Checking on your bank's insurance isn't a bad idea
— -- Q: I have all my money in an FDIC insured bank, but how I do know that bank is current in paying its FDIC insurance premiums?
A: Banks are winning new respect as a place to park our money.
The horrific market downturn is a reminder that "pretty safe" isn't the same as government insured. Because of the current financial turmoil, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) has increased the amount of its basic insurance for FDIC-insured bank accounts from $100,000 to $250,000 per depositor. In addition, On Oct. 14, it took the unprecedented step of providing unlimited insurance coverage for non-interest bearing accounts, such as the payroll accounts used by busineses, at participating banks.
Of course, FDIC insurance isn't free. The bank or financial institution is required to pay a premium to the FDIC in exchange for that protection. So you ask a good question — how do you know that your bank is keeping up with the payments? You shouldn't assume that just because the FDIC logo is on the bank's website that it's current.
Fortunately, the FDIC's website makes it easy to check on your bank. Start at FDIC.gov and look on the right side of the page under Consumer Resources. Click through to the "Bank Find" link.
This takes you to the Bank Find database, which is the best place to start your search. Type in the name of the bank in the Name field and click the "Find" button. You should see a list of all the banks with a name similar to the name you entered. Click on the name of your bank and you'll see a report showing key details, including the FDIC certificate number. The report will also tell you if the bank is insured.
Matt Krantz is a financial markets reporter at USA TODAY and author of Investing Online for Dummies. He answers a different reader question every weekday in his Ask Matt column at money.usatoday.com. To submit a question, e-mail Matt at mkrantz@usatoday.com. Click here to see previous Ask Matt columns.
