Discover Makes All Deposit Accounts Fee-Free

Discover Financial Services said Monday morning (June 17th) that it has ended fees on deposit accounts.

The company said in a release that customers with checking, savings, money market or CD accounts held with Discover Bank “can now rest easy” with the knowledge that fees will not accrue in the event of “an occasional oversight or pressing need.”

Discover, according to the release, is eliminating fees for insufficient funds and excessive withdrawal.  Fees also falling by the wayside include penalties for falling below minimum balances and stop-payment requests.

Discover banking customers also have access to 60,000 fee-free ATMs across the country.

The elimination of fees also extends to charges for monthly maintenance, checkbook orders or replacement debit cards.  In recounting benefits still offered to consumers, Discover pointed to Discover Cashback Debit, which offers customers 1 percent cash back on up to $3,000 in debit card purchases each month.  Discover also offers account holders the option to automatically deposit a customer’s Debit Card Cashback Bonus into an eligible Discover Online Savings account each month. The transfer allows them to grow their savings, said the company.

As has been noted elsewhere, the average fee banks charge to maintain an account is now $13.58 per month, according to a recent MoneyRates.com survey.

“Helping our customers lead better financial lives is at the heart of everything we do, whether that’s removing fees, offering industry-leading rewards or consistently delivering distinctive customer experiences,” said Arijit Roy, vice president of deposits at Discover, in the release. “Removing all deposit account fees was an easy decision for us based on our commitment to offer the most rewarding banking products in the industry.”