|
COURTESY
PAY
Peace
of Mind for Your Personal Finances
What
is courtesy pay?
Is courtesy pay a loan?
Is there a fee for courtesy pay?
What if I have overdraft protection?
What types of transactions are covered by courtesy
pay?
Do I have to apply for courtesy
pay protection?
How do I qualify for courtesy pay protection?
Does courtesy pay guarantee my transactions
will be paid?
Tips
on managing your account and avoiding overdrafts
WHAT
IS COURTESY PAY?
Courtesy Pay is added protection to your checking account and peace
of mind to your personal finances. At your Credit Union, the Courtesy
Pay program honors and pays your checks, ACH debits, Visa Check
Card transactions and online bill payments made against insufficient
or unavailable funds in your checking account. In other words, instead
of returning a check to the merchant or denying a transaction due
to insufficient funds, the Credit Union may pay your item(s), up
to a set dollar limit. This saves you the embarrassment and inconvenience
of bounced checks or declined transactions in the event you accidently
overdraw your account.
IS
COURTESY PAY A LOAN?
No. Courtesy Pay is not a loan. It is a benefit offered to qualified
members, providing limited protection from returned checks and declined
transactions. Additionally, it protects members from potential returned
check charges and collection agency fees, as well as helps protect
their good credit.
IS
THERE A FEE FOR COURTESY PAY?
You receive one courtesy pay overdraft at no charge every twelve
months. After this first overdraft, our standard $25 NSF fee is
assessed for each item that is paid, drawing your account negative.
It is your responsibility to bring your account back to a positive
status as soon as possible, either through a direct deposit, transfer
of funds or a deposit at one of our full-service ATMs or one of
our many branch offices.
WHAT
IF I HAVE OVERDRAFT PROTECTION?
If you have established overdraft protection method(s), such as
a line of credit or automatic transfer from a savings account, we
will always look to pay any overdraft by those other methods first
before paying your overdraft utilizing Courtesy Pay. The system
will use whatever account(s) you have authorized, in the sequential
order you requested, as long as you have available funds or credit.
If none of your authorized Overdraft Protection sources have available
funds or credit, we may pay items that would otherwise be returned
or denied under the Courtesy Pay program.
WHAT
TYPES OF TRANSACTIONS ARE COVERED BY COURTESY PAY?
Courtesy Pay honors and pays:
- Checks
- ACH debits
- Visa Check Card transactions (you must opt-in for this benefit)
- Online Bill Payments
DO
I HAVE TO APPLY FOR COURTESY PAY PROTECTION?
There is no application for Courtesy Pay. Courtesy Pay protection
is provided automatically for transactions made by check, ACH debit,
and online bill pay. However, you must request or opt-in for
Courtesy Pay protection for your Visa Check Card (debit) transactions.
If you do not opt-in for Courtesy Pay for your debit card transactions,
the protection will not be available in the event your account has
insufficient available funds and your transactions will be denied.
HOW
DO I QUALIFY FOR COURTESY PAY PROTECTION?
To qualify for Courtesy Pay protection, you must be a member in
good standing which includes having a checking account with us for
at least 180 days, making regular deposits to that account, bringing
your account back to a positive balance regularly, and there are
no legal orders against the account. For detailed qualification
criteria and protection limits, please contact your local credit
union representative or our Call Center at 877-325-CU4U.
DOES
COURTESY PAY GUARANTEE MY TRANSACTIONS WILL BE PAID?
No. The Credit Union pays overdrafts at its discretion, which means
we do not guarantee we will authorize and pay a transaction. An
overdraft may not be paid if you have: reached your courtesy pay
limit, opted-out of courtesy pay protection, abused the service,
or have unmet obligations with the Credit Union.
The
best way to avoid overdrafts is to manage your account:
• Keep track of how much money you have in your checking account
by keeping your account register up-to-date. Record checks when
you write them and other transactions when you make them. Don’t
forget to subtract any fees.
• Pay special attention to your electronic transactions. Record
ATM withdrawals and fees, debit card purchases, and online payments
as you make them.
• Don’t forget about automatic or recurring payments
you may have set up for utilities, insurance, or loans.
• Keep an eye on your account balance. Remember some checks
and automatic payments may not have cleared.
• Review your account statements each month. Between statements,
you can find out which payments have cleared and check your balance
through PC CUing
online account access at www.abecu.org
or www.ameaglecu.org
|