One of the worst things in life is ATM fees. The decision to give away free money should be a tough choice but it is one most of us make all too easily. If you are a serial ATM fee payer, read on for our top tips to stop paying money for nothing.
Paying ATMs is really paying for lack of foresight and for your convenience at a certain time. The best way to avoid paying any fees is by being prepared. Make a rule with yourself that you will always carry a certain amount of cash in your wallet, say $50, then set a limit that you will not pass below. Therefore if you spend $30 you know you need to go to an ATM because you have hit your threshold of $20. This gives you time to pass by your ATM and avoid paying any fees.
If your bank’s ATMs are few and far between then it is a good idea to change banks. While this may seem like a silly reason to it, you are losing up to 9% of your transaction to bank fees. If you play this out over a number of years it starts to add up to a considerable amount of money.
International fees are the worst. It is impossible to avoid paying a fee when you are overseas but you can still be smart about it. Before you go overseas shop around for the lowest international rates in your destination country. It could be worth opening an account while you are on vacation. If fees can’t be avoided then make sure you take the maximum amount out of an ATM if you have to use it. Then always try and pay with a card overseas, the card fees are generally lower than the ATM fees.
While ATM fees are sometimes unavoidable they should be kept to a minimum. Think of all the small treats that you refuse to buy because you are saving money and then ask yourself why you are so willing to give a bank this money for nothing. Start spending smarter.
