Credit Union 24 launches surcharge-free ATM network
Credit Union 24, the only national credit union-owned point-of-sale (POS) network in the U.S., announces that the CU HERE Premium program, with its 45,000 ATMs, activates today, giving credit union members access to the country's largest ATM network.
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Since the program was announced in December 2007, 148 credit unions have chosen to participate in the CU HERE Premium program, including 30 of the country's 200 largest credit unions, giving millions of credit union members access to the nation's largest surcharge-free ATM network and potentially saving the nation's consumers millions of dollars every year.
"The CU HERE Premium program is valuable on multiple levels," said Jim Park, President and CEO of Credit Union 24. "It gives credit union members access to their accounts at more surcharge-free ATMs where they live and work, and will save them quite a bit of money. For credit unions, CU HERE Premium offers a valuable tool to attract new members and serve existing members."
An independent research study estimated that U.S. consumers spent $8.8 billion on ATM surcharges in 2006 and 2007. In recent years ATM surcharges have increased steadily, with the average ATM surcharge costing $1.86 in 2007 and the most common surcharge costing $2, with some larger national financial institutions charging as much as $3.
"We've seen ATM surcharges become an important issue for consumers in the past several years and we feel that credit unions, by their cooperative and member-focused nature, can help the average American save money not only through the CU HERE Premium program, but also by helping themselves to remain viable alternatives to other types of financial institutions," Park said. "One of our goals is to make more consumers aware that credit union membership is not limited to a certain few, but that nearly every one can become a credit union member and enjoy the economy and financial self-determination that a credit union offers."
Credit Union 24 announced the creation of the CU HERE Premium program in December 2007 and the 45,000 surcharge-free ATM network is more than three times the size of the largest bank-controlled ATM network. The CU HERE Premium program has ATMs in every state in the country and, combined with Credit Union 24's point-of-sale network available at most major national retailers and local merchants, gives credit union members fee-free access to their money at nearly half a million locations across the country.