Overdraft Protection

Overdraft Protection is a discretionary overdraft program requiring no action on your part that provides you a safety net up to an automatically assigned overdraft limit. Your Overdraft Protection limit may be available for checks and other transactions made using your checking account number, such as a teller withdrawal, an automatic (ACH) payment transaction, automatic bill payment or recurring debit card payment. If you request us to do so (opt-in), we may authorize ATM transfers or withdrawals and everyday debit card purchases using your available balance and your Overdraft Protection limit. For business accounts the limit may be available for ATM and everyday debit card transactions with no opt-in action required. Balances displayed do not include the Overdraft Protection limit.

There are several ways your account can become overdrawn, such as (1) the payment of checks, electronic funds transfers or other withdrawal requests; (2) payments authorized by you
(i.e. debit card at point of sale); (3) the return of unpaid items deposited by you; (4) bank service charges; or (5) the deposit of items which, according to the bank’s Funds Availability Policy, are treated as not yet available.

As long as you maintain your account in “good standing,” we may approve your overdraft items within your unused Overdraft Protection limit as a non-contractual courtesy.

For Overdraft Protection consideration, your account is in “good standing” if you (1) make sufficient deposits to bring your account to a positive end-of-day balance at least once every 30 calendar days (including the payment of all bank fees and charges); (2) avoid excessive overdrafts suggesting the use of Overdraft Protection as a continuing line of credit; and (3) have no legal orders, levies or liens against your account.

Meridian reserves the right to limit participation to one account per household or business or to suspend, revoke, or discontinue this program without prior notice.

Normally, we will not approve an overdraft for you in excess of the predetermined limit assigned to your account. So as not to exceed your limit, please remember that the amount of the overdraft plus our Overdraft Paid Item(s) Charge of $35 for each item will be deducted from the Overdraft Protection limit. Overdrafts above and beyond your established Overdraft
Protection limit may result in checks or other items being returned to the payee. You will be charged a Returned Item(s) Charge of $35 for each item returned. Returned items may be
presented for payment by the payee or their financial institution multiple times, which may result in multiple Returned Item(s) Charges.

An overdraft/non sufficient funds notice will be sent to notify you of items paid and/or returned.

There is no additional cost associated with Overdraft Protection unless you use it. If you do use the Overdraft Protection limit, you will be charged our Overdraft Paid Item(s) Charge of $35 for each overdrawn item created by checks and other transactions made using your checking account number, such as a teller withdrawal, an automatic payment (ACH) transaction or automatic bill payment.

If you request us to do so (opt-in), we may authorize ATM transfers or withdrawals and everyday debit card purchases by using your available balance and your Overdraft Protection limit. Your balance at the time these transactions post will determine the overdraft status and the assessment of fees. Other transactions initiated by you, or a delay in processing authorized transactions by the merchant, may result in previously authorized transactions posting against an insufficient balance. An Overdraft Paid Item(s) Charge of $35 will be charged for each ATM or everyday debit card transaction that posts against insufficient funds. Once opted in, you may revoke your authorization at any time by contacting us at 866.327.9199, visiting one of our branches or emailing us at info@meridianbanker.com.

For business accounts, ATM and debit card transactions will be handled as described above with no opt-in action required on your part.

In the normal course of business, we generally pay electronic transactions first and then checks in serial number order. Per the bank’s policy, however, checks are often converted to electronic transactions which may post to your account more quickly, affecting the order in which they post. We reserve the right to change the order of payment without notice to you if we suspect fraud or possible illegal activity affecting your account. Also, the order in which we pay your items may create multiple overdraft items during a single banking day and you will be charged our Overdraft Paid Item(s) Charge of $35 for each overdraft item paid.

Multiple paid items will result in multiple fees. For example, three paid items in one day will result in $105 in Overdraft Paid Item(s) Charges. To help you manage your account, the total fees you have paid for items (both paid and returned) during the current month and for the year-to-date will be reflected on your monthly checking statement.

If you are a new customer, we will advise you 30 or more days after your account is opened that you may use the Overdraft Protection program. This is provided you have maintained satisfactory activity in the account, including making regular deposits, consistent with our internal standards for the account type for which the Overdraft Protection is offered. Once you are notified your Overdraft Protection limit is available to you, it may continue to be available provided you
maintain the account in “good standing” as defined in this brochure.

Locate your account type below and make note of the corresponding limit. If you have multiple accounts for your household or business you may have a limit on each eligible account.

You will receive an overdraft notice each time items are paid, including fees. You will need to subtract the total fees when balancing your checkbook.

We have no obligation to notify you before we pay or return any item. The  amount of any overdraft including our Overdraft Paid Item(s) Charge of $35 or a Returned Item(s) Charge of $35 that you owe us is due and payable upon demand even if we do not ask you for payment. You must repay us no later than 30 calendar days after the creation of the overdraft. If there is more than one owner on the account, each owner and agent, if applicable, shall be jointly and severally liable for all overdrafts including all fees charged.

You should make every attempt to bring your account to a positive end-of-day balance as soon as possible and must do so within 30 calendar days. If you are not able to do so within 30 calendar days, you will receive a letter from Meridian informing you that your Overdraft Protection limit has been suspended and additional items will be returned. Unless we advise you differently or you request this program be removed from your account, your limit will be made available to cover overdrafts again the first business day after you bring your account to a positive end-of-day balance.

The chart below shows the different ways you can access your Overdraft Protection limit and indicates whether or not this limit will be reflected in the balance provided.

*Overdraft Protection will be made available for ATM or everyday debit card transactions on personal accounts upon your request. Visit one of our branches, call us at 866.327.9199 or email us at info@meridianbanker.com to arrange for your ATM and debit card coverage. No action is required for business accounts.

Please contact us at 866.327.9199 if you: (1) do not believe you will be able to bring your account to a positive end-of-day balance within the required time period; (2) find that you are using Overdraft Protection more often than you intended; or (3) don’t understand why your account becomes overdrawn. We would like to discuss your situation with you.

We may refuse to pay an overdraft item at any time even though we may have previously paid overdrafts for you. For example, we typically do not pay overdraft items if your account is not in good standing as defined previously, or, if based upon our review of your account management, we determine that you are using Overdraft Protection excessively or seem to be using Overdraft Protection as a regular line of credit. You will be charged a Returned Item(s) Charge of $35 for each item returned.

Following regulatory guidance, we will contact you if you are paying multiple Overdraft Paid Item(s) Charges (i.e., more than six fees in a rolling 12-month period), to discuss possible alternatives to Overdraft Protection that may better meet your short-term credit needs. In the event you ask us to stop contacting you because you have determined Overdraft Protection is appropriate for your needs, we will honor your wishes. However, if we identify that the number and frequency of overdrafts increases materially for an extended period of time at some point after that, we may contact you again to ensure Overdraft Protection is still the most appropriate option available to you for covering your short-term credit needs.

The best way to avoid overdrafts and fees is to keep track of your account balance by entering all checks, debit card purchases and ATM withdrawals in your check register, reconcile your checkbook regularly and manage your finances responsibly.

*This information is effective as of October 2020 and is provided as an example.

**The number of transfers allowed from a savings or money market account each month may be limited and additional fees/consequences for exceeding this limit may apply.

***The bank charges a maximum of $105 in overdraft/non sufficient fund
charges per day per account. Please ask us about our current specific products, rates and fees.

If you would like to revoke your previous authorization for ATM and debit card transaction coverage, or have this program removed entirely from your account, please visit one of our branches, call 866.327.9199 or email us at
info@meridianbanker.com.

While you may opt-out of the program at any time, you are responsible for any overdrawn balances at the time of
opting out.