Barclays
Barclays have informed me of additional measures put in place immediately to support customers during the pandemic:
- All arranged overdrafts for personal customers are now interest free until 30 April.
- Mortgage repayment holidays can now be applied for online using a form on a dedicated web-page: https://www.barclays.co.uk/coronavirus/mortgages/
- They have waived the requirement for personal guarantees for loans up to £250,000 under the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme.
- Put in place arrangements to prioritise NHS Workers, starting with branch services.
These measures are new this week and build on the measures already in place.
Please be aware that, due to staffing pressures, there will be some changes to opening hours or temporary closures for some branches. Right now the vast majority of branches remain open.
Lloyds
Lloyds have informed me of the following measures put in place to support customers during the pandemic:
- From 6 April personal banking customers will be able to access a £300 overdraft, interest-free.
- From 1 April, the contactless payment limit for all customers will increase from £30 to £45. Customers using mobile devices (such as Apple Pay) can make secure contactless payments above this limit at many retailers.
- Lloyds are offering customers with personal loans a payment holiday. More than 30,000 customers have already taken up this offer. Similarly, there will be no missed payment fees for customers with loans, as well as credit cards and motor finance, for three months.
Mortgage customers at Lloyds:
A payment holiday of up to three months for personal mortgage customers if their household income has been affected. In just over a week, more than 70,000 homeowners have successfully applied for one. This means they will temporarily stop paying all or part of their monthly mortgage payment, which will be added onto their mortgage balance and repaid over the course of the remaining mortgage term. Lloyds are also waiving any missed payment fees for mortgage customers for three months.
Anyone in the process of trying to buy a new home who has an existing mortgage offer with Lloyds will be granted an additional three months to complete their home purchase at the agreed rate.
The Bank of England base rate reductions totalling 0.65% will be passed on in full to mortgage customers of Lloyds Bank, Halifax and Bank of Scotland, helping to reduce their monthly household outgoings.