Here are answers to frequently asked questions about Courtesy Pay.
1. What is Courtesy Pay?
Courtesy Pay covers transactions drawn on your account when you do not have enough money to cover the items. It is only utilized if you have authorized the service.
Courtesy Pay is accessed if funds are not available for transfer from savings, a designated deposit account, Visa, or line of credit, or if you request Courtesy Pay to be
accessed first. Courtesy Pay is extended 60 days after an account is opened, to all accounts that have elected coverage and are in good standing.
There are two levels of Courtesy Pay coverage available. An overdraft item fee is the same in both levels. For both options, you only pay for the service if you use it.
Basic Courtesy Pay.(Note: Basic Courtesy Pay becomes available August 15, 2010. If you select Basic, you will receive Complete coverage until August 15, 2010.) Covers overdraft transactions using:
For both Basic and Complete Courtesy Pay, you have either a $500 or $1,000 privilege based on the amount of deposits coming in to your account.
Your Courtesy Pay privilege amount is determined in the following way:
All eligible accounts that have deposits totaling over $1,000 or more per month will receive a $1,000 Courtesy Pay privilege.
All other eligible accounts will receive a $500 Courtesy Pay privilege.
The $1,000 Courtesy Pay privilege amount is evaluated monthly and is based on the previous calendar month's total deposit amount. If your deposit amount changes, your Courtesy Pay privilege amount may change without additional notice.
Courtesy Pay is extended 60 days after an account is opened, to all accounts that have elected coverage and are in good standing.
Overdraft(s) on your checking may be honored, up to the Courtesy Pay limit (including fees) at Sound's discretion. A $29 service fee will be assessed for each check,
automatic withdrawal (ACH), ATM transaction, debit card transaction or any other item that brings your account negative. You will have up to 30 days to bring your account current,
either through a direct deposit, transfer of funds, deposits received through the mail, or at one of our branches.
3. What does it cost to have Courtesy Pay?
There are no set-up or maintenance fees to have Courtesy Pay on an account. You only pay for it if you use it. When Courtesy Pay is activated, there is a
$29 fee for each transaction that brings the account negative. There is no limit of the total fees that can be charged on an overdrawn account.
4. How do I add Courtesy Pay to my account?
You must opt-in to Courtesy Pay to receive coverage.
Opting-in is easy, simply let us know! You can add Courtesy Pay to your account one of three ways:
Call: 253.383.2016 or 800.562.8130
Online: soundcu.com, log in to your account through online banking
Courtesy Pay is extended 60 days after an account is opened, to all accounts that have elected coverage and are in good standing.
You only pay for this coverage when Courtesy Pay is accessed. Coverage will stay in place as long as you bring your account positive within 30 days of the initial overdraft.
You, or any joint owner, may add or remove this service at any time.
5. What if I already have Overdraft Protection?
If you already have designated other overdraft protection sources (i.e. transfer from a savings, Visa, and/or a loan), they will be activated first, and in the order you have designated.
If there is no overdraft protection, or after the other account types have been depleted, Courtesy Pay will be activated.
6. How will I know when Courtesy Pay is activated?
You can set up eAlerts through Online Banking for instant notification by email or text. After ten days we will mail a written notice advising you of
any outstanding balance when items have been paid using Courtesy Pay.
7. How do I repay the overdrafts?
Repayment of the overdraft is required within 30 days. If you have additional overdraft items during those 30 days, a Courtesy Pay fee will be assessed for each transaction.
Your account must be brought positive on or before the 30th day from the date of the initial overdraft. Any deposits received during the 30 days will be applied first to the overdrawn account.
8. What if I exceed my privilege amount?
If you reach your Courtesy Pay privilege limit, through transactions and fees, additional overdraft items will not be paid. Our standard non-sufficient funds (NSF) fee will be assessed
and you may be subject to additional merchant fees.
9. How does Sound clear transactions on my account?
Sound Credit Union does four very important things, which other institutions may not, to help you save money with the Courtesy Pay Program.
ACH deposits (payroll, Social Security, etc.) are posted before clearing account transactions.
We clear your transactions from "low to high" in each file that we receive, which means we clear the small dollar amount transactions before the large ones.
This assures that more items clear your account before Courtesy Pay is accessed, and you experience fewer Courtesy Pay or Non-sufficient Funds (NSF) fees. (See example below.)
Funds are transferred first from your savings (or another designated account) before accessing Courtesy Pay. The charge for a transfer is $5 instead of the normal CP fee.
Upon request we'd be happy to refund one overdraft fee every calendar year.1
Sound Credit Union Clearing Items Low to High
$ Amount
$ Account Balance
Beginning balance
1,000
Coffee
10
990
Lunch
12
978
Clothes
75
903
Utilities
99
804
Rent
1,100
(296)
Overdraft Fee
29
(325)
Total Overdrafts: 1 Total Overdraft Fees: $29
Other Institutions Clearing Items High to Low
$ Amount
$ Account Balance
Beginning balance
1,000
Rent
1,100
(100)
Overdraft Fee
29
(129)
Utilities
99
(228)
Overdraft Fee
29
(257)
Clothes
75
(332)
Overdraft Fee
29
(361)
Lunch
12
(373)
Overdraft Fee
29
(402)
Coffee
10
(412)
Overdraft Fee
29
(441)
Total Overdrafts: 5 Total Overdraft Fees: $145
Please note: PIN based debit transactions clear at the time of the transaction.
11. What if I would like to opt-out of having this service?
You, or any joint owner, may choose to remove the Courtesy Pay service at any time. Let us know in one of the following ways:
Call: 253.383.2016 or 800.562.8130
Online: soundcu.com, log in to your account through online banking
If you choose to opt-out of this service, any transaction that may overdraw your account may be returned, and the
standard NSF fee will be assessed. You may also be subject to additional fees from the merchant.
If money is owed on the account due to previous Courtesy Pay usage, you, or any joint owner, will still be responsible for repayment, including fees.
10. What happens if I cannot bring my account to a positive balance?
If the account cannot be brought to a positive balance within the 30 day repayment period, the
Courtesy Pay privilege will be suspended and/or removed and collection procedures will be initiated. Sound reserves the right to cancel or temporarily suspend Courtesy Pay at any time.
This notice does not constitute either a written agreement of an obligation, or a pre-arranged agreement for Sound Credit Union to pay your
overdrafts. Payments of any overdraft(s) will continue at the discretion of Sound Credit Union. The Courtesy Pay service may be withdrawn or suspended at any time.
Courtesy Pay fee is $29. A Courtesy Pay fee will be assessed for every item covered under your elected Courtesy Pay program. Items are paid "low to high" in each file
we receive, which means we clear small dollar amount items before large ones. You then have 30 days from your first overdraft to being your account current.
All fees associated with the payment of overdraft items will be applied to the Courtesy Pay limit. At any time, you, or a joint account owner, may choose to remove
the Courtesy Pay service be calling Sound Credit Union's Contact Center at 253.383.2016 or 800.562.8130, logging into your account through Online Banking at
soundcu.com, or visiting any branch.
1Calendar year example: January 1, 2010 to December 31, 2010.
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