COVID-19 - Keeping our customers and our community safe

On 21 July, the Australian Government announced it will extend JobKeeper payments until 28 March 2021. These however are being reduced – twice. Job Keeper is also going to be split into two tiers, one for full time and one for part time workers. From the end of September 2020, the fortnightly payment for full time workers is decreasing from $1,500 to $1,200. From January 4, 2021 that will drop again from $1,200 to $1,000 a fortnight. For people working fewer than 20 hours a week in February this year, or ‘pre-COVID-19’ your payment will drop from $1,500 to $750 per fortnight after September 2020. At the beginning of 2021, it will be reduced again to $650 a fortnight. Casual workers will continue to receive payments depending on how many hours they were working. For more information on the JobKeeper payments and how it might affect you, please visit the ATO website.

The JobSeeker supplement has also been extended until December 2020, but reduced. The $550 supplement is being cut after September to $250 a fortnight, meaning the total payment will go from $1,115 to $815. But, from the end of September 2020, you can now earn $300 a fortnight, instead of the previous $106, before your JobSeeker payment is affected.

If you are still experiencing financial hardship due to COVID-19 you are able to apply for further relief via our website. Simply complete our online hardship relief form and one of our team will get in contact with you. Or to better understand options available to you, please contact our friendly team on 1300 653 679 or by emailing relief@greater.com.au

Financial arrangements made with Greater Bank as a result of COVID-19 will not affect your credit rating. All loan applications are assessed individually at the time to determine whether we are able to assist. For more information about how your super can affect your credit rating, it is best to speak directly with your financial advisor or accountant. More information is also available on the Credit Smart website here.

Customers are able to change their fixed rates, however break fees will apply and cannot be waived due to COVID-19. We know many of our customers are experiencing unexpected difficulties as a result of COVID-19. If you’re struggling to make repayments on a Greater Bank product, we may be able to help you. To understand options available to you, please contact our friendly team on 1300 653 679 or by emailing relief@greater.com.au

The best way for customers to set up or recommence repayments is through online banking. Repayments are due by the last day of the month and customers can elect to make repayments weekly, fortnightly or monthly. If you need help setting up your payments or to confirm your repayment amounts, please contact our friendly team on 1300 653 679.

Yes, they are! The entire Greater Bank branch network operating hours are outlined below

• Monday to Friday 9:00am - 5:00pm
• Saturday 9:00am - 12:00pm

Please be aware, we'll still be asking all customers to maintain appropriate social distancing while in branch, and we'll be placing limits on the amount of customers we can welcome into branch at any one time. We appreciate your co-operation in this regard.

We know many of our customers are experiencing unexpected difficulties as a result of COVID-19. If you’re struggling to make repayments on a Greater Bank product, we may be able to help you. To understand options available to you, please contact our friendly team on 1300 653 679 or relief@greater.com.au

Customers can obtain statements back to July 2010 via Internet Banking. If you receive monthly statements, these will be uploaded up to the end of March 2020. If you receive six-monthly statements, these will be up to the end of December 2019. Customers can access a Transaction Statement Summary on Greater Bank letterhead by logging into Online Banking, selecting the ‘Transactions’ tab, then following the link to login to Mobile Banking. Once logged in, select the relevant account then print the page as a PDF. If you do not use Online Banking, please contact us on 1300 179 979.

The Australian government will confirm your eligibility for each payment. For those who are eligible, the first payment will be made from 31 March 2020, with over 90 percent of these payments expected to be received by mid-April, and the second payment will be made from 13 July 2020. Both payments will be paid into your nominated myGov account. For more information and to check if you’re eligible, visit the Treasury website or view the payments to support households factsheet. 

Transaction fees will still apply to your Greater Bank account as usual.

Greater Bank are making it easier than ever to access your banking from home through Online Banking, the Greater Bank app and phone banking. These options are all safe, secure and allow you to bank and manage your money online. Give us a call on 1300 179 979 to register for any of these services.

Greater Bank is waiving interest and allowing the deferral of repayment on all existing credit cards for 6 months from 1 April 2020

If your business has been significantly impacted by the Coronavirus, you may be eligible to access financial support from the government. Here we highlight just two of the economic support programs that may benefit your business. 

• JobKeeper is a wage subsidy program that helps you to continue paying your employees so that you can retain staff and resume normal trading when the crisis is over. If you have had a downturn in business as a result of COVID-19, you may be able to claim a fortnightly payment of $1,500 per eligible employee to help cover their wage payments. The program runs from 30 March to 27 September 2020. For more information about JobKeeper visit https://treasury.gov.au/coronavirus/jobkeeper. To register for JobKeeper visit the ATO website https://www.ato.gov.au/general/gen/jobkeeper-payment/
• The NSW Government has announced Small Business Support Grants for small businesses who have been highly impacted by the COVID-19 shutdown. Grants of up to $10,000 are available for qualifying small businesses across NSW to pay for unavoidable business costs such as utilities, overheads, and professional fees. Applications remain open until 1st June 2020. To find out if your business is eligible for this grant, visit the Service NSW website https://www.service.nsw.gov.au/campaign/covid-19-help-small-businesses

To support our customers who have suffered a loss of income or employment due to COVID-19, Greater Bank has a range of relief packages available. Simply complete our online hardship relief form and one of our team will get in contact with you.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we are supporting our customers by offering flexible repayment options on your current loan with interest capitalised on a case-by-case basis. 

• You can contact us for a three-month payment pause on your home loan repayments.
• You may be able to access extra repayments available to you by redrawing on your home loan.
• You might be paying down your home loan with larger than required repayments.
• You can reduce your repayments to the minimum monthly repayment amount via online banking or phone banking.

To discuss these or other repayment options available to you complete our hardship relief enquiry form or contact our friendly team on 1300 653 679.

Yes, whilst repayments are not required during the pause period, interest charges will continue to apply. You are still able to make any repayments you can during the pause period.

Yes, interest will continue to accrue which will affect the loan balance.

No, we can help home loan customers with both variable and fixed home loans.

If the COVID-19 crisis has caused your tenant to be unable to make rental payments and you are unable to make your monthly repayments, we may be able to assist you with a 3 month pause on repayments on your Investment loan.

At the end of the pause period, you will recommence making your normal monthly repayment. If your loan balance has increased due to interest charges we will factor in that amount next time we make a change to your repayments to ensure you pay your loan off in the remaining term.

We recognise that these are unprecedented times, and your credit report will not be impacted due to the arrangements put into place during the COVID-19 pandemic. For more helpful information about credit scores please visit https://www.creditsmart.org.au/covid-19-what-does-it-mean-for-my-finances-and-my-credit-health/

The first step for customers in this position is to refer to their Booking Terms & Conditions. Customers will need to contact the merchant directly to try and resolve. Greater Bank are unable to assist with this situation at present, however we recommend you contact us once your flight date has lapsed.