Banks, Automatic Teller Machines, Balance Inquiry Fees, 2, 7
Reversing a summary judgment, this decision holds that BofA’s deposit agreement which said that BofA would charge a $2.50 fee for a balance inquiry made on a non-BofA ATM meant an inquiry initiated by the customer, not one generated by the ATM without the customer’s affirmative input. That was how an ordinary consumer would interpret “balance inquiry.” Consumers lack the technical expertise to know how out-of-network ATMs might generate balance inquiries without the customer’s affirmative action to request one. Also, the fact that BofA does not control third parties in the operation of the out-of-network ATMs is irrelevant because BofA must still act as promised in its deposit agreement, which doesn’t mention anything about lack of control over operators of non-BofA ATMs.