I am totally amazed at the amount of money people are willing to shell out on bank fees. Over and over I meet people who are racking up $80, $150, $300 a month in bank charges. When I do up a budget for a family, I always allow for $20 a month. Many of my readers think THAT’s too much, but not everyone I work with has a PC Bank around the corner. Where I used to live, for example, the closest branch was a Royal Bank that was only open two days a week and never when I wasn’t working. Everything else is ATM-based. And if you’re not a Royal Banker, then you’re automatically paying ATM fees.

Generally, ATM fees run from $1.00 to $2.50 per transaction. This doesn’t look like a lot of money if you look at each transaction separately, but those small fees add up very quickly. And they double if you use a machine that doesn’t belong to the bank with which you have your account.

Obviously the easiest way to avoid ATM fees is to switch to a no-fee bank and only use your bank’s machines. But that’s not a reality for many people who live in rural areas that aren’t well serviced.

When access is limited and expensive it means that instead of withdrawing smaller amounts many times, you must figure out how much you need in a pay period (or better yet in a month, if you have the cash flow) and withdraw one large amount.

Many grocery stores allow you to take “cash back.” That’s when you add cash to your debit transaction when you pay for your groceries. This is a smart way to get cash without paying fees, but it only works later in the day when there’s money in the till.

If you’ve got the discipline to pay your credit card bills off every month in full and on time, use a credit card instead of paying in cash. This also gives you a monthly summary of where your money has gone for your semi-annual financial review. And if you have a smart card, then you’ll collect useful points. My last grocery shop of the year cost me $140 less because of the points I’d racked up on my grocery credit card.

Often, paying your bills online or via telephone banking is free. And your online or phone payments should be posted the next day. If your bank is making the hold on your transactions longer, ask for the hold to be removed. If they won’t make it happen, then shop around.

Don’t assume that the bank account you’ve had since Moses was a lad is still the best account going. Do some research and find the most suitable account with the lowest fees to meet your current banking needs. Take a look at your banking habits. Do you use ABMs, write cheques, do telephone or internet banking? These transactions are priced differently from one institution to another. The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada has the Cost of Banking Guide that will provide a list of packages or accounts that best fit your banking profile.

The big downside of switching accounts is that all your auto deposits and auto debits must also be switched, and that can be a royal pain in the ass. Some financial institutions offer a free service that gives you a hassle-free way to transfer your pre-authorized transactions and bank accounts from one place to another.  Ask if the company you want to deal with will do this for you. That should earn them extra brownie points.