had an overdraft on my checking account in years.

And I'm still not sure how I got one this week-end. I have a check register. I use the check register. I list all of my automatic payments. I keep a running tally.

So how did this happen?

Umm--can you say basic math?

I made a $200 subtraction error when I deducted my mortgage and PITI payment.

Why is it that such errors are never in MY favor?

I blithely used my debit card, and in the process, overdrew my account by $34.00.

Fortunately, I won't incur one of those $35 fees. BUT, a cash advance from my credit card was made automatically, which incurs a fee, not to mention interest from the date the charge is made.

This week is not starting out well.

11 comments:

nicole said...

:(

That sucks. I always feel dumb when I do something like that. But we all do things like that. Hopefully it won't hurt too badly, and thank goodness it isn't sending a cascade of fees.

GB's Mom said...

It is only Tuesday... it could get better :)

MasterPo said...

MasterPo loves those "fees" for using the very overdraft protection credit you signed up for! :-(

nancy (aka moneycoach) said...

oh man -- I had that happen at least twice WHILE I WAS PRACTICING AS A MONEY COACH! In other words, it happens to the best of us. Good on you for taking it in stride, and with a sense of humour (I'm guessing)!

Sharon said...

I hate when that happens. I've been catching my errors because I can check online...and lately I've been checking daily!

Hopefully, you won't incur too many fees...

Maryl said...

Oof. Have you ever noticed, when the BANK makes an error, they never offer to put $35 into your account to make up for it?

444 said...

Everyone does that now and then. I am the most obsessive number-cruncher ever and sometimes I make a plain-old mistake. I guess my habit of checking accounts nearly daily pays off at this point, because sometimes I can run to the bank and put some money in before the !@#$ hits the fan. If you have not made this kind of mistake in a long time, oftentimes the bank will refund your fee if you ask them very nicely to do that and if you seem contrite and regretful about your mistake.

Mark said...

Grace: Why are you still using a paper check register? In the time it takes you to write everything down (and make mistakes and omissions in the process), you could be monitoring your balance and transactions online. Also, most banks use alert systems that will text you account balance warnings, etc. Technology is your friend and money-saver in this area.

Grace. said...

Mark, I keep a handwritten ledger, but I also usually check my balances online every day which is how I caught this overdraft so fast. Unfortunately, I was out of town over the week-end, so didn't check the balance until Tuesday. I do have overdraft protection whereby a cash advance is made from my credit card into the bank account. There are fees involved but it is less than the $35 overdraft fee if I didn't have that back-up system.

Nicole said...

ok, I made an error in a different direction. Couldn't figure out why there was almost 900 more in checking than there should have been... turns out I'd put down a travel reimbursement check as a debit instead of a credit. That also explains why savings seemed low (since the reimbursement should have gone directly to replenish the savings it had been taken out of, but wasn't, and I moved extra money to cover the deficit I thought I had in checking...).

Apparently I made this mistake a month ago (and figured it out today). Since it was in the right direction, no overdraft fees, but it could just have easily been the wrong column the other way.

I don't know if I should feel dumb for the mistake or happy that money is going in and out the way it should even if I'm not tracking it right.

Carol said...

I HATE THAT!!!!! It's happened to me a couple of times since I've been laid off, because I don't have internet at home and so I haven't been checking things online as often as I should....

And it makes me So incredibly angry when my bank plays games and I'm powerless. Like when they assess the non-bank ATM fees two days early. Or when they do that famous "Yes, she's only ten dollars over, but if we put the checks in order from biggest to smallest, we can get two more overdrafts out of her..."

I just saw that Wells Fargo got fined big time for doing that check order thing--maybe it'll become a thing of the past?????

Or....I could switch banks. The small town banks in my town only charge a $25 fee instead of a $35 fee....but a) switching all my automated stuff is a pain and b) if I'd just pay attention better I wouldn't need to switch banks....

yah. right.

know how you feel.

P.S. Thanks for your words of wisdom re the job offer--you made excellent sense.