Cardtronics Inc. has introduced a product that enables financial institutions to steer their customers to ATMs in their surcharge-free networks.
When consumers who have registered for the product, called FeeAlert, use an out-of-network, fee-charging ATM, they receive a text message or email message from their bank or credit union. The message alerts them to the nearest machines they could use for free, according to an Oct. 2 Cardtronics press release.
“Surcharge-free ATM accessibility is largely driven by awareness—a cardholder can’t use an in-network, surcharge-free cash machine if they don’t know it’s there,” Rick Updyke, president of Houston-based Cardtronics’ U.S. Business Group, said in the release.
Financial institutions could earn consumers’ loyalty by helping them avoid ATM fees, Updyke suggested in the release.
Cardtronics benefits because many of the nearby surcharge-free machines are its bank-branded or surcharge-free Allpoint Network ATMs, the release said. The company operates more than 61,200 retail ATMs in the United States and abroad.
