Each of the five banks below lets the account holder turn on alerts, for things like a transaction over an amount she chooses or a card used without being present. Your parent sets them up from her own login. The harder question for a family is whether any of those alerts can reach you, and each bank answers it differently. Here is what five of them publish, read from their own pages on September 26, 2026.
The short version
- Wells Fargo says no: family members’ phones can’t be enrolled for text alerts on someone else’s account.
- U.S. Bank allows up to three emails or phone numbers for alerts, without saying whose, and offers read-only Shared Access to another person.
- Chase and Bank of America offer a trusted contact the bank can call about unusual activity. Neither lets that person see the account.
- Citi’s pages describe alerts to the account holder, and no family option.
Chase
What she can turn on
Chase offers alerts “when there’s a charge, refund or other transaction on your account,” when a payment posts, for balances, and “when there’s been an unusually high transaction on your account.” Fraud alerts are sent automatically, without enrolling.
Where the alerts go
By “text message, email and push notification.” Chase’s alerts pages don’t say whether an alert can go to a phone number or email address that isn’t the account holder’s.
Letting you in
A Trusted Contact Person: “someone you trust that we may contact if you can’t be reached and we notice signs of unusual activity.” Chase is clear about the limits — the person named “cannot access or make decisions about your account.” A joint owner is different: Chase says each one “has complete control over all the funds in the account.”
Where to set it up
In the Chase Mobile app: tap the person icon, then “Alerts & messages,” then “Manage alerts.” On chase.com: Profile & settings, then Alerts, then Choose alerts — Chase says to repeat it for each account. The Trusted Contact Person is set in the app or on chase.com, under security settings.
From Chase’s own pages: Chase: Account alerts; Chase: How you can protect yourself; Chase: Joint owner FAQs. Checked on September 26, 2026.
Bank of America
What she can turn on
Account balances, deposits, card charges and unusual account activity, including “when a debit card payment over a certain dollar amount occurs.” Security alerts go out automatically for unusual activity and for changes “such as a change of address or a request for new checks.” After a Zelle payment is sent, Bank of America emails the details.
Where the alerts go
By app notification, “SMS Text to your current mobile phone number,” or “Email to your current email address.” Its alerts pages don’t say whether an alert can go to someone else.
Letting you in
A trusted contact, whom the bank may call about suspicious activity on the account. Bank of America spells out that a trusted contact “is not able to see your balances, gather any information about you, conduct transactions on your behalf or make changes to your account (unlike an account co-owner).” It also describes adding a co-owner, who has full access, and a limited power of attorney for its deposit accounts.
Where to set it up
In the app: tap the mailbox at the top of the account overview, then Alerts, then Manage Alert setting. Online: Profile & Settings, then Alert Settings. A trusted contact is added at a financial center, by appointment.
From Bank of America’s own pages: Bank of America: Alerts; Bank of America: Online and mobile banking; Bank of America: Financial care for older adults; Bank of America: Power of attorney. Checked on September 26, 2026.
Wells Fargo
What she can turn on
Low account balance, recent deposits and upcoming payments, with dollar thresholds where they apply. On credit cards, alerts when “daily spending or purchases exceed your set amount,” for purchases made online, by phone or by mail, and for transactions outside the US.
Where the alerts go
Email, text or push. Wells Fargo is the one bank here that answers the family question directly, and the answer is no: text-alert numbers must be “registered to you: Mobile numbers belonging to friends or family members cannot be enrolled to receive text alerts for your account.”
Letting you in
The Wells Fargo pages we read describe no trusted-contact or view-only option for bank accounts. Its advice for an older customer’s family is to report suspected fraud on the account to Wells Fargo.
Where to set it up
Sign on to Wells Fargo Online and go to Manage Alerts. In the app: tap Menu, then your name or Welcome at the top, then Manage Banking Alerts.
From Wells Fargo’s own pages: Wells Fargo: Account alerts; Wells Fargo: Credit card alerts; Wells Fargo: Alerts FAQs; Wells Fargo: Elder financial scams. Checked on September 26, 2026.
U.S. Bank
What she can turn on
Balances below an amount you choose and deposits or withdrawals above one. On a debit card: ATM withdrawals, transactions over an amount, international and gas-station purchases, “purchases made without a physical card,” and declined transactions. Security alerts go out automatically when an address, email, phone number, username, password or PIN is changed.
Where the alerts go
Text, email or push. U.S. Bank lets you choose “a combination of up to three email addresses or phone numbers.” Its pages don’t say whether those can belong to someone else.
Letting you in
Shared Access, which U.S. Bank describes as letting you “give another person read-only access to your accounts in online banking.” That person sees balances and transaction history, but can’t see full account numbers or send money out of U.S. Bank, including by Zelle or wire. U.S. Bank’s pages don’t say that a Shared Access user receives alerts.
Where to set it up
Alerts, in the app: the bell icon, then Settings, then Account activity. Shared Access, online: Profile & Settings, then Login preferences, then Manage in the Shared access tile. The person invited has 72 hours to accept.
From U.S. Bank’s own pages: U.S. Bank: Account alerts; U.S. Bank: What is Shared Access?; U.S. Bank: What a Shared Access user can see. Checked on September 26, 2026.
Citi
What she can turn on
Citi’s Security Center lists alerts “if a transaction is made outside of the US,” “if a card is not present at the time of purchase,” and “if a transaction exceeds an amount set by you.”
Where the alerts go
Citi says to “have alerts sent to your phone,” and its alerts guide mentions email or text. Its pages don’t say whether an alert can go to someone else.
Letting you in
The Citi pages we read describe no trusted-contact, view-only or shared-access feature.
Where to set it up
From Citi’s alerts guide: in Citi Online, the Service Center tab, then “Enroll in/Manage Citi Alerting Service,” then choose the alerts.
From Citi’s own pages: Citi: Security Center; Citi: Banking alerts. Checked on September 26, 2026.
What a trusted contact is, and isn’t
A trusted contact is someone the bank may call if it can’t reach your parent or sees signs of trouble. It is not access. The CFPB’s guidance to banks puts it plainly: the trusted contact “cannot view the account or make any transactions or decisions about the account unless they have some other legal authority, such as guardianship or power of attorney.” Naming you is still worth doing. It is just a different thing from seeing what happens on the account.
Source: CFPB: Trusted contacts, advisory for financial institutions (2021).
Where Rowan fits
Rowan works the other way round. Your parent follows one link from your phone to connect her bank, read-only, and the alerts come to you, each with the reasons it fired. It can see, but never move, send or freeze money. The bank’s own alerts and a trusted contact are still worth setting up alongside it. How Rowan works.