how a bank statement works
a bank issues a bank statement to an account holder that shows the detailed activity in the account it allows the account holder to see all the transactions processed typically chronologically most banks send statements to the account holder either monthly or quarterly banks and credit unions aren t required to send you a monthly statement unless you made at least one electronic fund transfer that month electronic fund transfers include 1your bank can usually change the bank account statement cycle date at any time 2banks must keep records of any deposit of over 100 for at least five years 3types of bank statementsmany banks offer account holders the option of receiving paper or electronic statements usually via email an electronic statement or e statement allows account holders to access statements online for downloading or printing many recipients of e statements still print out their statements at home preferring to keep a permanent record some banks email statements to customers as an attachment bank automatic teller machines atms may be able to print a summarized version of a bank statement called a transaction history receiving digital statements is typically free and opting into digital statements can sometimes spare you monthly account maintenance fees even with the convenience value and accessibility of electronic statements paper statements aren t likely to go away anytime soon however receiving paper bank statements may lead to a fee due to the labor and supplies cost of printing and mailing the statement overall banks usually charge a few dollars per statement for this service which can add up per year if sent monthly credit unions may charge less fees will vary by institution paper statement fees may be waived for people over a certain age such as 65 or minors under a certain age benefits of a bank statementbank statements are a great tool to help account holders keep track of their finances identify errors and recognize spending habits you should verify bank accounts regularly daily weekly or monthly to ensure your records match the bank s this helps reduce overdraft fees errors and fraud account holders can check for discrepancies while reconciling their bank account with the bank statement discrepancies must be reported to the bank promptly account holders may have as little as 30 days to dispute errors but timelines vary by account and state 4 you should keep monthly statements for at least one year requirements for a bank statementparts of a bank statement include information about details of each transaction notably the amount date and payee that took place in the bank account during the period will also be included such as 5for example for the period sept 1 through sept 30 a bank statement may show a non interest bearing checking account with 