"People are being nickel-and-dimed to death by these ATM fees and other fees and charges at a time when the banks have never been so profitable," she said. While Canadians must pay to withdraw their money, she says banks made $19 billion last year. The party is drafting a private member's bill which will attempt to amend Canada's Bank Act to ban automated teller machine (ATM) fees.

Reporter Sara Parkes at her local ATM.

However, Melanie Minos, spokesperson for the Canadian Bankers Association says the NDP are unfairly targeting banks when 69 per cent of ATMs are privately-owned. She says such legislation is also anti-customer, as it would lead to the customers paying more for bank services to subsidize others' banking habits.

"It is not in the consumer's best interest to ban a fee that is used to pay for the ABM network and it's one you can definitely avoid." She says customers are told about network access fees before they proceed with any transactions.

I decided to find out about my own ATM fees, and that’s why I'm in this small office at my Scotiabank branch beside a row of tellers.

The bank’s Mary Matheson analyzes my banking records. She tells me with my Basic Banking chequing account, I can perform up to 50 monthly transactions – provided I do them online or at a machine – for about $7 a month. I often use point-of-purchase transactions – about 40 a month, but if I go over the limit, or go to a teller, I'm required to pay 65 cents per transaction.

Taking account

"There are numerous types of accounts," Matheson says. "You need to come in and make sure you have the right account for you."

Scotiabank's chequing accounts charge fees ranging from $3.95 to $11.95 a month. Some fees are completely waved when the account consistently holds $2,000. If at any point the account dips below $2,000, the customer must pay the regular monthly fee.

The history of spending Find out what came first, debit or credit, and what's in store in the future. It's all in this timeline of banking technology. Requires FlashPlayer

Matheson says another way to avoid additional fees is to use only your bank’s ATMs.

"If you use Scotiabank machines, you don't have any additional fees," says Matheson.

Banks charge $1.50 per ATM withdrawal using their services if you are not a customer. Your own bank can also charge up to $1.90. Scotiabank charges $1.50. Matheson says people can always transfer their accounts to another bank, if they find they are frequently using that bank’s ATMs. She also says to avoid private ATMs.

Avoiding private ATMs

"Those machines in Quickie stores that are not really bank machines, they have charges that are even higher," she says. Private ATMs often charge $2, even $3 per transaction, on top of the fees charged by the customer's bank.

Wasylycia-Leis says Canadians often have no choice but to use privately-owned ATMs, since there has been a trend across the country to close bank branches.

"They've pulled out of so many communities, shut branches down completely and put in place either their own ATMs or let the private ATMs come in. People have no choice."

Privately-owned ATMs can charge between $2 and $3 per transaction.

She said the NDP is encouraging banks to eliminate fees while providing services in areas where private ATMs have taken over. This way, there would be no need for privately-owned machines which the federal government has no jurisdiction over, she says.

Back in the Scotiabank office, Matheson says I have a good bank account for my lifestyle.

What did I discover? I have about 40 transactions a month. I use other bank ATMs about once or twice and private ATMs barely at all. My monthly bank fees are just over $7 and rarely above, due to my infrequent use of competing ATMs.

So, yes, I am being forced to pay my bank to withdraw money from my account, but with a low-fee account that suits me and a Scotiabank branch located every few blocks in Ottawa, I have managed to avoid being seriously gouged. Since I'm not prepared to close my account and hold my money under a mattress, I suppose I will have to deal with my fees.

Related Links NDP's proposal to eliminate ATM fees Financial service charges calculator: Find out if your bank account is right for you Canada's Bank Act Interac website Canadian Bankers Assocation