How to Avoid Bank Freedom Fees and FAQ
Every prepaid card has fees. The Bank Freedom prepaid debit card is no exception. However, there are many ways to avoid being charged these fees when using your card. Let’s take a quick look at the most common fees and ways you can avoid them.
Monthly Fees
The Bank Freedom Prepaid MasterCard has a monthly charge of $5.00. This fee however, can be avoided by using some simple and easy to implement strategies. To avoid being charged this monthly fee, you simple have to deposit at least $500. This can done through either direct deposit or by loading money at any cash retail load locations.
ATM Cash Withdrawal Fees
There is a $2.50 ATM withdrawal fee on top of what the ATM charges you at any ATM in the United States. International ATM withdrawals carry a $4.00 charge on top of the surcharge charges by the ATM. These fees can add up quickly. To avoid the ATM withdrawal fees you need to use any of the 18,000 ATM “MoneyPass” locations that have no surcharge or fees at all. For smaller cash withdrawals we recommend you use the cash back function available at many retailers.
Paper Statements
When you receive paper statements from Bank Freedom, they come along with a $2.00 charge. To avoid this, simply request paperless statements and you will no longer be charged the $2.00. Each month, you account statement will be emailed to you.
Alternative Bill Pay Options
“We understand that not all bills can be paid with your prepaid card so instead of you paying $2.00 – $3.00 to purchase a money order, stamps, and envelopes you can use our on-line bill pay system to make electronic payments and/or send paper checks from your cardholder website. There is a $1.00 Electronic Bill Pay Fee and a $1.00 Paper Check Bill Pay Fee” Source
Don’t Check your Balance at the ATM
Each time you use an ATM to check your balance, you are charged a fee. This is completely unnecessary and completely wrong in my opinion. To avoid this nasty fee, you need to sign up for “No Charge” email and text alerts. This way, each time you use your card you will receive a text message notifying you of your new balance. Also, at anytime you can text “BAL” to 42265 and you will receive a text message with your current account balance.
