Overdraft Protection and Non-Sufficient Funds

Overview

State Farm Bank® understands that situations happen that cause your account to become overdrawn and Non-Sufficient Funds (NSF) Fees to be charged. We want to help you avoid these costly fees. This information is designed to help you understand these fees, what causes them, and how to prevent them.

Definitions

Non-Sufficient Funds - This happens when your account does not have enough money to pay an item. An item may include a check, pre-authorized or recurring transfer, electronic bill payment, or electronic transfer initiated through our Online Funds Transfer System.

NSF Fees - State Farm Bank has the right to pay or return an item unpaid when your account does not have enough money. When this happens, there are two types of fees that you may be charged:

  • NSF Overdraft Fee - If we pay an item, you may be charged an NSF Overdraft Fee.
  • NSF Returned Items Fee - If we return an item unpaid, you may be charged a NSF Returned Items Fee.

Overdraft Protection - This is a service that provides protection on your State Farm Bank Free Checking, Interest Checking, and Money Market Savings to prevent your account(s) from becoming overdrawn and being charged NSF Fees. With Overdraft Protection, when your account does not have enough money to pay an item, money is transferred for a small fee from your selected Protecting Account and you are not charged a large NSF Overdraft Fee or NSF Returned Items Fee.

What’s the difference? - Overdraft Protection is a service that is available to you to prevent your account from becoming overdrawn or not having enough money to pay an item. NSF results in your account not having enough money to pay an item and may cause you to be charged an NSF Fee.

Overdraft Protection

Overdraft Protection is a service that provides protection on your State Farm Bank Free Checking, Interest Checking, and Money Market Savings to prevent your account(s) from becoming overdrawn and being charged Non-Sufficient Funds (NSF) Fees. With Overdraft Protection, when your account does not have enough money to pay an item, money is transferred for a small fee from your selected Protecting Account (either a deposit account or a credit card) and you are not charged an NSF Fee.

Learn more:

  • Benefits

    Easy and Free Enrollment - Overdraft Protection can be requested at any time. There is no cost to enroll; simply contact State Farm Bank at 1-877-SF4-Bank (1-877-734-2265) and a representative will help you set up Overdraft Protection for your account. Your Overdraft Protection will begin when we receive your signed Overdraft Protection Agreement.

    Low Cost - Minimal fees are charged when Overdraft Protection is used. The Overdraft Protection Transfer Fee can be significantly lower than NSF Fees.

    Peace of Mind - With Overdraft Protection on your account, you can rest easy. As long as you have sufficient funds in your protecting account or are not over the credit limit on your credit card, you will not be charged costly NSF fees or have to worry about items being returned to the presenting party unpaid.

  • How it Works

    You can sign up for Overdraft Protection on your State Farm Bank Free Checking, Interest Checking and Money Market Savings to prevent non-sufficient funds (NSF) charges. You may choose up to 2 (two) Protecting Accounts, one to be the Primary Protecting Account and one to be the Secondary Protecting Account.

    The following State Farm Bank accounts can be used as Protecting Account(s):


    Overdraft Protection applies to any item processed on your account. If your account does not have enough money to pay an item and you have signed up for Overdraft Protection, State Farm Bank will transfer money from the Protecting Account(s) to the protected account in increments of $25. The balance in the Protecting Account(s) must be enough to cover the amount of non-sufficient funds.

    Transfers being made from a savings or Money Market Savings will be limited to the six (6) debit transactions per month limitation prescribed by Federal regulation (Learn More). The number of transfers from a State Farm Bank Free Checking, Interest Checking, or State Farm Visa® credit card is unlimited.

  • Cost/Fees

    The following fees may be charged to your account when Overdraft Protection is used.

    Overdraft Protection Transfer Fee - An Overdraft Protection Transfer Fee of $3 per transfer will be charged to the account that the money is transferred to. Money will be transferred in increments of $25, but the fee is not charged per increment. For example, whether you need to transfer $275 to cover three items or you need to transfer $25 to cover one item, you will still be charged just $3.

    Cash Advance Fee - When money is transferred from a VISA® Credit Card for Overdraft Protection, the money transferred will be processed as a cash advance. As a result, a Cash Advance Fee may also be charged on transfers from a State Farm Visa® Credit Card. Either $10 or 4% of the amount transferred for Overdraft Protection, whichever is greater, will be charged to the credit card. See your credit card agreement for a complete list of terms and conditions.

  • How to Enroll

    You may enroll in Overdraft Protection at any time (either when you open the account or after the account has been opened). To request Overdraft Protection, call the Bank at 1-877-SF4-BANK (1-877-734-2265). Your Overdraft Protection will begin when we receive your signed Overdraft Protection Agreement.

Non-Sufficient Funds (NSF)

Non-Sufficient Funds - means your account does not have enough money to pay an item. An item may include a check, a pre-authorized or recurring transfer, a bill payment, or an electronic transfer initiated through our Online Funds Transfer System.

  • How NSF Happens

    NSF can happen for many reasons. Maybe you forgot to record a check that you wrote, maybe you accidentally scheduled a payment to be made before your paycheck was deposited in your account, or maybe it was a simple mathematical error.

    When an item comes to State Farm Bank® to be paid from your account, if your account does not have enough money to pay the item, State Farm Bank has the right to pay or return the item. When this happens, there are two types of fees that you may be charged:

    • NSF Overdraft Fee - If we pay an item, you may be charged a NSF Overdraft Fee.
    • NSF Returned Items Fee - If we return an item unpaid to the presenting party, you may be charged a NSF Returned Items Fee. State Farm Bank does not resubmit checks that have been previously returned.

    The order in which transactions are processed and cleared can affect the total amount of NSF fees incurred.

  • Cost/Fees

    Without Overdraft Protection, if you overdraw your account, one of the following NSF fees may be charged, depending on whether the item was paid or returned:

    • NSF Overdraft Fee - If we pay an item, you may be charged $25 per item that your account does not have enough money to pay.
    • NSF Returned Items Fee - If we return the item unpaid, you may be charged a $25 NSF Returned Items Fee for each item.

    Your account will be charged a maximum of 3 Overdraft and/or Returned Items Fees per day.

  • Understanding Your Available Balance

    There are two types of account balances you should understand.

    • Current Balance - The Current Balance reflects the amount of money in your account at this time. It reflects all deposits and payments that have been processed through your account. It does not reflect any pending direct deposits, payments, transfers, or outstanding checks.
    • Available Balance - The Available Balance of your account reflects the Current Balance plus or minus pending direct deposits, payments, and transfers that have been scheduled from your State Farm Bank account.

    Keep in mind that neither your current nor your available balance includes outstanding checks or other items that have not yet come to State Farm Bank. This amount must be calculated by you. It is very important that you keep close track of all items that will be coming in and out of your account in order to avoid overdrawing.

    You can determine whether you will have enough money in your account by subtracting any outstanding items from the Available Balance and adding any incoming funds. Here are a few examples:

    • If your Available Balance is $1000 and you have written a check for $100, but the person you gave the check to has not yet cashed the check, you should consider there to be $900 in your account since that check could come out at any time. ($1000 -$100 =$900)
    • In the same way, if your Available Balance is $1000 and you have a direct deposit of $500 that will be deposited tomorrow and $800 of bills being paid tomorrow as well, your account balance will be $700. ($1000+ $500 -$800 =$700)

    State Farm Bank offers several ways for you to get your Current or Available account balances.

    • Call us at 1-877-SF4-BANK (1-877-734-2265) and say “Access My Account” to begin. By simply speaking, without having to push any buttons, you can get account balances or be directed to speak with a live representative.
    • Online. - The “Account Activity” screen in your online account provides the Current Balance and the Available Balance.
    • Email or Text Alerts - Alerts allow you to get current and available balances via e-mail or text. You can set up a variety of alerts for your account via the Customer Service tab on your online account by clicking on “Manage Alerts.”
    • Text Banking - Text Banking allows you to text State Farm Bank to find out information about your accounts. For example, you can text BAL to 42265 (4BANK) and receive a text with your account balance or text MINI to 42265 (4BANK) and receive a text with the last 5 transactions. If you have a State Farm Visa® CheckCard or ATM Card, Register Now.
    • More Tips and Tools.

Tips and Tools

There are many different ways for you to keep track of your account balance and help you avoid overdrawing your account. Here are a few tips and tools to check out:

  • Overdraft Protection

    Overdraft Protection is a service that prevents your State Farm Bank Free Checking, Interest Checking, and Money Market Savings from becoming overdrawn and being charged Non-Sufficient Funds (NSF) Fees. With Overdraft Protection, when your account does not have enough money to pay an item, money is transferred for a small fee from your selected Protecting Account (either a deposit account or a credit card) and you are not charged an NSF Overdraft Fee or an NSF Returned Items Fee. We know that you hope to never need it, but isn't it nice to have just in case?

    Learn More

  • Text Banking

    Text Banking allows you to text State Farm Bank to find out information about your accounts through text. With this service, you can text the State Farm Bank short code and be texted back your balance or the last five transactions on your account anytime, anywhere. This way, you can find out if those checks you wrote have been cashed yet, if your direct deposit is available, or if your account balance is getting low.

    If you have a State Farm Bank account, click here to Enroll Now!

  • Alerts

    Alerts allow you to get information about your account via e-mail or text so you can always know when your balance is getting low, when that check you've been waiting on has been processed, when the deposit you're expecting is available, when your automatic bill pay has been paid, and much more.

    You can see a full list of alerts available and manage alerts for all of your accounts via the Customer Service tab on your online account by clicking on “Manage Alerts.”

  • Online Banking

    You can use online banking to do almost anything you'd need to do with your accounts. All your online and mobile banking is free, so you can transfer money, pay bills, and manage all the ins and outs of your accounts on your computer. With online banking you can:

    • Transfer money from one of your State Farm Bank accounts to another instantly so you'll have enough money to cover that bill that's going out tomorrow.
    • Manage all of your bills quickly and easily from one place.
    • Deposit a check with your home scanner to cover the payments that are about to come out of your account.
    • Reschedule the automatic transfer you have set up to go out to after your direct deposit is processed so you won't overdraw.
    • Stop a check that you accidentally mailed to the wrong place or wrote for the wrong amount.
    • And tons more!

    Learn More, Watch our Demo, or Register today!

  • Mobile Banking

    Wherever you go, mobile banking with State Farm Bank® is there. It's powerful banking – anytime, anywhere – in the palm of your hand. You can use a smartphone to do many of the same things you can do from a computer, like deposit a check with MyTime Deposit, pay bills, cancel payments, and transfer funds in order to keep close tabs on your accounts and make sure you're never in a place where you need to use Overdraft Protection!

    Learn More

  • MyTime Deposit®

    With MyTime Deposit®, you can make deposits to your State Farm Bank account anytime, anywhere! If you have a smartphone or a desktop scanner, you can deposit a check without having to visit a bank to make sure there's enough money in your account to cover your bills!

    Learn More

  • Direct Deposits

    If you set up a direct deposit into your account for a paycheck or other recurring amount, your deposits will be available sooner and more conveniently! To set up a direct deposit, contact your employer. We have provided the below form that you can print, complete, and give to your employer or other fund originator to get your direct deposit started soon.

    Download PDF Form

  • Contact Us

Fees

  • Overdraft Protection Enrollment

    Free to sign up

  • Overdraft Protection Transfer Fee

    When Overdraft Protection is triggered, an Overdraft Protection Transfer Fee of $3 per transfer will be charged to the account that the money is transferred to. Money will be transferred in increments of $25, but the fee is not charged per increment. For example, whether you need to transfer $275 to cover three items or you need to transfer $25 to cover one item, you will still be charged just $3.

  • Cash Advance Fee

    When money is transferred from a VISA® Credit Card for Overdraft Protection, the money transferred will be processed as a cash advance. As a result, a Cash Advance Fee may also be charged on transfers from a State Farm Visa® Credit Card. This will be in addition to your Overdraft Protection Transfer Fee. The Cash Advance Fee is $10 or 4% of the amount transferred for Overdraft Protection, whichever is greater. (Cash advances are subject to cash advance transaction fees and finance charges from the date the transaction posts to your account. The finance charge on each cash advance with accrue daily from the transaction date or the first day of the billing cycle during which the cash advance is posted to the account. Interest rates for cash advances are typically higher than purchase rate. See your credit card agreement for a complete list of terms and conditions.)

  • Non-Sufficient Funds (NSF) Fee

    $25 per overdraft item, maximum of 3 Overdraft and/or Returned Items Fees per day.

    When you have an NSF item, you will be charged either a $25 Overdraft fee when the item is paid and your account balance goes below zero OR you will be charged a $25 Returned Items Fee if the item is not paid and it is returned to the presenting party.

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