Sep. 24--Apparently bowing to growing criticism from lawmakers, regulators, and consumer advocates, three of the nation's largest banks have announced plans to ease their aggressive collection of overdraft fees that are expected to add nearly $40 billion to bank revenue this year.

Yesterday, Wells Fargo & Co. said it planned to drop fees for customers who overdraw their accounts by $5 or less and would allow customers to opt out of overdraft coverage. Wells joined Bank of America Corp. and JPMorgan Chase & Co., which made similar announcements Tuesday and earlier yesterday. Wells did not say when the changes would take effect.

Barbara Nate, a spokeswoman for Wachovia Bank, the region's largest bank, now owned by Wells, said Wachovia already allowed customers to opt out of overdraft protection for debit card transactions. So do Citizens Bank and TD Bank N.A., two of the region's other leading banks, according to bank spokesmen.

Although lawmakers have proposed restricting overdraft fees, especially those imposed for debit and ATM transactions that could simply be declined, the banks did not acknowledge any pressure.

"These enhancements are part of a larger effort to provide customers with more choices, especially in challenging economic times," Bank of America spokesman T.J. Crawford said.

It is unclear how profitable overdraft fees have become. In August, Moebs Services, an economic-research firm, estimated that they would generate $38.5 billion this year, almost twice the amount they produced in 2000.

Consumer advocates, long critical of overdraft fees and "bounce protection" plans marketed as a lower-cost alternative, gave the banks' announcements mixed reviews.

"Laws protect us better than press releases," said Ed Mierzwinski of U.S. PIRG. "Bank policies and press releases can be reversed unless there's a law."

Even so, Mierzwinski praised Chase for two steps it announced among changes it said would take effect next year. One was its decision to eliminate overdrafts for debit cards unless a customer specifically requested coverage. The other was the bank's plan to post ATM and debit transactions chronologically rather than by size, a practice that critics say boosted fees by generating larger numbers of smaller overdrafts.

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