With many banks, you can go to the bank and tell them to simply refuse payment of any overdraft, rather than granting it and charging you. Your card will then get declined if you don't have enough in your account.
The automatic overdraft "protection" scam was recently made illegal. Now you have to opt-in to have overdrafts covered.
Banks made a ton of money off of this, so this is another reason why they are trying to find new ways to raise revenue. At least a $5 fee is out in the open, and consumers can choose.
