Banks That Don’t Use ChexSystems in Connecticut

Features & Benefits

• Up to 5.21% APY on savings
• Up to 2% cash back
• No minimum balance requirement
• No monthly fees or overdraft fees

Features & Benefits

• Sign-up bonus up to $300 with qualifying direct deposits
• No monthly fee
• Earn up to 4.60% APY on savings
• Over 55,000 fee-free ATMs

Features & Benefits

• Build credit just by using your debit card
• No minimum balance or monthly fees
• 40,000 fee-free Allpoint ATMs in the U.S.
• Get paid up to 2 days faster
• No credit check or ChexSystems

Features & Benefits

• Over 14.5 million downloads
• No credit check or ChexSystems
• No minimum opening deposit
• Over 60,000 fee-free¹ ATMs

Features & Benefits

• Up to $300 sign-up bonus with direct deposit
• No minimum balance requirements
• Earn up to 5.00% APY
• Over 30,000 fee-free ATMs

Affinity Federal Credit Union doesn’t use ChexSystems, Telecheck, EWS, or pull a credit report.

Affinity FCU offers two types of checking accounts, MoreChecking and Affinity Checking. The Affinity Checking option doesn’t require a minimum deposit or have a minimum balance requirement. There’s also no monthly fee.

The checking account comes with free online bill pay, free eBanking, and a debit card with access to over 30,000 nationwide ATMs.

CorePlus allows anyone to open a savings account regardless of their checking history. However, if you do have a negative mark on your ChexSystems report, you may still be able to open an account.

To be considered, you must not have a history of fraud, and you must have paid back anything you owed to your previous banks.

CorePlus has locations in East Lyme, Foxwoods Resort Casino, Groton, Norwich, Pawcatuck, Plainfield, and Waterford.

To join you must either live, work, attend school, or worship in New London County or Windham County, or live in the Town of Hebron or work for the Town of Bolton. Membership is also available to immediate family members of current members.

They offer four types of checking accounts: Simple Checking, Free, Premier, and Check 24. Free checking does not require a minimum balance, but you must have at least $250 a month directly deposited. It comes with free bill pay, online banking, and e-statements.

Members of Corporate America Family Federal can apply for Fresh Start Checking. You’re required to keep $100 in your Regular Share Account, and the monthly fee is $10.

You can also sign up to take an online class called Get In Balance. Use it to learn the most effective ways to become a successful account holder.

Eastern Connecticut Savings Bank offers a second chance checking account called Restart Checking. If you don’t have a history of fraud on your ChexSystems report and don’t currently owe any money to a bank or credit union, you may be eligible to open an account.

Restart Checking requires a $25 opening deposit, and there is a $6.95 monthly service fee. However, after that, there’s no balance requirement provided you have enough to cover the monthly fee.

It comes with free online and mobile banking, unlimited check writing, a free debit card, phone banking, bill pay, and e-statements. Eastern Connecticut Savings Bank has locations in Norwich, Norwichtown, Jewett City, and Plainfield.

Enfield Community Federal allows anyone to open a savings account. If you would like to open a checking account, your ChexSystems record cannot indicate any fraud, and you must have paid back any debts you owed to banks.

ECFCU is located in Enfield, Connecticut. To find out if you are eligible to join, Enfield Community Federal Credit Union suggests that you speak with a customer service representative. They have many paths to membership.

Enfield Community Federal Credit Union offers five types of checking products. They are:

• Credit Union (CU) ExclusivePlus
• Credit Union (CU) Exclusive
• Regular Checking
• Senior Checking
• Teen Scene Checking (Ages 11-17)

ExclusivePlus and Exclusive both offer free checking provided you are signed up with direct deposit. Regular Checking is free if you are able to maintain a balance of $100. If not, the monthly fee is $5.00.

FineX is a ChexSystems credit union that offers a second chance checking to its members. To join, you must either live, work, or worship in Hartford or Tolland County, or have an immediate family member who is already a member.

Called Re-Start Checking, this second chance checking account has a monthly service fee of $15. However, there is no minimum balance requirement.

It doesn’t come with all the bells and whistles that a normal account does, but it does come with a free debit card as well as unlimited check writing.

FineX has locations in East Hartford, Manchester, and Vernon.

Hartford Federal uses ChexSystems, but it does offer a second chance checking account. You must first apply for a standard checking account before you can apply directly for the second chance checking account.

There’s a $5 monthly fee, but if you’re able to keep your account in good standing for a year, you may be able to transfer to a standard checking account.

Though it is a second chance checking account, it comes with various benefits. Some of them include:

• Free online banking
• Free mobile banking
• Free bill pay
• Free online check imaging
• Unlimited check writing
• Overdraft protection

Although there is only one location, Hartford FCU is a part of the Co-Op Shared Branch network, giving members account access at over 5,000 locations across the nation.

To become a member, you must live or work in Hartford, Tolland, or Middlesex County and deposit $50 into a main share savings account.

Jewett City Savings Bank uses ChexSystems to screen new applications but will accept people with ChexSystems records provided there is not a history of fraud and any past debts have been repaid.

Depending on your history, a debit card may be withheld for the first three months. Maintain a positive account balance for that time, and you’ll then become eligible to receive a debit card.

Jewett City Savings Bank offers four checking accounts: Free Checking, Classic Checking, Direct Checking, and High-Interest Checking.

Free checking doesn’t have any monthly fees or balance requirements. It comes with free online and mobile banking, and free e-statements.

Seasons Federal does use ChexSystems, but has a history of being more lenient than other credit unions and banks. As long as you don’t have a history of fraud, and you’ve paid back your debts to the financial institution, Seasons FCU may open an account for you.

However, if you’re just looking to open a savings account and aren’t concerned with a checking account, it doesn’t matter what’s on your ChexSystems report.

Seasons has locations in Middletown and Meriden. Membership is available to anyone lives, works, worships, volunteers or attends school in:

• Middlesex
• Madison
• Meriden
• Branford
• North Branford
• Cheshire
• North Haven
• East Haven
• Wallingford
• Guilford

Sikorsky has locations in Stratford, Bridgeport, Brookfield, Danbury, Milford, Seymour, Shelton, and Trumbull.

It’s a ChexSystems bank, but anyone, regardless of their checking history, can open a savings account.

If you want to open a checking account, it all depends on what information is on your report. Indications of fraud aren’t accepted, but if you’ve paid back any amounts you owed, you may be eligible. To save time, be sure to speak with a customer service representative before you apply.

To become a member, you must either live, work, worship or, volunteer in Fairfield, New Haven or Hartford County, Connecticut. You may also join if one of your immediate family members is already a member.

Webster Bank has locations throughout much of Connecticut and caters to people looking to repair their checking history.

They have a second chance checking account called Opportunity Checking. You can transfer out of it after a year of maintaining a positive balance.

It requires a $50 opening deposit but comes with free mobile banking, balance alerts, bill pay, and online banking. There’s a monthly service fee of $16.95, but this fee can be reduced to $11.95 if you sign up for direct deposit.

The account also comes with unlimited check writing, as well as free access to over 300 Webster ATMs.