WASHINGTON, D.C. —  Stephen Hall, Legal Director and Securities Specialist, issued the following statement on the filing of Better Markets’ Comment Letter to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) on its proposal to ban fees for instantaneously declined transactions:

“The CFPB’s rule would put a stop to an abusive practice that allows banks to unfairly extract millions of dollars each year from vulnerable Americans. Nonsufficient funds (NSF) fees exploit consumers’ lack of understanding about declined transactions associated with their accounts.  Furthermore, the fees come with no benefit or service to consumers and they vastly exceed the costs incurred by financial firms for such transactions.  They are clearly abusive under the law and the CFPB is rightly exercising its authority to ban them.

“When a consumer attempts to make a payment or withdrawal from their account for an amount that exceeds their available funds, a financial institution can now decline the transaction and charge the consumer an NSF fee.  Rather than extend an overdraft loan to cover the transaction, the bank will instead prevent the charge from going through.  And how much does it cost the bank simply to say “no” to the transaction?  Essentially nothing, yet the fees charged to consumers continue to pile up.

“The CFPB’s proposed rule would address these situations. Rightly concerned about the proliferation of ‘junk fees’ plaguing American consumers, the Bureau has identified these NSF fees as uniquely exploitative and is proposing to prohibit them as an unlawful ‘abusive’ practice under the Consumer Financial Protection Act. The CFPB should move forward expeditiously to finalize this important proposal.”

You can find the comment letter here.

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Better Markets is a non-profit, non-partisan, and independent organization founded in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis to promote the public interest in the financial markets, support the financial reform of Wall Street and make our financial system work for all Americans again. Better Markets works with allies—including many in finance—to promote pro-market, pro-business and pro-growth policies that help build a stronger, safer financial system that protects and promotes Americans’ jobs, savings, retirements and more. To learn more, visit www.bettermarkets.org.