Aggregating Service Fees on Deposit Account Statement
Issue/Inquiry
Can the Bank aggregate different service charges and disclose them on the account statement as one lump sum, if it has itemized them in the account opening disclosure and fee schedule?
Response Summary
Generally, fees disclosed on the periodic statement must be itemized by type and dollar amount, but fees of the same type occurring more than once during the statement period can be aggregated. Some fee types cannot be aggregated, but must be disclosed separately.
Response Detail
Whether “service charges” can be aggregated into one lump sum will depend on whether they are of the same “type.”
Under Regulation DD, if a depository institution mails or delivers a periodic statement, it must disclose the fees that were disclosed in the account opening disclosure that were debited to the account during the statement period. The fees must be itemized by type and dollar amounts. If fees of the same type are imposed more than once during the statement period, the depository institution may itemize each fee separately or group the fees together and disclose a total dollar amount for all fees of that type. 12 CFR §1030.6(a)(3).
The Regulation and its commentary do not define what a fee “type” is, but examples of fee types which must be disclosed in the account opening disclosure are as follows:
- Maintenance fees, such as monthly service fees
- Fees to open or to close an account
- Fees related to deposits or withdrawals, such as fees for use of the institution's ATMs
- Fees for special services, such as stop-payment fees, fees for balance inquiries or verification of deposits, fees associated with checks returned unpaid, and fees for regularly sending to consumers checks that otherwise would be held by the institution. Official Interpretations, §1030.4(b)(4) – 1.
Examples of fees that may not be grouped together are:
- Monthly maintenance and excess-activity fees.
- “Transfer” fees, if different dollar amounts are imposed, such as $.50 for deposits and $1.00 for withdrawals.
- Fees for electronic fund transfers and fees for other services, such as balance-inquiry or maintenance fees.
- Fees for paying overdrafts and fees for returning checks or other items unpaid. Official Interpretations, §1030.6(a)(3) – 2.
For overdraft fees and fees and charges for returning items unpaid, the total dollar amount for the statement period and the year-to-date must be disclosed. The term, “Total Overdraft Fees” must be used when the aggregate overdraft fees are disclosed. 12 CFR §1030.11(a).