Overdraft Fees Hit MY Account!!

Got hit with not only ONE but TWO overdraft fees today! This goes to show that not matter how much you are involved daily with your money, it can happen. Im very very very responsible when it comes to my money, so when this happens, I go into CRAZY mode. I went to my account this morning and to my shock... -3.02, in the red negative balance showing on one of my checking accounts. We decided to go down to one salary starting this month and are still working on the little budget things. I set up 2 checking accounts and both linking to the same savings account (opened ONLY for the sole purpose of overdraft protection SAFETY and a tiny little emergency buffer outside of our regular emergency fund, which in the savings account I dont plan to touch either). Getting to the core issue, I called one of these cubicle dummies at my bank and was outraged. After going into the whole story, the representative told me that this account was not linked to the savings overdraft. I tried my hardest to stop from "going off" on this poor girl who also had the audacity to say that she could link it NOW after the fact and to just "pay the fees". Now I vented my frustration on her for about 20 minutes because I didnt realize how she could misunderstand what I was talking about. After about 20 minutes of being on hold, she said that based on my account history and my time with the bank, she could waive the fees. I was more upset AFTER she said this. BASED ON MY ACCOUNT HISTORY! You should be waiving it BECAUSE your people didnt set up the correct accounts when I OPENED the account. ****Ok i digress, it was my fault in the first place for not balancing the gas correctly in the account and going over. I admit to that because that was MY fault and my lesson. At the worst, I should have been hit with the $5 balance fee from the savings account.*** I thanked the girl and went about my business. Now what have I learned from this ordeal that took about an hour of my life, well number one: manage your money more carefully and stick to the budget. Number two: never trust what someone tells you over the phone as, its been handled. 9 times out of 10, it gets done with no questions asked. Its that one time that you wished you got a confirmation number or their name to reference that you spoke with them. Make sure the representative notates this. Number three: If you find an error, report it immediately. You dont want this hitting your account and running the risk of this happening with your next one or two or MORE transactions. Number four: Have a cool head. Emotions are BAD BAD BAD with money situations and at one point during the conversation, I had to take a step back and find my focus. I was being blinded by being so frustrated and upset that I wasnt listening to anything she was saying. Finally number five, prepare prepare prepare... even in the face of us acting like automated robots when it comes to money, we are still human and have to plan for these contingencies. What if they didnt budge and give me my money back? I would have had to prepare for this possibility as well. Thank goodness, everything went as planned. Hopefully you are never put in the same situation that I was in this morning. posted by The American Dollar at 7:32 PM