You are not alone
Financial hardship is more common than you might think. If you find yourself worrying about your financial situation, talk to us early so we can help you get back on track. The earlier you act the easier it is for us to help.
What we will do to help
We will work with you to review your current financial situation to find the best way to manage your financial commitments with us. To do so we will need details about your current income, your basic living costs and your revised budget.
Temporary hardship assistance
It may be appropriate for you to apply for temporary hardship assistance to help manage your financial commitments in the short to medium term. Under hardship assistance we can look at different options to vary and temporarily reduce your loan commitment(s) including:
- extending your loan term and reducing your loan repayments
- accepting interest-only repayments for a specified period
- postponing repayments for a specified period.
To apply for assistance on the grounds of hardship you will need to complete our hardship assistance application form. In some instances, we may need to seek the approval of third parties. For example, if you have a home loan which is mortgage insured we would need to seek the approval of the Lenders Mortgage Insurance provider on your loan before agreeing to vary your loan terms.
Contacting us
For more information on how Bank of us
can help you call 1300 306 716 or talk to your local Lending
Specialist.
Other services that can help
Many people find financial difficulty embarrassing, especially if it is caused by events which you would prefer to keep private. Financial counselling services are designed specifically to help and the following free and independent services are available in Tasmania:
Anglicare Financial Counselling Service:
Freecall 1800 007 007
Visit www.anglicare-tas.org.au for locations.
Hobart Community Legal Service (Consumer Credit Hotline):
Freecall 1800 232 500
When facing financial hardship, it is often worth checking if your changed circumstances have also changed your government entitlements. A financial advisor can give you advice, but you can also contact Centrelink directly or visit their website at www.centrelink.gov.au
