SUM ATM Network - only required to have 60% of their ATMs in network

[bigrock.livejournal.com]

A friend of mine told me that there are signs at the Wainwright Bank in Davis Square stating that the ATMs there will no longer be a part of the SUM ATM Network.

Apparently, as long as 60% of a bank's ATMs are on the SUM network, they can be a member of the SUM network. (A representative from Wainwright told me this on the phone)

Is it me or is this a gaping hole in this SUM network? One of the reasons I went to Wainwright was because of the SUM network. If 40 percent of all SUM network ATMs went away, that makes it a lot more difficult to find a surcharge free ATM. It's not too difficult to make an adjustment in your daily routine; but when you're away from your normal surroundings it makes it much more difficult to find a surcharge free ATM.

Comments

[out-2-lunch.livejournal.com]

That sucks.

I use Wainwright too. I was told that usually in high traffic areas, the banks won't keep them as being part of the SUM network...like the ones in Harvard Square.

[veda815.livejournal.com]

I think Citizens may do this too? I was under the impression all Citizens ATMs were SUM so I used them and then suddenly got a charge. I forget where it was but next time I visited I noticed there wasn't a SUM sign.

[toonhead-npl.livejournal.com]

Yes, Citizens pulled this long ago. They wanted to show how friendly a bank they were and get approval for their purchase of USTrust (among others) so they made all their ATMs SUM.

Of course after the deal was done, they slowly removed their busiest ATMs off the SUM network but still kept enough around elsewhere to be part of SUM. Do they now even have any more SUM machines?

Wainwright is probably doing this for similar reasons: it costs more money to dispense cash to people who aren;t even your customers. At least because of Wainwright's small size, they can;t really remove many more ATMs from the SUM network. Not that this helps you any. :( Too bad, because they're such a nice banking company ...

[clevernonsense.livejournal.com]

I don't think this is new, some banks have seemed to always be some SUM Network some not (I think it's only the bigger banks that can do the 60% thing)--I think this is a single change at that one bank.

I noticed that the only Citizens ATMs that are part of the SUM network are the ones right next door to another ATM that is also on the network, which is a bit irritating.

[surrealestate.livejournal.com]

I believe Citizens has to keep their ATMs on SUM for some period of time as part of the deal for acquiring US Trust, but you better believe they were off it the day it was legal to do so.

[miraclaire.livejournal.com]

that was one of the reasons I chose wainwright.... grr.

[talonvaki.livejournal.com]

I have a Credit Union based in Northern California. I've lived here for 5 and a half years, but I've been with them for over 20, and I am not switching. Thanks to the internet, I haven't had to.

I never pay fees for ATMs.

You can get cash with purchase at any Walgreens (up to $100), Star Market (up to $200), or CVS (only up to $35), as well as many other places. Yes, you have to buy something to get the cash, but how hard is that? Everyone needs pocket Kleenex, Band-Aids, or a little bottle of that anti-bacterial stuff.

And hey: Porter Square CVS is open 24/7.

I'm from California. Paying ATM fees is not something I do.

[laklare.livejournal.com]

Yeah, but if you have a wainwright bank card, then why do you care? You're not going to be charged...only people from other banks, right?

[bigrock.livejournal.com]

Yes you are right, but if every other bank only had 60 percent of their ATMs as SUM i would get screwed somewhere else soon.

[schpahky.livejournal.com]

Some of the Citizens banks downtown are SUM...more likely the ones on side streets than main thoroughfares.

I ran from Citizens after they ate US Trust and my checking account "fee" went up to $14 a month. It is sweet revenge to be a Wainwright member now and withdraw fee-free money from a Citizens SUM ATM. Ha!

[schpahky.livejournal.com]

If you are a Wainwright customer there is still no fee for you at any Wainwright bank.

[on-reserve.livejournal.com]

This indeed, sucks. I often find myself with nary a surcharge free ATM in sight. Fortunately, many places offer cash back so I generally look for the nearest grocery. That way I at least get a pack of gum or snack out of my transaction.

Here's another way I look at it:

Many non-SUM banks charge for checking accounts, esp. if you can gurantee them direct deposit or a big nest egg just hanging around. I pay NO FEE at all. Not for checking, saving, online bill paying, etc. If I end up paying a dollar or two in fees over the course of the month, I say to myself, "well, I still have a MOSTLY free checking account."

[dreamgirly19.livejournal.com]

off topic...i live near broadway/russell rd and there is a bank there with a free atm. no surcharges :)

[prunesnprisms.livejournal.com]

Um, yeah, I think that sucks and is pretty useless.

[prunesnprisms.livejournal.com]

Right, but being a Wainright customer and being able to take advantage of both their nice policies and other banks numerous ATMs is a sweet deal.

[miraclaire.livejournal.com]

I know, but it's still a not-nice thing for them to do.

[hakamadare.livejournal.com]

so, a bit of digging and Wainwright’s contact page (http://www.wainwrightbank.com/site/123.asp) provided me with the following information:

• the corporate office number is 617-478-4000
• the VP who made this decision is Liliana Sanchez, extension 387 (according to Keith, a customer service rep). Ms. Sanchez is not yet in today; she’s likely to come in around 10 am.

i’ll be calling back until i reach her, at which point i’ll confirm that she’s the one responsible. please call and complain, especially if you’re a Wainwright customer. (as a side note, Keith was absolutely dumbfounded when he told me “well, since you’re a Wainwright customer, this change won’t affect you” and that answer didn’t satisfy me. heh.)

i doubt that Ms. Sanchez reads this community, so while complaining here is gratifying, it doesn’t accomplish much. :)

-steve

[hakamadare.livejournal.com]

hm, nobody at Wainwright corporate seems to want to speak to me; it’s an endless stream of voicemail. i’ll keep trying.

-steve

[elements.livejournal.com]

To be clear, you can still use any SUM ATM as a Wainwright customer. It's just that customers of *other* banks in SUM will no longer be able to use the Davis Wainwright ATMs.

[elements.livejournal.com]

Thanks for this info! I too am in the "well, I'm not personally affected right here but still it bugs me" position. I guess it violates the spirit of SUM to me... I hate to see SUM being slowly eroded.

I wonder if Wainwright, being small, simply couldn't handle the traffic that ATM must get.

[76trombones.livejournal.com]

Is this a change in SUM policy, or a change in Wainwright's configuration of their ATMs? I can't tell.

[76trombones.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I also thought the Citizens strangeness was related to US Trust.

I vaguely recall that they had to keep the same proportion, but it wasn't necessarily the case that every old USTrust ATM remained a SUM ATM.

[ron_newman]

Just to clarify:

Even though Wainwright's Davis Square ATMs are no longer part of SUM, Davis Square still has lots of other ATMs that are part of SUM. The official SUM ATM website shows that the Citizens Bank, Winter Hill Bank, Central Bank, and Middlesex Federal Savings ATMs are all in SUM.

None of these are quite as much in the center of Davis Square life as Wainwright, but they're all a short walk away.
On the rare occasion that Wainwright's ATMs are out of order, I go down the street to Citizens.

Wainwright now has 11 branches. Seven of them have SUM ATMs: Downtown Boston, Central Square, Kendall Square, Jamaica Plain, Coolidge Corner, Newton Center, and Watertown. The four that don't are Fresh Pond, Davis Square, Harvard Square, and Back Bay.

[ron_newman]

Did you ever get a reply from Liliana Sanchez?