12 January 2016
Sydney, 12 January 2016: A range of assistance packages are available from banks to help communities affected by the bushfires in Western Australia, the Australian Bankers’ Association said today.
ABA Chief Executive Steven Münchenberg said: “Individual banks have announced assistance packages to help ease some of the burden faced by people who have lost homes and been impacted by the bushfires.
“If your household or business has been affected, contact your bank as soon as possible to find out what type of assistance is on offer,” he said.
The support offered to customers will depend on individual circumstances and needs, but may include:
- Suspending home loan or credit card repayments
- Waiving charges associated with withdrawing term deposits early
- Emergency accommodation assistance, and
- Waiving fees related to restructuring business loans.
ENDS
Contact: Stephanie Arena 0477 470 677 or Nic Frankham 0435 963 913
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“This is about engaging with the entire banking ecosystem in order to ensure the accessibility of the sector’s services are best serving our diverse community now, and into the future.”
“What is underpinning this bank failure is a number of things, but not least of all, it’s a very niche bank with high exposure to one part of the economy. And that’s the part of the economy that’s been quite volatile and troubled”
The Treasurer has indicated that the federal government is closely monitoring the situation.