Report: Minnesota students paid $ 620K in TCF Bank card fees

MINNEAPOLIS – TCF Bank made over $ 620,000 in card fees from the University of Minnesota students in the Twin Cities and Duluth campuses last year, according to a consumer lawyer report.

US Public Interest Research Group launched a study last week, 44% of university students found that they had TCF bank accounts, Minnesota Daily reported.

The students of the University of Minnesota pay an average of $ 22 annually in bank fees, including charges for inactive accounts, said Kaitlyn Vitez, the group's higher

While some students only paid a few dollars, others were hit with potentially hundreds of dollars in fees, explains Vitez.

She said there are other banks available for students who do not have ATMs or overdraft fees.

"These fees are not in the student's best interests, especially when we know there are lower tax options for students," Vitez said.

The University of Minnesota entered into a paid market agreement with the bank in 2003. The agreement also allowed the National Bank to open banking services and install ATMs on campus.

The debit cards are marketed to students as a "simple, easy" option, and they can be linked to the university's debit card or used to fund financial support.

TCF paid school $ 1[ads1].6 million in its last contract, including $ 200,000 specifically set aside for marketing, according to the latest report. The university also receives $ 37 in royalty payments for each student who opens a bank account with TCF.

The trial conference found that students in schools with paid market agreements pay over twice more in bank fees than students in schools without such agreements.

The University of Minnesota is the only university that still has a paid partnership with TCF Bank. The University of Michigan mutually ended a similar partnership with the bank in 2015.