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CU*Advance Change in Terms Paperwork Stack

Change in Terms - CU*Advance Non-Return Program

Effective 02/15/2021 This Change of Terms notice informs you of any changes that have been made to the CU*Advance Non-Return Program.  The following disclosure will replace the disclosure titled CU*Advance Non-Return Program effective as of 02/15/2021.  Please take a moment to review the changes.

 

CU*Advance Non-Return Program and Your Liability for Overdrafts 

PLEASE REVIEW THIS POLICY CAREFULLY.  IF YOU DO NOT UNDERSTAND ANY PROVISION IN THIS POLICY, OR IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, PLEASE CONTACT US AT 616-451-4567, OR VISIT ANY BRANCH.  IN THE EVENT OF A CONFLICT BETWEEN THIS POLICY AND THE MEMBERSHIP AND ACCOUNT AGREEMENT, THIS POLICY WILL CONTROL.

A. GENERAL.

  1. What Does it Mean to Overdraw Your Account? “Overdrawing” your account means that there are not sufficient available funds (as described in Section B below) in your account to pay for a transaction, resulting in a negative or “overdrawn” balance.  Some transactions that can result in an overdraft in your account include, but are not limited to:
  • the payment of checks, electronic fund transfers, telephone-initiated transactions, preauthorized payments under our Bill Payment Service, debit card transactions, or other withdrawal requests authorized by you;
  • the return (unpaid) of items deposited by you;
  • the assessment of service charges by us; or
  • the deposit of items that are treated as not yet “available” according to our Funds Availability Policy Disclosure.
  1. What Happens if the Credit Union Refuses to Pay the Item? If you overdraw your account, we may return the item unpaid, commonly known as a return for “non-sufficient funds” or “NSF”.  It is important to understand that the Credit Union has no control over how many times an intended payee will resubmit an item to us for payment.  When we return an item unpaid, we will assess you an NSF Fee each time the item is presented to us for payment.  There is no limit on the number of NSF Fees we may assess against your account.  NSF items are described in more detail in Section D.
  2. What Happens if the Credit Union Pays the Item? If you overdraw your account and we pay the item, we may do so in one of two ways:
  • through standard overdraft practices that come with your account, which we call the “CU*Advance Non-Return Program”; or
  • through an overdraft protection plan, which we call “Overdraft Transfer Service”

You can elect to decline either of these services at any time, which may result in your transactions being declined for non-sufficient funds if the available balance in your account is insufficient to pay for your transaction.

The Credit Union also offers an overdraft line of credit for qualifying members.  Policy describes only our CU*Advance Non-Return and Overdraft Transfer Services.  If you have questions regarding applying for an overdraft line of credit, please contact the Credit Union for additional information.

  1. Your Obligation to Keep Records of Your Transactions. While we provide the CU*Advance Non-Return Program and the Overdraft Transfer Service for your convenience and as a way to help you avoid overdrafts, NSF transactions, and associated fees, you are responsible for keeping track of the funds in your account that are available for you to use before you write a check, preauthorize a payment under our Bill Payment service, authorize an ACH transaction, make a cash withdrawal at an ATM, or use your debit card for a transaction. Among other things, you should keep a running balance that reflects all of your transactions. It is imperative that you keep track of the transactions you may have authorized (such as outstanding checks or automatic bill payments), as your available balance (discussed in more detail below) may not reflect these transactions until they are paid from your account.

 B. YOUR AVAILABLE BALANCE.

  1. Actual Balance Versus Available Balance. Your checking account has two kinds of balances: the “actual” balance and the “available” balance. Both can be checked when you review your account online, at a Credit Union-owned ATM, through CU*Talk, or at a branch.  Actual balance is referred to as current balance on CU*Talk.  It is important to understand how these two balances work so that you know how much money is available to you in your account at any given time. This section explains actual and available balances and how they work.
  2. Your “Actual Balance”. Your “actual” balance is the amount of money that is actually in your account at any given time, but not all funds included in the actual balance are considered “available” for transactions on your account. The actual balance is also sometimes referred to as your “ledger balance”. Your actual balance reflects transactions that have posted to your account, but it does not reflect transactions that have been authorized and are pending or deposits that may be on hold. While the term “actual” may sound as though the number you see is an up-to-date indication of what is in your account that you can spend, that is not always the case because any purchases, holds, fees, other charges, or deposits made on your account that have not yet posted will not appear in your actual balance. For example:
  • assume you have a $50 actual balance, but you just wrote a check for $40, then your actual balance is $50 but it does not reflect the pending check transaction. Though your actual balance of $50, you have already spent $40.
  1. Your “Available Balance”. Your available balance is the amount of money in your account that is available to you to use without incurring a fee. The available balance takes into account factors such as holds placed on deposits and pending transactions, like pending debit card purchases, that the Credit Union has authorized, but that have not yet posted or settled to your account. For example:
  • assume you have an actual balance of $50. If you were to use your debit card at a restaurant to buy lunch for $20, then that merchant could ask us to pre-authorize the payment in that amount (or even a different amount). If the merchant requests preauthorization in the amount of $20, we will place a “hold” on your account for $20 (referred to as an “authorization hold”). Your actual balance will still be $50 because this transaction has not yet posted, but your available balance will be $30 because of the restaurant’s $20 preauthorization request. When the merchant submits its bill for payment (which could be days later and for a different amount than the amount of the authorization hold), we will release the authorization hold, post the transaction to your account, and your actual balance will be reduced by the amount of the posted transaction.
  1. Your Available Balance and Non-Debit Card Transactions. For electronic funds transfers (ACH), checks, bill payments, and any other non-debit card transactions, we use your available balance at the time a transaction posts to determine whether your account is overdrawn and whether a fee will be assessed.   For information on how your available balance works with respect to debit card transactions, please see Section C.

C. AUTHORIZATION HOLDS FOR DEBIT CARD TRANSACTIONS.

  1. What is an Authorization Hold? When you use your debit card to pay for goods or services, the merchant may seek preauthorization from us for the transaction. When we preauthorize the transaction, we commit to make the requested funds available when the transaction finally posts and as such, we generally place a temporary hold against some or all of the funds in the account linked to your debit card, based on the amount of the preauthorization request from the merchant. We refer to this temporary hold as an “authorization hold,” and the amount of the authorization hold will be subtracted from your available balance as authorization requests are received by us throughout each day.
  2. How Does an Authorization Hold Affect Your Available Balance? Until the transaction finally settles or we otherwise remove the hold (for example, we may remove the hold because it exceeds the time permitted or we determine that it is unlikely to be processed), the funds subject to the hold will not be available to you for other purposes. At some point after you sign for the transaction, it is processed by the merchant and submitted to us for payment. This can happen hours or sometimes days after you signed for it, depending on the merchant and its processing company. We have no control over when a merchant may present an item for payment.  Merchant payment requests are received in real time throughout the day and are posted to your account as they are received.
  3. The Amount of an Authorization Hold May Differ from the Amount of the Actual Transaction. The amount of an authorization hold may differ from the actual transaction amount because the actual transaction amount may not yet be known to the merchant when the authorization request is submitted. For example, this can happen in connection with transactions where your debit card is authorized before your actual transaction amount is known, such as at a restaurant (where you may choose to add a tip to the transaction amount) or a gas station. For these types of transactions, there may be no authorization hold, or the amount of the authorization hold may be different from the transaction amount. In some other cases we may not receive an authorization request from the merchant, and there will be no authorization hold reflected in your available balance. We cannot control how much a merchant asks us to authorize, or when a merchant submits a transaction for payment.
  4. Length of an Authorization Hold. We are permitted to place an authorization hold on your account for up to three (3) business days (or for up to thirty (30) business days for certain types of debit card transactions) from the time of the authorization or until the transaction is paid from your account. However, if the transaction is not submitted for payment, we will release the authorization hold, which will increase your available balance until the transaction is submitted for payment by the merchant and finally posted to your account. If this happens, we must honor the prior authorization and will pay the transaction from your account.

In certain instances, when the amount of the authorization hold is either more or less than the amount of the actual transaction, we may maintain the authorization hold even after the purchase amount is actually paid from your account, which will decrease your available balance. However, in these instances, we will not maintain an authorization hold for longer than three (3) business days (or for up thirty (30) business days for certain transactions).

  1. Your Available Balance and Debit Card Transactions. Everyday debit card transactions are processed against your account at two different times:  first, when the transaction is authorized, and again when the transaction actually settles to your account, usually days later.  This delay between the time a particular transaction is authorized and when it actually settles to your account is solely within the control of the merchant and its processor.  The Credit Union has no control with respect to the time period that elapses between the time a merchant seeks authorization and finally submits the transaction for settlement.

For debit card transactions, we use your available balance at the time a transaction is authorized and again when the transaction settles to your account to determine if each specific transaction will overdraw your account and whether a fee will be assessed.  It is important to remember that your available balance may not reflect all of your transactions.

When the Credit Union authorizes an everyday debit transaction, the amount of the transaction is subject to a preauthorization hold.  This means that the amount of the transaction is subtracted from your actual balance.  It is important to understand that even if you have sufficient available funds in your account at the time the transaction is authorized, it is possible that the settlement of the transaction may result in an overdraft to your account, and the incurring of a fee.  The two most common scenarios are as follows:

  • Example 1: Purchase transactions where the final amount is initially unknown. The most common examples of a purchase transaction where the final amount is initially unknown are gas station purchases, restaurant charges, hotel and car reservations.  In such cases the transaction will be communicated to the Credit Union for authorization in one amount, but when the transaction actually settles your Account it does so for a greater amount.  For example, if you use your debit card to pay at the pump for a gasoline purchase, you typically must utilize your debit card before operating the pump.  The Credit Union may receive an authorization request in the amount of $15.00.  At the time of the authorization request, the available balance in your account is $30.00, so the Credit Union approves the authorization request, and the available balance in your account is reduced to $15.00.  You proceed with the transaction, and purchase gasoline totaling $40.00.  When that transaction actually settles to your Account in the amount of $40.00 as opposed to the $15.00 that was authorized, the available balance in your Account is not sufficient to cover the settlement of the preauthorized transaction.  Accordingly, the Credit Union’s payment of the preauthorized transaction results in an overdraft, and you will incur a fee (assuming you have opted into the Credit Union’s payment of overdrafts for everyday debit transactions).
  • Example 2: Purchase transactions where intervening items paid between authorization and settlement result in the overdrafting of your Account.  Assume the same gas station scenario as described in Example 1, except that you purchase gasoline totaling just $15.00, so the authorized amount of the transaction is the same as the settlement amount of the transaction.  However, between the day the transaction was authorized and the day the transaction settles to your account, a check you wrote in the amount of $35.00 is presented for payment.  The available balance in your account at the time of presentment is $15.00, but the Credit Union pays the item in accordance its CU*Advance Non-Return Program, resulting in an overdraft.  When the $15.00 gas station transaction actually settles to your account, the available balance in your account is not sufficient to cover the settlement of the preauthorized transaction, even though the settlement amount of the transaction is the same as the preauthorized amount of the transaction.  Accordingly, the Credit Union’s payment of the preauthorized transaction results in an additional overdraft, and you will incur a fee (assuming you have opted into the Credit Union’s payment of overdrafts for everyday debit transactions).

For debit card transactions involving merchant authorization holds, we look at the available balance at the time a transaction is authorized and again at settlement to determine whether the transaction will result in an overdraft and a fee.  If your available balance is insufficient to pay the preauthorization amount requested by a merchant, and you have not opted into the CU*Advance Non-Return Program for payment of everyday debit transactions, we will decline the request.   If your available balance is sufficient to cover a merchant’s authorization request, the authorization request will be approved and an authorization hold will be placed on your account in the amount of the merchant’s authorization request.

If your available balance is insufficient to cover a merchant’s authorization request, and you have opted in to the CU*Advance Non-Return Program for everyday debit transactions, we may choose to approve the authorization request.  In the instance where your available balance was insufficient to cover a merchant’s authorization request at the time of authorization without causing the account to have a negative balance, and we choose to authorize the transaction using CU*Advance Non-Return, we will charge a CU*Advance Fee on that transaction when it posts, regardless of the available balance in the account at the time of posting.

Note that transactions authorized with a merchant as recurring debit card transactions may be covered by CU*Advance Non-Return regardless of whether you have opted into the CU*Advance Non-Return Program for the payment of everyday debit card transactions.

D. PAYMENT OF OVERDRAFTS.

  1. The Credit Union Has No Obligation to Pay Your Overdrafts. We are not obligated to pay any item presented for payment if your account does not contain sufficient available funds. If we pay a transaction that overdraws your account, we are not obligated to continue paying such transactions in the future. We may pay all, some, or none of your overdrafts, without notice to you. You are liable to us to repay any overdrafts on your account whether you created them or not. If you do not pay us, and we take collection action against you, you agree to pay for any costs of collection. We may close, without notice, any account with excessive overdraft activity, and report the account to a consumer reporting agency.
  2. Fees Associated with Overdrawing Your Account – CU*Advance Non-Return Fees. We assess a fee each time an item is presented for payment that we either pay, resulting in an overdraft, or which we decline pay because payment of the item would result in an overdraft had we paid it. If we pay an item in accordance with the CU*Advance Non-Return Program, we will charge you a CU*Advance Fee. There is no limit on the total fees we can charge you for overdrafting your account.
  3. Fees Associated with Overdrawing Your Account – Overdraft Transfer Service. There are no fees associated with using our Overdraft Transfer Service.  If you have elected both the Overdraft Transfer Service and CU*Advance Non-Return, there are circumstances wherein you will be charged a CU*Advance Fee.  These circumstances are discussed in greater detail in Section F.  There is no limit to the total fees we can charge you for overdrafting your account.
  4. Fees Associated with Overdrawing Your Account – Non-Sufficient Funds Fees. If we do not pay an item, we will return the item and charge you a Non-Sufficient Funds Fee each time an item is presented for payment and we return it unpaid due to an insufficient available balance. We have no control over the number of times an intended payee may resubmit the same item to us for payment.  There is no limit on the total fees we can charge you for over drafting your account.
  5. Fee Schedule. Please refer to the Fee Schedule for a current listing of all fees associated with overdrawing your account.
  6. YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU MAY STILL OVERDRAW YOUR ACCOUNT EVEN THOUGH THE AVAILABLE BALANCE APPEARS TO SHOW THERE ARE SUFFICIENT AVAILABLE FUNDS TO COVER A TRANSACTION THAT YOU WANT TO MAKE. This is because your available balance may not reflect all of the outstanding checks, automatic bill payments that you have authorized, or other outstanding transactions that have not yet been paid from your account. For example, you may have written a check that is still outstanding because it has not been submitted for payment by the payee. That check will not be reflected in your available balance until it is presented to us and paid from your account.

In addition, your available balance may not reflect all of your debit card transactions. We have no control over when a merchant submits an item for payment.  For example, if a merchant obtains our prior authorization but does not submit an everyday debit card transaction for payment within three (3) business days of authorization (or for up to thirty (30) business days for certain types of debit card transactions including, but not limited to, car rental transactions and international transactions), we are required to release the authorization hold on the transaction. Your available balance will not reflect this transaction once the hold has been released. Please refer to the section entitled “Authorization Holds for Debit Card Transactions” below for information about how authorization holds affect your available balance.

Finally, your available balance may not reflect the most recent deposits to your account. Please refer to the Funds Availability Disclosure for information regarding the availability of your deposits for withdrawal.

E.  HOW TRANSACTIONS ARE POSTED TO YOUR ACCOUNT.

Basically, there are two types of transactions that affect your account: credits (deposits of money into your account) and debits (payments out of your account). It is important to understand how each is applied to your account so that you know how much money you have and how much is available to you at any given time. This section explains generally how and when we post transactions to your account.

  • Deposits are generally added to your account when we receive them. However, in some cases when you deposit a check, the full amount of the deposit may not be available to you at the time of deposit. Please refer to the Funds Availability Policy Disclosure provided at the time you opened your account for details regarding the timing and availability of funds from deposits.
  • There are several types of debit transactions. Common debit transactions are generally described below. Keep in mind that there are many ways transactions are presented for payment by merchants, and we are not necessarily in control of when transactions are received.
  • When you write a check, it is processed through the Federal Reserve system. We receive data files of cashed checks from the Federal Reserve each day. The checks drawn on your account are compiled from these data files and paid each day. We process the payments from low to high dollar value.
  • ACH Payments. We receive data files every day from the Federal Reserve with Automated Clearing House (ACH) transactions. These include, for example, automatic bill payments you have authorized. ACH transactions for your account are posted at the end of the day in order of receipt.
  • PIN-Based Debit Card Purchase Transactions. These are purchase transactions using your debit card for which a merchant may require you to enter your personal identification number (PIN) at the time of sale. They are processed through a PIN debit network. These transactions are similar to ATM withdrawal transactions because the money is usually deducted from your account immediately at the time of the transaction. However, depending on the merchant, a PIN-based transaction may not be immediately presented for payment. The Credit Union has no control over when a merchant may submit a transaction to us for payment.
  • Signature-Based Debit Card Purchase Transactions. These are purchase transactions using your debit card that are processed through a signature-based network. Rather than entering a PIN, you typically sign for the purchase; however, merchants may not require your signature for certain transactions. Merchants may seek authorization for these types of transactions. The authorization request places a hold on funds in your account when the authorization is completed. The “authorization hold” will reduce your available balance by the amount authorized but will not affect your actual balance. The transaction is subsequently processed by the merchant and submitted to us for payment. This can happen hours or sometimes days after the transaction, depending on the merchant and its payment processor. These payment requests are received in real time throughout the day and are posted to your account when they are received. The Credit Union has no control over when a merchant may submit a transaction to us for payment.

The amount of an authorization hold may differ from the actual payment because the final transaction amount may not yet be known to the merchant when you present your card for payment. For example, if you use your debit card at a restaurant, a hold will be placed in an amount equal to the bill presented to you; but when the transaction posts, it will include any tip that you may have added to the bill. This may also be the case where you present your debit card for payment at gas stations, hotels and certain other retail establishments. We cannot control how much a merchant asks us to authorize, or when a merchant submits a transaction for payment.

This is a general description of certain types of transactions. These practices may change, and we reserve the right to pay items in any order we choose as permitted by law.

The order in which items are paid is important if your account does not contain sufficient available funds to pay all of the items that are presented. If an item is presented for payment and your available balance is insufficient to pay it, we may, at our discretion, automatically transfer available funds from your designated account pursuant to the Overdraft Transfer Service, pay the item pursuant to the CU*Advance Non-Return Program, or return the item for Non-Sufficient Funds (NSF).

F.  OVERDRAFT TRANSFER SERVICE.

  1. Overdraft Transfer Service. We offer an overdraft protection plan that we refer to as our “Overdraft Transfer Service” where funds from a linked savings account are used for overdraft protection. We will look first to this service for overdraft protection before applying our discretionary CU*Advance Non-Return Program when your account is overdrawn. The Overdraft Transfer Service may save you money on the total fees you pay us for overdraft protection.

With this service, you authorize us to make transfers of available funds automatically from your regular savings account to cover overdrafts in your checking account.  The Overdraft Transfer Service is an optional feature that can be added to your eligible checking accounts upon your request. To request or terminate the Overdraft Transfer Service: (1) call us at 616-451-4567; (2) visit any branch and speak with a Representative; or (3) mail a request to West Michigan Credit Union, 1319 Front NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49504.

If you decline or terminate the Overdraft Transfer Service and are not eligible for the CU*Advance Non-Return Program, and there are insufficient available funds in your checking account to pay an item, your item will not be paid unless it was a previously authorized everyday debit card transaction.  The items will be returned, and a Non-Sufficient Fund Fee will be charged, each time an item is presented for payment and returned unpaid due to an insufficient available balance. It is important to remember that we have no control over how many times an intended payee may present the same item for payment.  Multiple presentments of the same item will result in multiple fees.  Transfers will appear on your periodic statements for each applicable account.

  1. Limits on Overdraft Transfer Service. We will not transfer more than the available account balance in designated linked account if the amount of the overdraft exceeds the available amount. If the available balance in a designated linked account is not enough to pay the full amount of the transaction(s) you have initiated on any day, we will transfer up to the available balance to pay one or more transactions. Any transactions that are not paid by the transfer will either be paid through our CU*Advance Non-Return Service or returned, CU*Advance Non-Return Fees, and/or NSF Fees, as applicable, will be assessed.

The following example illustrates how this works if you have elected both Overdraft Transfer Service and CU*Advance Non-Return Overdraft Program:

Assume your actual and available balances in your checking account are both $50, and your available balance in your savings account is $10.  You write a check for $80.  When the check is presented for payment, because you don’t have $80 available in your checking account or regular savings account, the item cannot be fully paid using the Overdraft Transfer Service from the regular savings account.  However, if you have also elected CU*Advance Non-Return, we may elect to transfer the $10 in your linked savings account and pay the remaining portion of the item using CU*Advance Non-Return.  In such case, you will be assessed a CU*Advance Fee.

However, because CU*Advance Non-Return is a discretionary service, we may instead elect to decline to pay the transaction.  If we decline to pay the transaction, we will not transfer any funds from your linked savings account, we will decline the transaction, and we will assess you a Non-Sufficient Fund Fee each time the item is presented for payment.  It is important to remember that we have no control over how many times an intended payee may present the same item for payment.  Multiple presentments of the same item will result in multiple fees.

  1. We May Return Items Unpaid. We are not obligated to pay any item presented for payment if your account does not contain sufficient available funds. If we do not authorize and pay an overdraft, then we decline or return the transaction or item unpaid and charge a related Non-Sufficient Fund Fee as stated in our Fee Schedule. You are responsible for ensuring that your account includes sufficient available funds to pay the transactions you initiate or authorize when they are processed for payment from your account, and you also acknowledge that the timing of when merchants or payees submit transactions to us for payment may vary.

If your account does not have sufficient available funds when a transaction or item is presented to us for payment and, as a result, returned unpaid, the merchant or payee of your transaction or item may choose to resubmit the same transaction, and may do so multiple times. In the event a transaction or item is resubmitted for payment at a time when your account lacks sufficient available funds to pay it and we decline it; we will charge a related Non-Sufficient Fund Fee each time that same transaction is returned unpaid.

  1. Termination of Overdraft Transfer Service. We may terminate the Overdraft Transfer Service at any time with or without notice to you. Any owner of the checking account or any owner of a linked regular savings account used for overdraft protection may decline the Overdraft Transfer Service. To terminate the Overdraft Transfer Service: (1) call us at 616-451-4567; (2) visit any branch and speak with a Representative; or (3) mail notice of your decision to decline the Overdraft Transfer Service to West Michigan Credit Union, 1319 Front NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49504. Your election to decline will be effective after we have received notice and have had a reasonable time to act on it.

G. CU*ADVANCE NON-RETURN OVERDRAFT Program

  1. CU*Advance Non-Return. In accordance with our commitment to provide valued service and benefits, we may, if you qualify, at our discretion, pay overdrafts that would cause your eligible checking account to have a negative balance up to the amount of your limit, which is determined by us in our sole and absolute discretion. CU*Advance Non-Return is different than the Overdraft Transfer Service. CU*Advance Non-Return is a backup to the Overdraft Transfer Service and will only be activated if funds are not available from the Overdraft Transfer Service.
  2. What Overdraft Transactions are Covered? CU*Advance Non-Return is available for the payment of checks, preauthorized payments under our Bill Payment Service, ACH drafts, and recurring debit transactions. CU*Advance Non-Return is also available for ATM and everyday debit card transactions, if you opt-in, as described in the next section below.
  3. Optional Overdraft Transactions. The following types of transactions require you to “opt in” (in other words, you must provide us with your affirmative consent) if you would like to include them in CU*Advance Non-Return. Choosing not to opt in may result in these transactions being declined:
  • ATM transactions
  • Everyday Debit Card transactions

We do not require you to authorize CU*Advance Non-Return for your ATM and everyday debit card transactions as a condition of us providing CU*Advance Non-Return to you for your checks, ACH transactions or other transactions. If you want the Credit Union to authorize and pay overdrafts for ATM and everyday debit card transactions through CU*Advance Non-Return, you must provide us with your consent by: (1) calling us at 616-451-4567; (2) visiting any branch and speaking with a Representative; or (3) mailing notice of your decision to opt in to CU*Advance Non-Return for everyday debit card transactions to West Michigan Credit Union, 1319 Front NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49504.

  1. Eligibility for the CU*Advance Non-Return Program. CU*Advance Non-Return is not a credit product. It is a feature that is automatically included with eligible checking accounts after 30 days of account opening (unless you decline CU*Advance Non-Return entirely as described below, information we get from a consumer reporting agency does not meet Credit Union standards, or based on any of the applicable criteria set forth below.). Eligibility is at the sole discretion of the Credit Union and is based on you managing your checking account in a responsible manner. CU*Advance Non-Return may be available for checking accounts for which the primary checking account owner is 18 years of age or older. We reserve the right to limit CU*Advance Non-Return to one (1) account per household or member. We may suspend or permanently revoke CU*Advance Non-Return from your checking account, in our sole and absolute discretion, based on any one or more of the following criteria:
  • You are not making regular deposits into your savings or checking account;
  • You do not bring your checking account to a positive balance for at least one full business day within a thirty (30) day period;
  • Your membership is not in good standing;
  • You are more than thirty (30) days past due or are in default in any other respect on any loan or other obligation to us;
  • You have an outstanding balance due on an overdraft repayment plan;
  • Your primary savings account does not have a positive balance;
  • Your checking account is subject to any legal or administrative orders or levies;
  • You have insufficient credit or negative credit history;
  • You are a party to a bankruptcy proceeding;
  • Any or all of your account(s) with us are being reviewed for improper activity or transactions;
  • Your checking account is classified as inactive;
  • You use the Service to pay items written to check cashing agencies;
  • You have an unresolved prior loss with us; or
  • We believe you are not managing your checking account in a responsible manner which may harm you or us.
  1. The CU*Advance Non-Return Program is a Discretionary Privilege. Any payment made by us under CU*Advance Non-Return will be made on a case-by-case basis, in our sole and absolute discretion. CU*Advance Non-Return does not constitute an actual or implied agreement between you and the Credit Union, nor does it constitute an actual or implied obligation of the Credit Union. CU*Advance Non-Return is a privilege that the Credit Union provides from time to time and which may be withdrawn or withheld by the Credit Union at any time, without prior notice, reason or cause.
  1. Notification. If you qualify for the CU*Advance Non-Return Program, we will notify you that CU*Advance Non-Return has been added to your account.  However, we may refuse to pay an overdraft at any time, even though we may have previously paid overdrafts.  We have no obligation to notify you before we pay or return any item.  It is important to remember that CU*Advance Non-Return is a purely discretionary benefit offered by the Credit Union.  If at any time we determine that your account is no longer eligible for the CU*Advance Non-Return Program for any reason, we can discontinue it immediately without notice to you.
  2. How CU*Advance Non-Return is Administered. If you are eligible for the Service, we will generally pay your overdraft items up to a maximum of $550, including fees. We are not required to notify you of any nonsufficient funds from checks, ACH items, or other transactions that may have been paid or returned. We may refuse to pay any overdrafts without first notifying you even though your account is in good standing and even if we have paid previous overdrafts.
  1. When is the overdraft payment due? The total of the overdraft (negative) balance in your checking account, including any and all fees and charges, is due and payable upon demand, and you are required to immediately deposit sufficient funds to cover the overdraft paid by us and pay the related fees.
  2. CU*Advance Fees. A CU*Advance Fee will be charged to your checking account, in accordance with our Fee Schedule, for each overdraft that is authorized and paid through the Service. This means that more than one CU*Advance Fee may be assessed against your checking account per day depending upon the number of overdrafts authorized and paid through CU*Advance Non-Return. You understand that your CU*Advance Non-Return Limit will be reduced by the amount of each overdraft paid by us through CU*Advance Non-Return and the amount of the related CU*Advance Non-Return Fee imposed until such amounts are repaid by you as set forth herein at which time, we may replenish your CU*Advance Non-Return Limit by the amount of the repayment. If we choose not to pay the item/transaction under CU*Advance Non-Return, you are subject to a Non-Sufficient Funds Fee in accordance with our Fee Schedule for each such item each time it is presented for payment and returned unpaid due to an insufficient available balance. Your periodic statement will itemize CU*Advance Non-Return Fees and Non-Sufficient Funds Fees for each cycle, as well as the year-to-date total of fees.
  3. Transfers to Cover Overdrafts. You understand and agree that we have the right to transfer available funds to your checking account from any of your other account(s) with us (excluding IRAs and certificate accounts), including account(s) upon which you are a joint owner, in an amount equal to the overdraft and related fees.
  4. Right of Setoff. In addition to any other rights that we may have, you agree that any deposits, future deposits, or other credits to any account in which you may now or in the future may have an interest are subject to our right of setoff for any liabilities, obligations or other amounts owed to us by you (e.g., overdrafts and any related fees and charges) and such is applicable irrespective of any contribution to the account or source of funds in the account. Moreover, unless you decline CU*Advance Non-Return (see below), you consent and expressly agree that the application of setoff of funds in any account includes the setoff of government benefits (such as Social Security and other public benefit funds) deposited to the account from which the overdraft or related fees are paid to the maximum extent permitted by applicable state and federal law. Each person who causes an overdraft, which is paid by us, agrees to be individually and jointly obligated to repay the unpaid negative balance in accordance with the terms and conditions of CU*Advance Non-Return.
  5. Default. You will be in default under the terms of CU*Advance Non-Return if you fail to live up to any of the terms and conditions set forth herein or you are in default on any loan obligation with us and/or a negative balance exists in any other deposit account with us on which you are an owner. If you are in default, in addition to any other rights we may have, we may temporarily suspend overdraft privileges, terminate CU*Advance Non-Return, or close your checking account and demand immediate payment of the entire unpaid negative balance. You also agree to pay any collection costs, attorneys’ fees and court costs that we may incur as a result of your default.
  6. Termination; Suspension. We may terminate or suspend CU*Advance Non-Return at any time without prior notice. In no event will any termination relieve you of your obligation to repay any negative account balance, overdraft fees, collection costs and attorneys’ fees, if any. We can delay enforcing any of our rights without losing them.
  7. Your Right to Decline CU*Advance Non-Return. Any owner of the checking account may decline the program. If you prefer not to have the program, visit us in a branch, contact us at 616-451-4567, or write to us at West Michigan Credit Union, 1319 Front NW, Grand Rapids, MI 49504, and include your name, member number and a statement that you are declining the Credit Union’s CU*Advance Non-Return Program and we will remove the Service from your checking account. If you decline the program, you will still be charged a Non-Sufficient Funds Fee for each item returned each time an item is presented for payment and returned unpaid due to an insufficient available balance.
  8. Optional Overdraft Protection Plans. As discussed in more detail above, we also offer the optional Overdraft Transfer Service which links your checking account to a savings account, as well as other overdraft sources and may be less expensive than the CU*Advance Non-Return Program. To learn more, please ask us about these plans.

The best way to know how much money you have and avoid paying overdraft fees is to record and track all of your transactions closely.

PLEASE REVIEW THIS INFORMATION CAREFULLY.  IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS, PLEASE CONTACT US AT 616-451-4567 OR VISIT ANY BRANCH.

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