Community bankers to give away $4,000 in gas as part of Take Back Your Banking Campaign

Chattanooga-area community bankers will be giving away $20 in gas to the first 200 people to come to the Corner Store, located at 1998 Dayton Blvd., as part of the nationwide Take Back Your Banking Campaign. 

The event will take place Aug. 16 from 9 to 11 a.m.

The employees of Mountain Valley Bank and Citizens Bank will man this event and will pump the gas for the event attendees. 

Officials said that because many consumers feel that they have been taken advantage of by banks that charge account holders for basic services, the goal of the Take Back Your Banking Campaign is to raise awareness about mistreatment from banks and show consumers that there is another way to bank. The experience will highlight this other way to bank, which officials said is free and which pays account holders for deposits.

Community banks and credit unions in 20 cities across the country are rallying together under Kasasa, a national brand of free checking and savings accounts that rewards account holders with initiatives such as high interest (from 2.5 to 4 percent), cash back, automatic savings, money to donate to charity, or digital downloads from iTunes or Amazon.com. These accounts are only available at community banks and credit unions (as opposed to megabanks), so officials said that account openers and holders can expect convenience combined with excellent customer service.