A Franklin Madison charge on your bank statement is a premium deduction for a supplemental insurance policy — usually accidental death, hospital indemnity, or a similar product — that was set up through your bank or credit union. Franklin Madison administers the program on the financial institution’s behalf. If you don’t recognize the charge, call Franklin Madison’s policyholder service line at 1-855-343-8069 (Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Central) or sign in at fmservice.com to see which policy you’re enrolled in and cancel it.1Franklin Madison. Contact Us
Who Franklin Madison Is and Why Your Bank Is Involved
Franklin Madison is a third-party insurance administrator based in Brentwood, Tennessee. It partners with banks, credit unions, and affinity groups to offer supplemental insurance to their customers and members, handling enrollment, premium collection, and claims on the bank’s behalf.2Franklin Madison. Franklin Madison for Banks, Credit Unions and Affinity Partners The programs cover things like hospital stays from a covered accident, lump-sum payouts for common injuries, and initial diagnosis of conditions such as cancer, heart attack, or stroke.3Franklin Madison. Accident and Illness Coverage for Consumers Which policy is generating your specific charge depends on what you signed up for, and the fmservice.com portal will show it.
How You Ended Up Enrolled
Most people are enrolled after responding to a no-cost coverage offer mailed by their bank or shown in online banking. The pitch typically offers a small amount of free accidental death coverage — often $1,000 or $2,000 — with the option to upgrade to paid coverage for more protection. Premium deductions begin when the free tier converts to paid, or when a promotional period ends and paid coverage starts automatically. The Federal Trade Commission calls this pattern “negative option” marketing: you’re signed up unless you actively cancel.4Federal Trade Commission. Federal Trade Commission Announces Final Click-to-Cancel Rule Making It Easier for Consumers to End Recurring Subscriptions and Memberships
Because the monthly premium is usually modest, the charge can sit on statements for months before anyone notices.
How to Cancel
Call 1-855-343-8069 and tell the representative to cancel the policy. Ask for three things before you hang up: a confirmation number, the effective cancellation date, and whether you’re eligible for a refund of recent premiums. Write all of that down. You can also manage the policy and request cancellation through the online portal at fmservice.com.5Franklin Madison. Log In to Your Account
Then call your bank and tell them to stop the recurring debit. Federal law lets you stop any preauthorized electronic transfer from your account by notifying your bank at least three business days before the next scheduled payment.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1693e – Preauthorized Transfers The order can be given orally or in writing. If your bank takes it by phone, it may require written confirmation within 14 days, and if so it must tell you that and give you the address.7eCFR. 12 CFR 1005.10 – Preauthorized Transfers Some banks charge a fee for a stop-payment order, so ask upfront.
Doing both steps closes the door from each side. Cancelling with Franklin Madison ends the policy; the stop-payment order at the bank catches any debit that slips through afterward.
Disputing the Charge Under Federal Law
Bank account debits are governed by the Electronic Fund Transfer Act, not the Fair Credit Billing Act (which applies to credit cards). Under the EFTA and Regulation E, you have specific rights when an unauthorized or erroneous debit hits your account.
The 60-Day Window
You have 60 days from the date your bank sends the statement containing the disputed charge to notify them of the error. Your notice needs your name and account number, the transaction and amount in question, and why you believe it’s wrong.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1693f – Error Resolution You can call it in or send it in writing, though the bank may require written follow-up within 10 days of an oral notice. Once notified, the bank must investigate and report its findings within 10 business days.
That clock matters. If a Franklin Madison charge has been running for months, you can still dispute the charges within 60 days of your latest statement. Older ones are harder to recover.
Liability Limits if the Charge Was Truly Unauthorized
If you never agreed to the enrollment at all, your liability is capped at $50 as long as you report promptly.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1693g – Consumer Liability If you wait more than two business days after learning about the activity, exposure rises to $500 for transfers occurring in that gap. After 60 days without reporting, you could be liable for the full amount of any transfers that happen after that deadline.
Most Franklin Madison charges aren’t purely unauthorized in the legal sense, since some interaction with a mailer or online offer usually preceded them. If the enrollment was misleading or the disclosures were inadequate, the charges may still qualify as errors under Regulation E’s broader error resolution process. Frame the dispute around the facts: you did not knowingly authorize ongoing paid deductions, and you want the bank to investigate.
Getting Past Premiums Refunded
Ask Franklin Madison directly about a refund when you cancel. Refunds do get issued in some cases, especially where charges continued after a cancellation request or where disclosures were inadequate. No federal law guarantees a premium refund simply because you forgot you signed up, but asking costs nothing.
If Franklin Madison declines and you believe the charges were unauthorized, escalate through your bank’s error resolution process. File the dispute in writing, attach the statements showing the charges, and reference your cancellation confirmation. The bank has to investigate and either fix the error or explain in writing why it found none within the statutory timeframe.
If Charges Keep Coming After You Cancel
If you cancelled with Franklin Madison, placed a stop-payment order, and debits are still landing, work through these steps in order:
- Call your bank and reference the stop-payment order by date. Confirm it names the correct payee and amount. An imprecise order can miss the debit.
- File a written error dispute under Regulation E citing the post-cancellation charges and your cancellation confirmation number. This triggers the 10-business-day investigation requirement.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1693f – Error Resolution
- File a complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau at consumerfinance.gov if neither Franklin Madison nor your bank resolves it. The CFPB forwards the complaint to the company and tracks the response.
Keep every confirmation number, cancellation date, and piece of correspondence. A paper trail turns a runaround into a straightforward dispute.
Whether This Affects Your Credit
Insurance premiums generally aren’t reported to the credit bureaus, so simply stopping payment usually just causes the insurer to cancel the policy. The exception is if an unpaid balance is sent to a third-party collection agency, which can then appear on your credit report for seven years from the date of the missed payment that triggered it. That outcome is uncommon with supplemental insurance programs, but cancelling through the proper channels rather than just letting the account go unpaid avoids the risk.