- “Anyone experiencing financial difficulty because of the current lockdown should contact their bank to discuss how they can help. Banks can offer a range of options for customers facing hardship, depending on their circumstances.”
- “The historically low interest rate environment we’ve experienced over the last few years will also have had an impact on borrowers being able to repay their loans faster,” Beaumont said.
- New Zealand Bankers’ Association chief executive Roger Beaumont said: “On top of the support measures already announced by the government, we encourage anyone experiencing financial difficulty as a result of the lockdown to contact their bank.
- According to Roger Beaumont, chief executive at NZBA, data collected and aggregated from NZBA’s 10 main retail member banks showed that 50% of home loan customers are ahead on their repayments.
- Bankers’ Association spokesman Philip van Dyk told Stuff last week that it supported the initiative “in principle” before adding that “research shows that few people think sharing your personal information with third parties is a good idea.”
- The closure of branches sparked a hearing in Parliament in which the Bankers’ Association defended the closures saying they only reflected customer demand digital banking.
- “Research shows that few people think sharing your personal information with third parties is a good idea. Third parties seeking to use consumers’ personal data will need to show they have proper safeguards in place.”
- Less than 1% of payments were made by cheque and options for former cheque users included direct debit, automatic payments and phoning a bank, he said.
- “Covid-19 impacted many New Zealanders and our banks deferred or reduced loan repayments on $70 billion in business and household loans,” Beaumont says.
- “Depending on the customer’s circumstances, banks also offered to reduce loan repayments, temporarily deferred all repayments, extended the term of loans, consolidated loans, and provided access to short-term funding.”
