Want to know what type of information is in your report? Read the Sample ChexSystems Report.

We provide links to a number of institutions in our list of good banks.

Bank Web Directories:

• ABA (American Bankers Association) Member Sites
• NCUA (National Credit Union Administration) Member List
• National Information Center - Institution Search
• BankSITE provides their USA Bank Directory and for those of you outside the U.S., they provide a Global Bank Directory.
• Another is the InvestorGuide list of online banks.
• Gomez Internet Banker Scorecard
  (But the fact that they put Wells Fargo near the top of their list makes us extremely suspect!)
• BankRate.com - Internet Banking Deals

Class Action Lawsuit against ChexSystems!
There are efforts underway to build a case against ChexSystems. An argument might be made that civil rights are being violated because ChexSystems' member banks make decisions based solely on unverified information from ChexSystems, and that individuals cannot arbitrate the issues with ChexSystems fairly. We agree wholeheartedly and encourage you to visit the ChexVictims community, or subscribe to ChexSys, a free mail list. ChexSystems is making our case for us! Please read this message we received.

A petition can be sent online, to your House Representative thanks to the Fight Back Against ChexSystems! web site!

The Automated Clearing Houses (ACH), comprised of regionals do most of the behind-the-scenes work of getting your money from point A to point B.

The Federal Reserve lets you file a complaint against any bank (they will refer your complaint to the appropriate agency should the bank you are reporting not be under jurisdiction of the Federal Reserve.)
They also produce Checkbooklet, a publication describing how checking accounts work. The U.S. Treasury also provides some handy guides with basic (but well written) information about checking and savings accounts. Also from the Federal Reserve is this study describing why they think people don't have a checking account. This "unbanked" is also chronicled in this BankRate.com article about the "unbanked", and this article regarding credit unions and the unbanked. The Federal Trade Commission provides an online complaint form. (They don't follow up on your complaint, but simply collect statistics to identify organizations which might be violating the law.) You should complain when you feel that either ChexSystems or your bank is outstepping their bounds. ChexSystems exists only to allow sharing of data to help prevent fraud, as explained in this document by the U.S. Treasury. This shared data is, in our opinion, being misused every day. If you agree, then let your voice be heard!

Here's someone else with a very comprehensive site about ChexSystems:
Read Getting Around ChexSystems by Jim Lewis. And there is an interesting article about ChexSystems written by author Lynn Hamilton. Or read the article "Is Your Bank Account Safe?" by Melissa Brewer which gives a wonderful overview of ChexSystems and how it affects people.

Want to know who ChexSystems does care about?
Hint -- it isn't you! Read the ChexSystems page on Deluxe's web site.

The Victims Of Credit Reporting (VCR) details credit reports and what we can do about them.

Post a gripe or search for what other ChexSystems fans have to say on the Defeat Chex Systems Board. Here are additional places to sound off -- the Bank Rate Banking Forum, the BankSITE Banking Forum , the Credit Card Network - Bulletin Board , the Credit Mania Board and on the Bad Banks web site.

SCAN the Shared Check Authorization Network, is a sister company to ChexSystems and both are owned by Deluxe. Unlike with ChexSystems, NSFs reported to SCAN are purged once they are paid. In theory, once the NSF is paid, it should automatically be removed from your record within days. Often times this does not occur and you will need to notify SCAN yourself in order for them to take action and clear the record. You can order a copy of your SCAN report for free by submitting the order form through the mail or by fax. You might want to view a sample SCAN report first. SCAN can be reached by phone at 1-877-382-7226, 1-800-262-7771, or 1-425-486-8390.

There are other check acceptance companies. Although we don't know much about them, we do know that we don't get anywhere near as many complaints about them.

• TeleCheck is a subsidiary of First Data Corp. Consumers can reach them by phone at 1-800-366-2425, 1-800-927-0188, or 1-800-336-1054.
• National Check Protection Services (NCPS) can be reached by phone at 1-800-838-1980.
• CheckRite can be reached by phone at 1-800-766-2748 or 1-800-234-7800.
• CrossCheck can be reached by phone at 1-707-586-0551.

A related topic is Credit Reporting Agencies, so we list links to those also:

• Equifax credit profile
    (800) 770-3792
• Experian (formerly TRW) credit profile.
• Trans Union credit report.

At the federal level, the U.S. federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is about the only regulation that applies to ChexSystems, and it is weak. Each state has its own credit and banking regulations so perhaps those are the best places to start looking, should you feel you've been legally wronged.

Although it doesn't necesarily have anything to do with ChexSystems, please visit Defend Your Privacy. If your House Representative voted NO then at election time you should throw the bum out!

Extensive information about bankruptcy, credit repair, credit reports, debt consolidation, credit cards, loans, and credit problems available from the Credit Info Center and from CardReport.com.

We have seen the future -- and it scares the hell out of us! Read Big Banker Is Watching which states that in the future, in order to open an account, customers will be required to provide information about their salary, age, marital status, debt, number of job and residence changes, education and property owned. Here's another story about invasive banking. And if that isn't enough to scare you, read this article about new ATMs operating today which use biometrics instead of pin numbers.

How do honest, credit worthy people end up having a negative ChexSystems report? Simply closing their account one day too soon, that is how.

BankRate.Com, which is a leading publication regarding the banking industry and personal finance, submitted an article on ChexSystems, and quoted us!
Additional relevant articles by BankRate.com include this article explaining why banks hold your deposits for five days and another article explaining how with new accounts (less than 30 days old) the banks can hold your deposits for months!