Why won't my bank let me use my debit card on my savings account?
Savings accounts are meant to have fewer withdrawals than a checking account. Federal laws and regulations (banking Regulation D) restrict some of the features accounts may have. A savings account is limited in the number of transfers to third parties and your bank may be fined and otherwise penalized if they failed to impose these restrictions. Debit card transfers to third parties, such as you might use at the convenience store or restaurant, would be limited to three per month. The bank has to ensure that any over that are blocked. That can be difficult to program into their computer systems and embarassing to you when your purchase is refused because it is (for example) the fourth that month, so many banks elect to just not allow even the limited few.
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Savings accounts are meant to have fewer withdrawals than a checking account. Federal laws and regulations (banking Regulation D) restrict some of the features accounts may have. A savings account is limited in the number of transfers to third parties and your bank may be fined and otherwise penalized if they failed to impose these restrictions. Debit card transfers to third parties, such as you might use at the convenience store or restaurant, would be limited to three per month. The bank has to ensure that any over that are blocked. That can be difficult to program into their computer systems and embarassing to you when your purchase is refused because it is (for example) the fourth that month, so many banks elect to just not allow even the limited few.
