 TITLE: What Is Right of Offset? CONTENT: Your Rights as an Account Holder\n--------------------------------\nIf the documents you signed when you opened a checking account, savings account or CD included a right of offset agreement, then you've permitted the financial institution to take your money to pay a debt under the terms outlined in the agreement. The agreement is a legal contract and you're subject to it as long as you're an account holder.\nIn some cases, you might not even learn that your bank or credit union has exercised its right of offset until after the fact. The agreement doesn't, however, open the door for a financial institution to pull money from your account whenever it wants. For instance, federal law prohibits a federally chartered bank from using the right of offset to pay your overdue credit card bill.\nState laws might also limit a bank's or credit union's right of offset. This is the case in California, where a financial institution can't push your balance below $1,000 when it pulls money from your account to cover a debt. Some states also prohibit draining government benefits like Social Security or unemployment in a right of offset action. END