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Courtesy Pay
Add Courtesy Pay to your overdraft protection options on your Monterra Credit Union checking account
Courtesy Pay coverage activates when your balance could lead to declined or returned transactions.
Convenience and peace of mind for a small fee
Optional financial backup for your account
Avoid the hassle and fees of declined or returned transactions
A $30 fee* applies each time Courtesy Pay is used
Secure the safety net you need
When your available balance won't cover your transaction, Courtesy Pay may be the overdraft option that is right for you. Before deciding if Courtesy Pay is the right overdraft option for you, it is important for you to understand and consider the difference between your available balance and your actual balance. See below or the section titled Understanding Your Checking Account Balance for full details.
- Available balance is the current balance minus any pending transaction(s) and/or funds on hold. Your “Available Balance” is utilized at the time a transaction posts in order to determine when your account is overdrawn.
- Actual balance is the money in your account at the start of the day and does not have any pending transactions such as a deposit, point-of-sale (POS), Automated Clearing House (ACH), check or debit withdrawal transaction.
Understanding overdrafts
An overdraft occurs when the available balance in your share draft (checking) account is not enough to cover a transaction. Unless you tell us you want Courtesy Pay (Overdraft) Coverage, we will not pay overdrafts for certain transactions such as everyday debit card purchases and ATM withdrawals whether these transaction types occur at a store, online or by telephone. Certain transaction types such as payment via check may be covered. Covering an overdraft can occur in two ways:
- Courtesy Pay is an overdraft coverage that is available after 60 days† upon the opening of a share draft (checking) account type.
- You must opt into Courtesy Pay coverage for everyday debit card, POS, and ATM withdrawal transactions.
- You are not required to opt in for Courtesy Pay coverage for checks, ACH, and Bill Pay transactions.
- Overdraft Protection services, which are different than Courtesy Pay coverage, may be an available, less expensive option. Overdraft Protection services include linking your share draft (checking) account to another account with Monterra Credit Union, such as a money market or savings account, or a line of credit source, such as a credit card.
†Within 60 days of account opening, upon meeting eligibility criteria.
Your “Actual Balance” or “Current Balance” is the amount of money in your account at the start of any day. This amount does not include any pending transactions such as a deposit, point-of-sale (POS), Automated Clearing House (ACH), check or debit withdrawal transaction.
Your “Available Balance” is the current balance minus any pending debit card purchases, automatic drafts (ACH), funds on hold, processing checks or other debits to your account. Available Balance is the amount available to you to make withdrawals or make payments. We determine whether your account has a positive balance or (available funds), or if it is overdrawn, or if a transaction will overdraw the account. It is important for you to keep track of your Available Balance, and any pending Merchant Authorizations (see the section titled Available Balance and Merchant Authorization Holds) before you conduct a transaction such as writing a check, or using your debit card. Understanding your Available Balance helps you know whether or not a transaction will overdraw your account. Available Balance is shown in online banking, mobile banking and displayed when you transact using an ATM.
We will charge you a fee each time we return (unpaid) any share draft/check, ACH or Bill Pay item to the payee who may charge an additional fee, when there are insufficient available funds in your account. Any debit or ATM transactions that may make your account negative or require an overdraft due to insufficient funds, may be declined.
It is important to note that there can be a difference between your Actual Balance/Current Balance and your Available Balance as shown in the examples below.
Online Banking
Mobile Banking
For debit card and ATM transactions, your Available Balance is utilized at the time a transaction posts in order to determine when your account is overdrawn and whether fees will be charged. For debit card transactions involving merchant authorization holds, such as securing a hotel room or purchasing fuel at a gas station, a longer delay may occur between an authorization hold being applied and the transaction posting. In such cases a debit transaction could delay posting and not be reflected in your Available Balance, at any point in time. As a result, an overdraft or an insufficient Available Balance may occur when conducting another transaction (debit card, ATM withdrawal). This is true even if your Available Balance shows you have enough funds to withdraw from your account. It is very important for you to understand and record what you have purchased, authorized and the potential for that transaction to be pending as these items may not be reflected in your Available Balance.
Example: You have an Available Balance of $100 that shows on an ATM machine. However, twenty minutes ago you purchased fuel at a gas station where a merchant authorization hold of $80 was placed and is not yet reflected in your Available Balance. If you withdraw $100 at the ATM, the $80 merchant authorization hold can subsequently post and cause your account to go into overdraft of $80 and you will be charged a $30 Courtesy Pay fee.
| ITEM TYPES COVERED | HOW IT WORKS | WHAT IT COVERS | ACTION REQUIRED | FEE |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Check(s) and certain types of electronic (ACH) transactions such as ACH transfer or Bill Pay transactions | Instead of a transaction being returned or declined, the transaction may be paid on your behalf. | Checks, Automatic recurring debit card payments, Electronic transactions (ACH), Bill Pay transactions | This is included as an account benefit with no action required. | $30 for each Check, ACH transfer or bill pay transaction |
| Everyday debit card or point-of-sale (POS) purchases and ATM withdrawals¹ | Instead of a transaction being declined, the transaction may be paid on your behalf. This option requires you to opt into this coverage type. | All the items above, plus: Everyday debit card and POS purchases, ATM transactions | Courtesy Pay is a service offered to you upon eligibility and requires you to opt in. See section “How To Opt Into Courtesy Pay" | $30 for each transaction. debit card/POS or ATM transaction² |
Courtesy Pay Refund Program³:
Make a deposit of available funds before 9:00 pm Pacific Time that same day to cover your entire negative available balance⁴. By bringing your account current with a deposit of available funds, you will receive a refund for each Courtesy pay fee charged per overdraft item.
¹Courtesy Pay coverage on debit card/POS and ATM transactions occurs in conjunction with checks, ACH or Bill Pay transaction coverage. There is no option to have only Courtesy Pay coverage on debit card, point-of-sale (POS) and ATM withdrawal transactions and no coverage on the paying of checks, ACH and Bill Pay transactions. However, you can have Courtesy Pay coverage ONLY on checks, ACH or Bill Pay transactions and not on the paying of everyday debit card, point-of-sale (POS) and ATM transactions.
²No more than five (5) Courtesy Pay fees ($150.00 total) may be charged per day.
³See the section titled Courtesy Pay Fee Refund Program.
⁴See the section titled Understanding Your Checking Account Balance.
²No more than five (5) Courtesy Pay fees ($150.00 total) may be charged per day.
³See the section titled Courtesy Pay Fee Refund Program.
⁴See the section titled Understanding Your Checking Account Balance.
If you have Courtesy Pay, and overdraw your checking account, you are eligible for a Courtesy Pay fee refund if you make a deposit of available funds before 9:00 pm Pacific Time that same day to cover your entire negative available balance¹. By bringing your account current with the deposit, you will receive a refund for each Courtesy pay fee charged per overdraft item.
Deposits are conveniently accepted in branch during normal business hours, at a Monterra ATM, through Monterra's mobile banking app or by making an online banking transfer.
Note: Deposits made by check may have a check hold assessed and therefore may not be considered available funds² and would not be considered same day eligible funds to cover your negative balance.
If you have Courtesy Pay, this fee refund program is automatically available and there is no required setup. You may become eligible for Courtesy Pay after 60 days upon the opening of a share draft (checking) account.
Please review the following Courtesy Pay Fee Refund Program Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):
What is the best way for me to know when I have a negative balance?
Setting up an account alert is the best way to keep up-to-date on your account balance(s). By setting a low balance alert, you can stay in-the-know should your checking account balance fall beneath or below a threshold that you've selected or if your checking account balance is negative. Alerts can be found within Monterra's online or mobile banking within the Resources & Tools tab.
What is the timeframe to make a deposit to cover my negative available balance?
A deposit of available funds must occur by 9:00 pm Pacific Time on the day the Courtesy Pay fee was incurred and must be in the amount that covers the entire negative balance (less any Courtesy Pay fee) in order to be eligible for the refund.
If I incur a Courtesy Pay fee yesterday, and another one today, and made a deposit to cover all of my negative balance, will the fee(s) from yesterday and today be refunded?
No, only the fee(s) incurred the same day are eligible for a refund. Deposits must be made the same day, by 9:00 pm Pacific Time, to be eligible for the Courtesy Pay Refund Program.
Are Non-Sufficient Fund fees eligible for the Courtesy Pay Refund Program?
Non-Sufficient Funds (NSF) transactions are not covered by the Courtesy Pay Refund Program. An NSF fee is assessed when your account is overdrawn, and the transaction is returned unpaid. No payment will be made to cover the charge on your behalf. An NSF fee can occur for a variety of reasons including but not limited to being above the limit of what Courtesy Pay will cover, having opted out of all Courtesy Pay options or not being eligible for the Courtesy Pay program. Click on When are NSF Fees and Courtesy Pay Fees Charged section to learn more about when an NSF fee may be charged.
Is the Courtesy Pay Refund Program only for debit card transactions?
No, the Courtesy Pay Refund Program covers transactions via check, Automated Clearing House (ACH), Bill Pay, Purchase transactions such as debit and/or Point-of-Sale (POS) transactions and Automated Teller Machine (ATM) withdrawal(s).
If you have questions regarding the Courtesy Pay Refund Program please contact us by:
- Speaking to a branch representative at any of our seven convenient branch locations
- Calling the Contact Center at (650)363-1725 during the business hours of Monday through Friday, 8:00 am – 6:00pm or Saturday, 9:00 am – 3:00pm.
¹See the section titled Understanding Your Checking Account Balance.
²For more information about the difference between available and actual balance, please see the top of the page.
²For more information about the difference between available and actual balance, please see the top of the page.
Opting into Courtesy Pay for debit card, point-of-sale (POS), and ATM withdrawal transactions can be done as follows:
- At the time of opening† a new share draft (checking) account type
- By calling the Contact Center at (650) 363-1725 during the business hours of Monday through Friday, 8:00 am – 6:00 pm or Saturday, 9:00 am – 3:00 pm
- By visiting one of our branch locations and speaking with a branch representative
† Within 60 days of account opening, upon meeting eligibility criteria.
Courtesy Pay Fee
After you become eligible† and after you opt into Courtesy Pay as an overdraft option for payment coverage on everyday debit card or point-of-sale (POS) and ATM withdrawal transactions, a Courtesy Pay fee will be charged at $30 per item paid when any everyday debit or point-of-sale (POS), ATM withdrawal, check(s), ACH or Bill Pay transaction(s) posts to your account for an amount greater than your Available Balance. There is a cap of (5) five overdraft transactions per day and maximum fee of $150.00 per day ($30 per occurrence) that Monterra charges for overdrawing your account.
NSF Fee
When an item is returned unpaid due to insufficient available funds [and not covered by the Courtesy Pay Program,] you will be charged a Non-Sufficient Funds (NSF) fee, as stated in the Credit Union’s Fee Schedule. If multiple items are returned unpaid due to insufficient available funds on the same day, you will be charged an NSF fee for each returned item. The same item may be presented for payment more than once, and you will be charged an NSF fee each time that item is presented and returned due to insufficient available funds.
You can avoid being charged an NSF fee by ensuring your purchase(s), checks written against your account or any withdrawal transactions that post to your account are less than or equal to your Available Balance. Unlike Courtesy Pay fees there is no cap on the per presentment NSF charges for overdrawing your account.
Overdraft Protection Services
Overdraft Protection services, which are different than Courtesy Pay, may be an available, less expensive option. Overdraft Protection services include linking your share draft (checking) account to another account with Monterra such as a money market or savings account or a line of credit source such as a credit card. No fee is incurred when covering an overdraft using this service so long as there are available funds to cover the transaction from the linked account.
† Within 60 days of account opening, upon meeting eligibility criteria.
If you would like to elect to not have any Courtesy Pay overdraft options and/or Overdraft Protection coverage please do one of the following:
- Inform the branch representative at the time of opening† a share draft (checking) account type
- Call the Contact Center at (650) 363-1725 during the business hours of Monday through Friday, 8:00 am – 6:00 pm or Saturday, 9:00 am – 3:00 pm
- Visit a branch location and speak with a branch representative
† Within 60 days of account opening, upon meeting eligibility criteria.
*Regular monitoring of your account in order to be aware of your spending is encouraged. Courtesy Pay coverage is not to be considered as a means of covering monthly recurring overdrafts. Any negative balance within your account should be rectified immediately in order to maintain a positive balance and remain a member in good standing. Eligibility requirements and a membership in good standing apply to all credit union products and services. You must be 18 years of age to enroll in and use Courtesy Pay. Monterra Credit Union reserves the right to decline any Courtesy Pay transaction at its discretion. There is a cap of (5) five overdraft transactions per day and maximum fee of $150.00 per day ($30 per occurrence) that Monterra Credit Union charges for overdrawing your account. Additional conditions and restrictions apply. Courtesy Pay options for coverage may be selected or changed at any time by calling our Contact Center at (650) 363-1725 or visiting one of our branch locations.
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