Bounce Protection™

What is Bounce Protection™?
Bounce Protection™ is an overdraft privilege requiring no action on your part. All new accounts will have an initial waiting period of 60 days before the Bounce Protection™ feature will be added to the account. You do not have to sign anything. Your overdraft privilege (Bounce Protection™ limit) amount will be automatically assigned. Bounce Protection™ should not be viewed as an encouragement to overdraw your account. At times, however, unanticipated expenses or unforeseen problems can leave you with too little cash in your checking account. Having a check returned due to insufficient funds is an embarrassing and humiliating experience. As always, we encourage you to manage your finances responsibly. By keeping accurate records and knowing your balance, you can avoid mistakenly accessing your limit and incurring normal insufficient (NSF) fees. The best way to do this is to use your checkbook register to keep track of your deposits, written checks, withdrawals including service charges, ATM and check card transactions. Always reconcile your register with your monthly bank statement.

How does Bounce Protection™ work?
As long as you maintain your account in good standing (defined as making regular deposits and bringing your account to a positive balance at least once every 30 days), First Bank will honor overdrafts up to the Bounce Protection™ limit on your account. If you use Bounce Protection™, you should remember the bank’s normal insufficient (NSF) fee for each transaction will be deducted from your limit. The bank will notify you by mail when an overdraft occurs. No interest will be charged on the overdraft balance.

What does my Bounce Protection™ privilege cost?
There is no additional cost associated with this privilege. You should keep in mind that you will be charged a $25.00 NSF fee for each check paid under the limit. Remember, checks drawn up to the limit will not be returned, saving you the embarrassment and expense associated with the returned check fee.

What is my Bounce Protection™ limit? If I have two checking accounts, can I get Bounce Protection™ on both?
Locate your account type below and make note of the corresponding limit. If you have multiple accounts for your household, you may have a limit on all eligible accounts. However, First Bank reserves the right to limit participation to one account per household and to discontinue this product without prior notice.

What if I go beyond my Bounce Protection™ limit?
Overdrafts above and beyond your established Bounce Protection™ limit may result in a check or checks being returned to the payee. The normal $25.00 NSF fee will be charged per check and assessed to your account. An NSF notice will be sent to notify you of our actions.

How quickly must I repay my Bounce Protection™?
You should make every attempt to bring your account to a positive balance within 30 days. If you are not able to do so, you will receive a letter from First Bank informing you of the situation and your options. If, after a period of time, your account has not been brought into a positive balance, we will have no option but to close your account and take other steps to recover funds.

What are some of the ways I may have access to my Bounce Protection™ limit?
Will my limit be reflected in the balance I receive? You can access your Bounce Protection™ through any teller, ATM, First Bank Debit card purchase, checks issued to a third party, any pre-authorized debit, or other electronic means. You should note that your Bounce Protection™ limit will be included in your available balance provided by a teller, ATM machine, Debit card, Online Banking, or our 24-hour ACCESS phone line.

What if I do not want to have Bounce Protection™ on my checking account?
In the event you would like to have this service removed from your account, you can do so by calling 972.784.7070, 972.843.2650, or 972.734.6000.

Bounce Protection
Customer Overdraft Policy
An insufficient balance could result in several ways, such as (a) the payment of checks, electronic funds transfer, or other withdrawal requests; (b) payments authorized by you; (c) the return of unpaid items deposited by you; (d) the imposition of bank service charges; or (e) the deposit of items which, according to the bank’s Funds Availability Policy, are treated as not yet available or finally paid. We are not obligated to pay any item presented for payment if your account does not contain sufficient funds. However, if you maintain your account in good standing, defined as making regular deposits to bring your account to a positive balance at least once every 30 days, and there are no legal orders outstanding, we may approve your reasonable overdrafts as a non-contractual courtesy. You will be charged a $25.00 overdraft/non-sufficient funds (OD/NSF) processing fee whenever we approve an overdraft. You may opt out of the privilege at any time, but you are responsible for any overdrawn balances at the time of opting out. Normally, we will not approve an overdraft for you in excess of your limit, including OD/NSF charges. So as not to exceed your limit, you should note that the amount of the overdraft plus the bank’s standard NSF fee (per item) will be deducted from the overdraft limit. We may refuse to pay an overdraft for you at any time, although we may have previously paid overdrafts for you. You will be notified by mail of any non-sufficient funds items paid or returned that you may have; however, we have no obligation to notify you before we pay or return any item. The amount of any overdraft plus our OD/NSF fee charges that you owe us shall be due and payable upon demand. If there is an overdraft paid by us on an account with more than one (1) owner on the signature card, each owner, and agent if applicable, drawing/presenting the item creating the overdraft, shall be jointly and severally liable for such overdraft, plus our OD/NSF fee charge(s). You should note that your Bounce Protection limit will be included in your available balance* provided by a teller, ATM machine, Debit Card, Online Banking, or our 24-hour ACCESS phone line. Bounce Protection may be accessed in the following ways: teller cashed checks, ATM withdrawals, First Bank debit card purchases, checks issued to a third party, pre-authorized debits, or other electronic means.

Bounce Protection™ should not be viewed as an encouragement to overdraw your account. As always, we encourage you to manage your finances responsibly. In the event you would like to have this service removed from your account, you can do so by calling 972.784.7070, 972.843.2650, or 972.734.6000.

Limitations: Available to individually owned accounts in good standing for personal or household use. First Bank reserves the right to limit participation to one account per household and to lower your Bounce Protection limit or to discontinue this product at any time without prior notice.

*Available balance includes the current account balance plus the overdraft protection limit plus/minus any electronic transactions. Contact our New Accounts Department for detailed information on Bounce Protection.