Denied a New Checking Account Because of ChexSystems? Do This.
Request a copy of your consumer report and dispute errors or satisfy any outstanding balancess
If you’re denied a checking account or debit card, get a copy of your Chexsystems report. The customer service rep or financial institution can’t share the information with you but you can pull your own consumer report. You’ll want to dispute any inaccurate information and satisfy any reported amounts due. The latter requiring more work from you to get the report cleaned.
Denied a New Checking Account or Debit Card
When it comes to Chexsystems you can breathe a bit easier because you typically only need to review your report when and if there is an issue. The information in your Chexsystem report may prevent you from opening a new checking account or debit card.
What’s Chexsystems?
The ChexSystems, Inc. network is comprised of member financial institutions that regularly contribute information on mishandled checking and savings accounts to a central location.
- ChexSystems shares this information among member institutions to help them assess the risk of opening new accounts.
- ChexSystems only shares information with the member institutions; it does not decide on new account openings.
- Chexsystems is a consumer credit reporting agency.
- Generally, information remains on ChexSystems for five (5) years.
Chexsystem is very similar to credit reporting bureaus but the information is strictly about your banking history. Banks and credit unions report information about your banking habits such as opening accounts, NSF (non-sufficient funds), and overdraft activities. If a financial institution has lost money due to bounced checks, unpaid fees, or overdrawn accounts, they report this and many other types of information to Chexsystems.
Request Your Chexsystems Report
Just like you have access to free credit reports from credit bureaus. Under the Fair and Accurate Credit Transaction Act (FACTA) amendments to the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), you are entitled to a free copy of your Chexsystems consumer report, at your request, once every 12 months. You can go to Chexsystems to access your report.
Many financial institutions will require you to satisfy any outstanding balances with other banks/credit unions or request an explanation before you can open a new bank account.
