If you have made some mistakes in your past and have been reported to Chexsystems or Telescan, you may have difficulty opening up a new checking account. Generally a bank will not report you to either of these services unless they have closed down your account because you were overdrawn for a long period of time. The systems are set up to protect the banks from opening up accounts that will end up overdrawn and in the negative. These accounts do end up costing the banks money. If you have been reported to these systems and you want to open up a new account to start fresh there are several steps that you will need to complete in order to make this possible.
The first thing you need to do is to contact the systems to find out if you owe money to any banks. If you do you will need to pay this money off. Once you do that you should request that the bank send a letter to the system stating that the debt has been paid off in full.
After you do this you will need to find a bank that is willing to open an account for you. If you were reported to Telescan, they will completely remove you from the system. If you were reported to Chexsystems your name will appear on their list for five years. Often smaller banks are more willing to work with you on a case by case basis.
You will need to make sure that you do not make similar mistakes again. You can do this by balancing your checkbook and keeping a running ledger of what you have available in your checking account. If you cannot open a checking account at all, many banks will allow you to open a savings account. This can allow you to save money while you are straightening out your financial situation.
Related Articles:
How to Live Without a Bank Account