Over recent months more and more of our members seem to be losing confidence in the banks and building societies and turning to us for their needs as we have a reputation for providing quality service and excellent returns on savings. As a result, our loans are at record levels but even so they are not keeping up with the deposits members are making into their savings. We have seen unprecedented levels of deposits over the last few months.
This imbalance could result in the income we receive having to be spread more thinly across a wider range of savings balances thereby reducing the year end dividend.
In order to avoid this we have taken the following action to reduce the level of cash flowing in until such time as the share and loan balances are more in line with each other:-
Lump Sum Deposits
We have stopped accepting large lump sum deposits to the Member Account and Notice Plus Account. Regular savings via payroll and direct debit remain unaffected but we will only accept sums over and above regular monthly savings to a maximum of £250 per month.
ISA Accounts
The ISA demand has been far in excess of our expectations and has attracted substantial balances. We have therefore reluctantly withdrawn this product for new deposits until further notice. If you have already contributed to your ISA with the credit union this financial year (i.e. since the 6th April) we will continue to accept funds but if you have not opened an ISA or have not yet renewed your ISA from previous years then unfortunately we cannot accept new deposits. This does not prevent you from contributing to an ISA from another provider.
These measures are temporary and will be withdrawn as soon as things return to normal and will help to protect the return on your existing savings over the rest of our financial year. They do not affect your regular monthly savings via payroll or direct debit, only lump sum deposits. Whilst we apologise if this causes you any inconvenience in the short term, it will benefit all savers in the long run.
