Financial institutions received some good news yesterday when the Senate unanimously passed a bill that amended the Electronic Fund Transfer Act and eliminated the fee disclosure requirement on ATM machines.
The Electronic Fund Transfer Act made it a requirement that some type of signage needed to be placed on or near an ATM machine alerting the consumer that they may be charged a fee for using the ATM. If the sign was not present, a consumer could bring action against the ATM operator and seek damages from $100 to $1,000.
This provision spurred countless lawsuits from consumers who found ATMs without this signage. Some cases involved people removing the signs and then suing the ATM operator.
Many banking associations, including the American Bankers Association, the Credit Union National Association and the ATM Industry Association, were active in their opposition to the provision.
The bill was authored by Republican Senator Mike Johanns from Nebraska.
The bill had been passed without any opposition by the House as H.R. 4367 on July 9th. It now awaits President Obama's signature.
