Answer:
The regulation requires that you include any interest that would have been earned when you provide the provisional credit. It doesn't mention the refunding of fees in the regulation, but the Official Staff Interpretations (Commentary) requires the refunding of fees imposed by the institution at the time the final determination is made (assuming the customer's claim is approved). Only those fees imposed by the institution that were the result of the error need be refunded.
A literal reading of the regulation and the Comments would indicate that the fees need not be included in your provisional credit amount. However, many banks have found that including the fees in the provisional credit makes the conversion of provisional credit to final credit easier once the investigation is completed (assuming the provisional credit takes care of everything). It also "makes the customer whole" sooner, which is obviously a "plus" for customer relations.
First published on BankersOnline.com 1/07/08
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