Deposit Insurance for Washington Banks & Credit Unions

Banks and credit unions doing business in Washington State have federal deposit insurance through the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) for banks and the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) for credit unions.

The standard insurance amount currently is $250,000 per depositor. The $250,000 limit is permanent for certain retirement accounts, which includes IRAs. The $250,000 limit is temporary for all other deposit accounts through December 31, 2013. On January 1, 2014, the standard insurance amount will return to $100,000 per depositor for all account categories except certain retirement accounts, which will remain at $250,000 per depositor.

Message from DFI Director Scott Jarvis
View a message from DFI Director Scott Jarvis about the safety of deposits in Washington Banks and Credit Unions.

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Deposits in Washington Banks & Credit Unions Are Insured Up To $250,000

In general, the FDIC (banks) and NCUA (credit unions) provide depositors with $250,000 in coverage for their individual deposit accounts.

Insured accounts include:

• Savings
• Checking
• Money Market
• Certificate Accounts

Individuals with account balances totaling less than $250,000 at the same insured bank or credit union have full FDIC (for banks) or full NCUSIF (for credit unions) coverage.

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If You Have More Than $250,000 in an Individual Bank or Credit Union, Contact Them

If you have more than $250,000 in an individual bank or a individual credit union, you will want to find out if you qualify for additional coverage.

Contact your bank or credit union to discuss deposit insurance coverage in excess of $250,000. 

Additional insurance coverage is available based on rules from the FDIC or NCUA regarding retirement accounts and other types of accounts, such as trust accounts.

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Insurance for Retirement Accounts

Certain retirement accounts, such as Individual Retirement Accounts, are insured up to $250,000 per depositor per insured bank or per insured credit union.

More Information:

• Banks: FDIC - Insuring Your Deposits
• Credit Unions: NCUA - About Retirement Insurance (PDF)*

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How to Find Information about the Financial Health of Your Bank or Credit Union

If you are curious about the financial health of your bank or credit union, quarterly financial statements are posted on the FDIC and NCUA Web sites.

• Banks Financial Statements
  For a bank's most recently published, quarterly financial statement, see the FDIC's find a bank search engine.
• Credit Unions Financial Statements
  For a credit union's most recently published, quarterly financial statement, see NCUA's find a credit union search engine

There are also a number of bank rating services that analyze a bank's performance over time and then assign ratings based on the perceived safety and soundness of the bank.

• Bank Rating Services
  To find a bank rating service, see DFI's list of bank rating services.

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More Resources for Bank Customers

• FDIC Electronic Deposit Insurance Estimator (Spanish)
  Online tool that allows you to calculate your FDIC insurance coverage for each FDIC-insured bank where you have deposit accounts.
• FDIC Deposit Insurance Coverage FAQs
  Answers to frequently asked questions about deposit insurance.
• Insuring Your Deposits (Spanish)
  Information from the FDIC about the insurance of deposits.
  
• What Happens When A Bank Fails?
  Information from the FDIC about what happens when a bank fails.
• FDIC Depositor Bill Of Rights
  Depositor's bill of rights from the FDIC.
• FDIC Deposit Insurance Brochure (PDF)
  Also available in: Spanish Chinese Korean Vietnamese
• FDIC
  The FDIC is an independent agency of the federal government and insures deposits in banks and thrift institutions for at least $100,000.
• Listing of State-Chartered Banks
  Listing and contact information for state-chartered banks regulated by DFI.
• www.helpwithmybank.gov
  Answers and solutions for customers of a national bank.

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More Resources for Credit Union Customers

• FAQs about the NCUSIF
  Answers to frequently asked questions about the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund.
• Your Insured Funds Brochure (PDF) (Spanish)
  Informative brochure about credit union share insurance.
• NCUA
  The NCUA is the federal agency that charters and supervises federal credit unions and insures savings in federal and most state-chartered credit unions.
• Listing of State-Chartered Credit Unions
  Listing and contact information for state-chartered credit unions regulated by DFI.

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Questions? Contact DFI

If you have questions, please feel free to contact us.

Washington Department of Financial Institutions
Phone: (360) 902-8731
Toll-Free: 1-877-746-4334
TDD: (360) 664-8126

* This document is a PDF file, and you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to view it. If you don't already have Acrobat Reader installed on your computer, you may download it for free from Adobe.