Via More Money
Wondering why you've been bombarded with literature urging you to opt in for overdraft protection at your bank?
You may be the subject of a highly focused campaign meant to target consumers most likely to spend in excess of their balance.
Starting
August 15, new Federal Reserve rules will require that banks can no longer automatically cover overdrafts and then levy a fee ($27 on average, per Moebs Services Inc.) as they had been; they'll now need to get customers to opt in. Anyone who hasn't said yes yet – and by the way,
we don't think you should – is probably getting a fair share of notices by mail. But some people will be hit harder than others. Banks are employing sophisticated market research to help them identify the best prospects and how to reach them. For example, a study by Nebraska-based company
Acton Marketing LLC conducted for bank clients, found that the people most likely to overdraw are white women in their late-30s/early-40s who rent homes in the south, and have annual household incomes of nearly $50,000. Acton is also helping banks market specifically to people who have racked up a lot of insufficient fund fees in the past
