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Times are tough and there are fears of another recession hitting the US economy and the European market. Consumers are afraid and have stopped spending their hard earned money. Meanwhile, big banks are crafting on ways to milk money out of customers that are already pushed to the wall with high health insurance premiums, gas and no increase in salaries. Consumers are presently outraged that bailed out banks using tax payers’ money would even think of raising fees. The banks have expressed that these fees are due to the current stringent regulations imposed on them by the government.

There are plenty of ways for consumers to evade the credit or debit card fees. First, one can ask their bank to waive the fees. Even though banks are raising these fees, not all customers will be affected as some rules and restrictions apply. Maintaining certain stated monthly minimum balances can see one skip on paying the bank fee.

One may skip carrying plastic and just use cash for all purchases. A debit card may be used to withdraw money from the bank. Many people however are not comfortable carrying cash around and also there is a limit on what amount one can take with them out in public.

Those long forgotten check books can come in handy. Most retailers accept checks and these are free to write. Of course, there is an insufficient funds fee if the check meets a balance that cannot pay off the check. Multiple writing of checks on accounts that have no funds can lead to arrests.

All banks are the same they just go under different institution names. Knowing this then, avoiding a bank fee may mean switching to a bank that is not raising fees. The move to impose fees on consumers’ accounts is a big boost to those banks that choose to have free checking accounts as people leave their banks for them. It is necessary that before signing up to a different bank that the customer reads through the fine print to see if in the future any bank fees will be implanted.

Individuals who have brokerage accounts with investment firms may be able to get free checking accounts with no monthly fees or minimum balances. It is also advisable to pay credit card bills before their due date. Banks have lost huge amounts of money and are seeking to recoup lost revenues and so will increase penalty charges for late payments by 30 percent. The reform on credit cards signed last year limits the increase on any new purchases but if one has not paid their balance in sixty days, the credit issuer can raise the interest fee.

Some of the fees banks charged are for printing monthly statements or to provide canceled check. Since these can always be retrieved online, one can avoid paying monthly fees by going paperless and receiving documents via an email address. Most banks have online websites where customers can do their banking. Going paperless saves the bank money and also is good for the environment.