Checking Account Customers in Support of Stronger Banking Regulations

A new poll commissioned by the Pew Health Group revealed that nearly three-fourths of Americans with checking accounts support stronger banking regulations. The poll showed that account holders want banks to do a better job of disclosing terms, conditions and fees associated with their checking services.

Banking Regulation Support Found Across Party Lines

Pew’s “Safe Checking in the Electronic Age Project” conducted the poll, which looked at the feelings of participants based on a number of variables, including political affiliations. Surprisingly, the majority of every political affiliation acknowledged in the poll said they support strong banking regulations.

The political affiliations in favor of stricter rules included:

• Democrats (81 percent)
• Republicans (66 percent)
• Independents (65 percent)
• Tea Party members (62 percent)

They agreed with Pew’s recommendations for banks to provide a summary of overdraft options, as well as issue a one-page summary of important checking account information, would make for a positive change in the banking world.

Account Holders Want More Communication from Banks

The poll found that all participants are in favor of seeing more communication from their banks regarding their checking accounts. Among recommendations from Pew, participants agreed to the following changes:

• Overdraft summary: 83 percent said it would be a positive change to require banks to provide a summary of information regarding overdraft options, as well as how the options work and more information regarding associated fees.
• Checking terms, conditions and fees: 78 percent said they would like a one-page summary of information regarding the terms, conditions and fees associated with their checking accounts.
• Change transaction processing procedures: 78 percent said it would be a positive change to require banks to process transactions, not from the highest dollar amount to the lowest, but in the order in which they occur to help avoid overdraft fees.
• Limit overdraft fees: 69 percent are in favor of limiting overdraft fees based on how much an item costs the bank to provide the overdraft.

Overall, the study revealed that checking account holders want to know more about their accounts and feel that their banks are communicating with them effectively. This, they say, would make them feel more comfortable with their banking experience.