And with quick access to your account balance, you'll avoid hefty overdraft fees.

Washington Mutual charged customers more than $1 billion in overdraft fees last year, industry analysts estimate.

They then charge an overdraft fee for any withdrawal of more than $100.

Ending up in the red can lead to costly overdraft fees.

I avoid bouncing checks, so overdraft fees are not something that concerns me.

The funds may not be immediately available and lead to overdraft fees.

Not every checking account provider built its business entirely around overdraft fees, after all.

Banks have to cover the cost of free current accounts with hidden charges such as overdraft fees.

A study by the Fed last year found that banks raised their overdraft fees 24 percent from 1997 to 2001, to an average of $20.42.

But overdraft fees are not paid equally by all customers.