Some UK banks are charging up to 800000% on overdrafts

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Unless things have changed, in the US an overdraft is a one-time charge. Most banks have now set their overdraft fees to the legal limit, since Congress was planning on implementing consumer protections. Overdraft protection in the past either deducted the amount of the overdraft from a savings account OR applied it to a credit account. You're still charged an overdraft fee, for writing a check with insufficient funds, from your bank, but the check isn't refused and you aren't subsequently charged a second fee from whomever you passed the bad check onto.

Some banks also give a similar option with a debit card. Customers, in good credit standing are given a reserve limit on their debit card. So, for instance you may only have £20 (for the UK members) in your bank account but need to pick up something for £30. You get charged for an overdraft, however your bank charge goes through (your card isn't declined).

Banks here generally do not consider it a crime to overdraft an account. Overdrafts happen even to the best of customers sometimes. However, when a person begins to pass bad check after bad check, then unfortunately the responsibility for resolving the situation is placed on the feet of the person who received the bad check. Not the bank.

Here taking a check (cheque) implies risk on the part of the recipient. There's little consequence for passing a bad check. Worse case scenario, you pass a bad check, you get sued, before the court case you pay off the cost of the bad check + court costs, and you're clear. Your bank may not like you anymore, and the person you passed a bad check to may not like you anymore, but you are legally in the clear.

The exception to this is if you pass a check from a closed bank account or a check that's false/fraudulant. That becomes a criminal matter and you can't escape that.

But bank fee wise, the US is consumer friendly. The problem is the banks keep figuring out new ways to apply fees. ATMs were a great example of this. At first, ATMs were free. Then, they started charging everyone ATM fees because someone got the bright idea to pass on the ATM fee Bank A was charged to Bank B when a customer from Bank B used Bank A's ATM. Makes sense; it's reasonable. But banks made nothing off of their own customers. They absorbed those fees. So to compensate, they started charging a teller fee. That's a fee to walk up to the counter and do your banking business with a live person.

So, the alternative we have in the US is what's called a credit union. Essentially a community/group owned bank. They typically offer lower fees and better rates.