What’s our role as a bank in helping you manage the funds in your account? And how can you best use our services to avoid an overdrawn account?
As your bank, we provide a safe place for you to keep your funds while protecting it from any potential threats.
How We Help Protect Your Funds
An Armed Forces Bank checking account is one way to help safeguard your funds. Part of what we do is exchange funds with other banks, businesses, and retailers as you make purchases. We further offer several loan options to fund unexpected expenses, college, vacations, remodeling, and home purchases. Subject to credit approval.
With Digital Banking, it’s easy to access and manage your account. You can see recent deposits and other transactions and stay on top of your daily available balance. This tool is a great way to help monitor your account, pay bills, transfer funds, and more.
Managing Your Funds & Understanding Overdrafts
To avoid overdrafts on your account, your deposits should always exceed your withdrawals. When you use your Armed Forces Bank Debit Card or write a check, you promise the seller that we will pay them from your account. Without sufficient funds, your account will overdraw. Repeatedly overdrawing your account, having insufficient funds to pay bills or loans, and bouncing checks can negatively impact your credit score.
For example, if Chris writes a check to his grocery store for $135, not knowing he has only $121 in his account, he’s committing to giving them more funds than his current account balance can accommodate. When the grocery store deposits the check with their bank, their bank will contact Chris’ bank to secure the promised payment.
If there aren’t enough funds in Chris’ account to cover the promised payment, this causes the account to be overdrawn. The check is returned to the grocery store’s bank, which tells the grocery store that Chris’ check did not deliver on its promise and he could not pay for his entire purchase. This results in Chris’account becoming overdrawn and fees charged to the account.