Is Overdraft Privilege for Me?

Picture this with me: back in the day when Aldi only accepted debit cards, a college student is stocking up on groceries. When the total comes up and she goes to pay, the card is declined. She immediately knows why. There isn’t enough in checking to cover the groceries. Poor college student problems, am I right?

So now what? Would you A. leave your overflowing cart behind and run for the hills? B. Hold up the entire line so you can log into online banking and transfer money from savings? C. Give up and cry.

As much as we sometimes want the answer to be C, it never is. But what if I told you there was another option? Overdraft Privilege (ODP). With ODP, debit card transactions aren’t declined, regardless of if the money is in checking or not. For a fee of $28, the charge may go through anyway (with a maximum limit).

Sounds great, right? But hold on. You might be thinking, $28 is kind of a lot. And that’s a valid concern! It is totally up to you to decide if it’s worth it or not. If you’re great at monitoring your account or you don’t mind doing a quick money transfer, then ODP might not be for you. If you, like me (the girl in the above story), tend to rely on credit cards and have no idea what’s going on in your checking account, ODP may be a good fit.

Before you decide if ODP is right for you, here’s a little more information. If you’re still not sure after reading this blog, please reach out. We love to help! You can give us a call, stop by a branch, or chat online.

Every DECU member has standard overdraft coverage. This coverage comes with your DECU checking account. With this standard coverage, checks and electronic payments are covered even if the money isn’t in your account. There is the same $28 fee per item in the standard coverage.

The standard coverage does not include ATM withdrawals and debit card transactions. This is where ODP comes in. You can sign up for this extra protection and your debit card will not be denied at an ATM or during a purchase, regardless of the money in your account. The $28 fee per item applies to this as well. Both forms of protection have a $1,000 limit. All overdrafts are paid at DECU’s discretion, so it’s important to note that a payment is not always guaranteed.

There are other ways to avoid overdrawing your account and/or paying a fee for doing so. We hate fees as much as you do, so our goal is to offer a solution that’s just right for you. If ODP doesn’t sound like it’s for you, but you’re still concerned about possible overdrafts, check out our Personal Line of Credit. Or, you can always stop in and chat with a Member Advocate to find the right product for your needs.