A few simple changes can add up to big savings in bank fees / File Source: news.com.au

Australians on average lose $1000 a year to bank fees and it grows about 8 per cent a year. Often we pay those fees because of our own laziness.

We don't know about you, but we'd rather keep that $1000 for ourselves than help the bank make another record profit. Change your banking habits, cut those bank fees and enjoy the rewards.

The sooner you get cracking on this issue the better.

Assess your banking arrangements

The first step is probably the hardest and that's understanding your banking and credit card habits. With a day-to-day account, how many transactions do you make, are they electronic, do you need a cheque book or are you happy with internet banking?

The key is to choose the accounts which suit your habits at the lowest cost. Often you can find appropriate products within your current bank so the first step should be your branch's information section.

Explain your situation to the customer service person and see what they can offer. If it's not much, start shopping around other banks.

The same with a credit card. If you never seem to pay off the balance on the due date, choose a card with a low interest rate and no interest-free days. If you regularly pay the balance off on time, interest-free days are an advantage.

Make sure you check out the deals offered by your financial institution. Many of them offer discounted fees for pensioners, students, a range of professions and even members of sports associations.

If you have a couple of products with your bank, such as a credit card, home loan or managed investment, you are an important customer.

Ask where they can cut your fees to keep you happy.

Some banks also offer their shareholders lower fees on home loans.

Only use your bank's ATMs to avoid costs

Plan ahead and visit one of your bank's ATMs for free before you run out of cash.

New rules mean we have a much better idea of how much we are charged to use another bank's ATM.

From now on when you use an ATM that's not your bank's, a message will come up on the screen telling you how much you will be charged by the ATM's owner.

This should be around $2 at an independent ATM or a rival lender's.

On top of that $2, your bank may also charge you a so-called "foreign" fee for using a different ATM. This fee varies from bank to bank.

It's important to note this fee is per transaction. Just say you want to withdraw cash and check your balance at an ATM that doesn't belong to your bank, you could be charged up to $2.50 for each action $5 in total.

If there are only "foreign" ATMs around, withdraw a larger amount and make it last longer. A $2 fee on a $100 withdrawal is a 2 per cent slug, but on a $500 withdrawal it's just 0.4 per cent.

An alternative to this is to withdraw small amounts fee-free via Eftpos when you're out shopping.

Don't overdraw

Some lenders charge up to $50 every time you don't have enough cash in your account to cover a cheque or direct debit payment.

Overdrawing your account may seem a better option than not paying your rent or electricity bill, but the penalties are high.

Get organised and don't ever put yourself in that position.

If you are hit with a $50 overdrawn fee, complain to the bank and mutter about it being illegal under contract law to make a profit on these types of penalties. British consumers had a big win over the banks on this issue.

Our banks don't want it tested here, and our experience is that they'll cut the penalty if you complain.

Consolidate accounts

With some accounts charging regular fees of up to $10 a month, it makes sense to consolidate your accounts.

There's also the extra withdrawal fees, Eftpos fees and other transaction charges.

If you have several transaction accounts, find out who gives the best deal, transfer your money and close the rest. The same goes for credit cards.

Read the fine print on loans

Research all fees before taking out a new loan. Is there an application fee? What's the penalty if you make late repayments? Do they charge a monthly administration fee?

Keep track of the fees because some lenders have been sneakily increasing annual mortgage fees.

Avoid your branch

Suburban branches cost a lot to run, so banks charge for the privilege of using them.

Some banks make you pay up to $5 for withdrawing money over the counter and up to $2.50 for depositing money at a branch. Internet banking is the cheapest way to make transactions.