GOA On ATM Fees: Surcharge On The Rise

The Government Accountability Office has recently released a study on ATMs and consumer fees, and their findings may not surprise you. Surcharge fees are still on the rise, and show no signs of slowing down.

According to the GAO, ATM surcharge fees assessed by financial institutions (FIs) have increased from 2007-2012, while foreign fees have largely remained consistent. ATM surcharge fees have jumped from $1.75 in 2007 to $2.10 in 2012. The range of surcharge fees the GAO found sat at $0.45 on the low end last year, to a whopping $5.00 at the other extreme.

What other stats did the GAO find? We break down the numbers in this PYMNTS Data Point.

ATM Surcharge Fees: A Six-Year History

According to the report, the average ATM surcharge fee increased from around $1.75 dollars in 2007 to a bit over $2.10 in 2012. The growth for such fees has been pretty linear over the past six years, rising to just shy of $2.00 in 2009 and remaining mostly level with a slight increase ever since. The percentage of FIs with surcharge fees dropped slightly below 90 percent in 2008, but has increased to around 95 percent since.

Surcharge By Size, Type, Location And Region

The GAO broke down the average surcharge for FIs by size, type, location and region in 2012, and found some interesting results. The study found that the larger the institution, the higher the average surcharge fee, with small FIs just reaching $2.01 while the average for a large FI sat at $2.25. The amount for small FIs sat at around $2.17.

Banks had higher surcharge fees than did credit unions, while FIs in large cities and suburban areas has higher (albeit not dramatically so) surcharge rates than FIs in rural areas and small cities.

Interesting, FIs in the south had the highest average surcharge fees, coming in at around $2.20, with western FIs finishing second at around $2.15. Eastern and Midwestern FI’s both sat at right around $2.10.

To read more ATM surcharge stats from the GOA, download the full report here.