Project News
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- Press Release
- Safe Checking in the Electronic Age
More Than Half of Top 12 U.S. Banks Now Use Pew’s Model Checking Disclosures
SunTrust voluntarily adopted The Pew Charitable Trusts’ disclosure summary for checking accounts today, becoming the seventh of the 12 largest banks in the country now using the simple disclosure box. Currently, this consumer-friendly information is available to over 40 percent of the US market, by deposit volume. more
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December 3, 2012
Paying for the Holidays
As the holiday shopping season takes off, consumers are turning to a variety of financial management tools. View our slideshow and learn more about Pew’s research on hidden bank fees, the growing use of prepaid debit cards, and the actual duration of payday loans that are marketed as two-week products.
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- Press Release
- Safe Checking in the Electronic Age
Pew Report: Most Banks Limit Consumer Options for Dispute Resolution in Checking Accounts
The Pew Safe Checking in the Electronic Age Project today released Banking on Arbitration: Big Banks, Consumers, and Checking Account Dispute Resolution, a report that examines the 100 largest financial institutions’ dispute resolution clauses as well as consumer attitudes about these procedures. more
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- Press Release
- Safe Checking in the Electronic Age
Five of the Top 12 Biggest Banks Adopt Pew’s Consumer-Friendly Summary of Checking Terms & Fees
Bank of America is among the latest banks to announce they will voluntarily adopt Pew’s disclosure summary for checking accounts. With these additions, five of the top 12 banks in America—representing over one-quarter (27 percent) of total deposit volume in the country—have adopted Pew’s recommendation.
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August 24, 2012
Safe Checking: Policy Recommendations
Checking accounts are critical to the financial well-being of American families, but many bear hidden risks. Susan Weinstock, director of the Safe Checking in the Electronic Age project, offers four policy recommendations to make accounts more transparent and fair for consumers. more
Media Coverage
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- Media Coverage
- Safe Checking in the Electronic Age
New York Times: How Banks Limit Your Options in a Dispute
Ninety percent of Americans use checking accounts, but they are often unaware that agreements with their bank limit their legal options if there is a disagreement, a new report from an arm of the Pew Charitable Trusts finds. more
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- Media Coverage
- Safe Checking in the Electronic Age
Kiplinger: Prepaid Cards Flooding the Market
’Tis the season for whipping out the plastic. But which plastic? This holiday season, more consumers will be shopping—and perhaps bill paying, check cashing and visiting the ATM—with prepaid cards. Prepaids typically come with a Visa, MasterCard, American Express or
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- Media Coverage
- Safe Checking in the Electronic Age
CBS This Morning: Checking Rules Harm Consumers
A new study shows how your zip code can determine how much you pay in checking account fees. CBS News business and economics correspondent Rebecca Jarvis reports. more
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- Media Coverage
- Safe Checking in the Electronic Age
New York Times: How Checking Account Fees and Terms Vary by State
No one likes to pay bank fees. And they are even more annoying when it is clear that the amount and variety of fees can vary depending not only on where you bank, but also on the state where you live. more
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- Media Coverage
- Safe Checking in the Electronic Age
Reuters: Wal-Mart, Amex Take on Banks With Low-priced Debit Card
Wal-Mart Stores Inc and American Express Co are teaming up to offer a prepaid debit card called Bluebird to target lower-income shoppers who may not have bank accounts. more
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- Media Coverage
- Safe Checking in the Electronic Age
More Evidence That We’re Getting Hammered With Bank Fees
It's hard to tell which is piling up faster — the fees bank customers have to pay these days or the research showing just how pervasive these fees are. more
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- Media Coverage
- Safe Checking in the Electronic Age
Local Banks Charge Higher Checking Fees; Some Even Charge To Mail You a Statement
Bank fees are becoming a heightened issue because of campaigns like the one by the nonprofit Pew Charitable Trusts, which has been pushing banks and credit unions to make it easier for consumers to know in advance how much it will cost them to do business with a particular bank. more
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- Media Coverage
- Safe Checking in the Electronic Age
Banks simplifying checking account disclosures
Bowing to pressure from consumers and Congress, major banks are simplifying the information they provide to customers about their most basic product — the checking account. Bank of America Corp. said Wednesday that it was adopting plain language disclosures that
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- Media Coverage
- Safe Checking in the Electronic Age
LA Times: BofA joins Chase, Citibank in Simplifying Checking Disclosures
Pressured by consumer advocates and Congress, most of the nation's big banks are now providing consumers a one page form listing basic terms and conditions for checking accounts, with Bank of America Corp. the latest to join the trend.
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- Media Coverage
- Safe Checking in the Electronic Age
BofA Launches New Fee Disclosure Statements, Joining Other Banks
Bank of America Corp on Wednesday said it will provide customers with new, easy to read statements with information about fees for consumer and business checking accounts, following similar steps by other banks. The two page "checking clarity statements" will
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