The right of offset is the right of a bank of other financial institution to recover money owed to them for an outstanding debt by taking money you have on deposit with them or an affiliated bank to pay your debt. The right of offset is commonly included in credit and account agreements and may be enforced without notice to you, it may also be used on joint accounts. If your bank uses its right of offset, they may withdraw all the money in your account if the debt is more than what is available. This can cause NSF charges to accumulate if pre-authorized payments or other withdrawals continue to be put through the account.