Regulation D

What is Regulation D?

To ensure financial institutions maintain adequate reserves for the funds they have on deposit, the Federal Reserve Board created its Regulation D. This is a Federal Regulation that affects all financial institutions and is not a Credit Union policy.

How does Regulation D apply to me?

Regulation D regulates Savings Accounts and Money Market Accounts. The basic rule limits the number of electronic transfers or checks to a combined maximum of six transfers per calendar month from a Savings Account or Money Market Account.

Which transfer methods are included in the six per month?

• Telephone requests
• Overdraft Protection
• Online Banking
• Pre-authorized, automatic, scheduled or recurring transfers
• Email requests
• Fax requests

What transfer methods are unlimited and don't count towards the six per month?

• ATM transaction
• In-person branch or shared branch transactions (CU Service Center)
• Mail

What are my options once an account has reached its Regulation D limit for the month?

You may complete transfers and withdrawals in person at your local Branch or shared branch, by mail or at an ATM.

How can I avoid reaching the monthly transfer limit of six?

• Consider performing transfers in person at your local Branch, by mail or at an ATM.
• Plan ahead and make one large transfer instead of several small transfers.
• Keep appropriate balances in your Checking Account to reduce the number of overdraft transfers from your Savings or Money Market Account.
• Link your Signature Line of Credit or Flex Rate Home Equity Line of Credit to your Checking Account for Overdraft Protection.
• Make insurance, utility or recurring payments electronically from your Checking Account instead of your Savings or Money Market Account.
• Set up automatic transfers from your Checking account to other designated accounts.

Consider using Bill Pay to automatically send payments to a merchant, rather than authorizing the merchant to automatically withdraw payments from your Savings or Money Market Account.

What can I do if I need to take money from my Savings or Money Market account?

You are able to make withdrawals and transfers in person at your local Branch or shared branch, by mail or at an ATM.

Where can I find the number of transfers I have left?

When making a transfer through Online Banking, you can view how many transfers remain out of the six allowable limit. You can also contact our Call Center and speak to a Call Center Representative.

What if I have an account used for Overdraft Protection and it has reached its Regulation D limit, will overdraft requests be honored?

No. If the Overdraft Protection is a Savings Account or Money Market Account the overdraft requests will not be honored. In that case, you are subject to a $30 charge for every overdraft attempted beyond your monthly limit of six.

I have authorized a merchant to automatically withdraw payments from my Savings Account, do these count against my monthly limit?

Yes. These payments (which you might know as "ACH" or "EFT" transactions) follow Regulation D limitations. Any withdrawals attempted from your Savings or Money Market Account beyond your monthly limit of six will not be honored, and you are subject to a $30 charge. It is recommended to have these payments withdrawn from your Checking Account.

What constitutes a pre-authorized, automatic, scheduled or recurring transfer?

Pre-authorized transfers are transfers made according to a specific agreement between a member and us or another party.

Example:

Where money is automatically withdrawn from a Savings or Money Market Account to cover overdrafts in any of your other Western accounts.

Automatic, scheduled or recurring transfers are those that have been set up to transfer funds on specific days from a Savings or Money Market Account to other Western accounts.

Example:

You set up a transfer on the first and fifteenth of every month to move funds from your Savings Account to your Checking Account.

What happens if I reach the limit of six per month?

The next attempted transfer from your Savings or Money Market Account will not be processed. If you are using a Savings or Money Market Account for overdraft protection on your Checking Account, the transaction will be rejected, the check returned NSF (non-sufficient funds) and you are subject to the $30 NSF fee plus any fees charged by whomever the check was written to. Even if you have the funds available in your Savings or Money Market account, once the withdrawal limit of six has been reached, no more withdrawals can be made until the following month.