Bulgarian Banks Increase ATM Fees

ATM fees in Bulgaria have doubled over the past five years and some banks have updated their tariffs as of August.

Experts in the field, as cited by profit.bg, attribute the higher tariffs to the increase in ATM theft attempts, rather than the ongoing crisis and the burden of bad loans.

Specialists vow that no dramatic increase in bank fees is expected.

Some banks have kept the usage of their own ATMs free of charge, while around half of the banks have introduced a fee of BGN 0.10 – 0.30.

Using an ATM of another bank costs up to BGN 1 per transaction.

Several banks have published new tariffs on their websites entering into force in August – some have kept their ATM fees at the same rates but one bank has increased the cost of the service by about 10%.

Banks' ATM fees vary, depending on the cost of refilling and maintaining the device.

Analysts encourage bank customers to keep track of the fees they get charged.

However, this is not so easy because ATM receipts do not show if the withdrawal or the balance enquiry was accompanied by transaction fees.

Experts advise customers to visit their banks regularly and to demand a debit card statement showing all fees deducted from the account.

The Association of Banks in Bulgaria claims that the bank market in the country is competitive enough to allow unjustified increases in service fees.

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