Apr. 10, 2009 at 12:59pm

The sex-ed approach to overdraft protection

Posted by Kacie McKinney in Talking to Members
Comments (2)

Sex-ed and overdraft protection.

Bet you didn’t expect to see those come up together…but as I was reading a Time Magazine article yesterday, I was surprised by the similarities.

The heated debate about the comprehensive education plan versus abstinence-only was brought up in the recent article about South Carolina’s sex-ed program.

This got me to thinking about how CUs are communicating with members about overdraft protection – a hot debate in the media at the moment.

Financial institutions and consumers are debating the convenience of automatic overdraft protection. Should credit unions give members a choice? Or should they automatically enroll them as a customer service?

There’s no doubt that with the recent media attention, members are thinking twice about their credit union’s overdraft policy.

What’s your approach to communicating the protection program with your members?

Some credit unions tend to hold their members’ hands and tell their members what the best choice is while others tend to step back because they know their members value choice. Neither is wrong, but considering your approach can help you communicate about the fees.

The comprehensive approach: Your members share a transparent relationship with you. You like them to see both sides of the picture. You may let them know that although you see overdraft fees as a protection, you want them to be able to make the choice that’s right for them.

The abstinence-only approach: You take the approach of telling your members what’s best for them. “Overdraft protection is in place for your protection.” This approach tells members that you are protecting them and are making an educated decision on their behalf.

Considering the relationship you have with your members may be an important consideration for choosing which approach to take.

Which approach has been effective for your CU?

Comments (2)

This analogy is just crying out for a banana...

I think abstinence is impractical, ergo I'm in favor of having informed members who understand all the ins-and-outs and know how to responsibly manage their bananas.
1 | Left by Jeffry Pilcher | Apr. 10, 2009 at 3:43pm

Kacie says:

@Jeffry Pilcher Well said. And actually, the Time Mag. article says studies prove the comprehensive approach has been the most successful at changing behavior so far...
2 | Apr. 10, 2009 at 4:22pm