A checking account gives you a safe place to store your money in addition to providing you with convenient features such as online banking. Banks want to protect themselves from the financial losses they incur when consumers accrue high overdraft charges on their bank accounts and fail to repay their debts. Thus, most banks will require you to submit to a credit check prior to granting you a new checking account. If you have bad credit, this can be a deal breaker. Fortunately, there are banks out there that offer special checking accounts for individuals with bad credit.

See: Bank Overdraft Fees and Credit Reporting

Second Chance Checking Programs for Bad Credit

Second chance checking programs are specifically designed to help those with bad credit or those who have a debt in Chexsystems. These checking accounts are often basic and lack all of the bells and whistles that standard checking accounts have, but they do offer individuals with poor credit the opportunity to open a new checking account without worrying that their bad credit rating will result in a denial of their application. Some second chance checking programs don’t require a credit check.