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FDIC Consumer News Fall 2008 – Special Edition: Your New, Higher FDIC Insurance Coverage How to Be Sure You're Fully Protected by the FDIC
In 75 years, no one has lost a penny of FDIC-insured deposits. You don't need to worry about the safety of your money if you (or your family) have deposits at one bank totaling less than the basic FDIC coverage limit, which is currently $250,000 but is scheduled to go back to $100,000 on January 1, 2010. But if your deposits exceed the coverage limit, or if you're just not sure about how much of your money is protected, consider these steps. Use "EDIE," the FDIC's online deposit insurance estimator. EDIE will help you understand if you have funds over the insurance limits. Find it at www.FDIC.gov/EDIE. And if you don't have Internet access at home, ask a trusted friend or relative or your banker to help you use EDIE. For more about why and how to use EDIE, see "EDIE" Makes It Easy: FDIC Internet Site Analyzes Your Insurance Coverage. When in doubt, contact the FDIC for additional assistance. You can call the FDIC toll-free at 1-877-ASK-FDIC (1-877-275-3342). Information specialists are available 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., Eastern Time, Monday through Friday. We also have deposit insurance brochures and other materials on the FDIC Web site at www.fdic.gov/deposit/deposits. This is help you can rely on from the #1 authority on FDIC insurance — the FDIC! If some of your deposits are over the FDIC insurance limit, consider your options for getting them fully insured. One possibility is to divide the funds among the various ownership categories (single accounts, joint accounts, retirement accounts, and so on) at the same institution because deposits in separate insurance categories are separately insured up to the FDIC's limit. But changing the ownership of an account is something you need to think about carefully because, for example, moving some money from a single account into a joint account with someone else means that you are giving that other person legal ownership of the money. Before finalizing your plans, consider discussing them with your attorney, accountant or another trusted advisor. A second option for insuring funds that are over the FDIC's limit is to move some funds to accounts at other insured institutions. This option works well for people who don't want, or don't qualify for, other ownership categories at their existing bank. Periodically review your insurance coverage if you have close to or more than the basic insurance limit (currently $250,000) at one institution. Here are suggestions for when to take a closer look: For example, suppose two people have one account at a bank — a $200,000 joint account — and one of them passes away. If the survivor makes no change in the account within the six-month grace period, it would be reclassified as his or her own (single) account. Under current rules, that $200,000 account would be fully insured through December 31, 2009, because single accounts are covered up to $250,000. But thereafter, the coverage will revert to $100,000, leaving the remaining $100,000 in the account, plus accrued interest, at risk of loss.
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Last Updated 12/4/2008 |
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