Recently I began attending NFB meetings at a new chapter in Southern Connecticut. While reviewing old business at the December meeting, an issue concerning banking practices in our state caught my attention. Maureen Carr, a fellow Federationist, detailed her encounters with Webster Bank. The trouble started in the spring of 1998. The local news reported that several banks in our area were instituting new policies, which included charging a fee for using a live bank teller.
ATMs have text displays for instructions and keypads for entering transaction information.
However, without the help of a sighted assistant a blind person can't read the text display in order to enter the required information. Various banks offer different models of ATM machines, and there is little consistency among them. While blind users may be able to memorize the instructions and commands for a specific machine, we are not free to operate the multitude of other ATMs independently. So, having no alternatives, most blind people are forced to do their banking at a counter with a live teller. When Maureen brought this to the attention of Webster Bank in June of 1998, they agreed to waive all transaction fees made for use of a teller, encoded her account to reflect this decision, and considered the matter resolved.