Does bank of america process pending credits or debits first?

Question

I overdrafted this weekend 5 times without realizing it putting me only $30 over while the bank was closed and was unable to put in the funds to cover them until early this morning around 7:30. All of these items are pending-both the debits and credits and my account does not show overdraft anymore...when the items actually post will I be charged the overdraft fees or will they possibly process the debits first to make sure everything clears? I was told by a representative at one point that they process the bigger charges then the small ones to make sure that the big ones actually go through... Also this has happened before and I was able to cover them the next so no overdrafts were incurred. The only thing that scares me is that it was over the whole weekend...any thoughts? and please I know that I shouldn't overdraft but s*** happens...so no lectures please!

Answer 1

When items hard post from a pending status the credits will hard post to the account before the debits.  The debits then hard post in an order from highest amount to lowest amount.

However, if you are using your check card to make purchases, that money will immediately be deducted from your balance. (Even if the purchase does not hard post until 1-3 days later)  If there is not money in your account at that exact time you swipe your card to cover the transaction than you have the likelihood of receiving an overdraft fee.

Checks work differently as they hard post the day they are received and a deposit on that same day would hit first to cover the debit.

One other thing to consider is that credits and debits will not post on a non-business day (i.e. weekends, holidays and after the cutoff posting time in your state)  Transactions made on Saturday would not hit your account until Monday.  But if you were to run your check card for a purchase on Saturday and not place money in the account to cover it until Monday you could still be charged an overdraft fee because of the way the check card purchases immediately withdraw funds and place them aside to pay the transaction.

My advice would be to make sure you always have enough money in your account to cover any transaction you make, and also to keep a register of your transaction.  Those are the two best ways to assure that you will not receive any overdraft fees.

I hope that helps!