Dr. Ryan Smith and his family were in the middle of buying a home in Ontario and moving from the United States when the pandemic hit.
Like more than a few people these days, he’d like to single out his bank for being helpful. After I asked readers of this newsletter earlier in the week for stories about financial companies helping people in the pandemic, banks came up over and over.
There’s an unavoidable tension between banks and their customers in times like these when people are losing their jobs and unable to pay their debts on time. The banks offered early on to defer payments on mortgages and other debts, but there have been complaints about delays and about interest being charged on deferred payments. Later, once these deferrals have ended, expect to see more friction between banks and their financially strapped customers.
For now, though, front-line bank staff are stepping up by being helpful or just showing some humanity in stressful times. In an e-mail, Dr. Smith explained how he was worried that financing for the purchase of a home in Dundas, Ont., would fall through or at least be delayed as a result of the pandemic. “But RBC came through with incredible customer service and made the sale easy, even with us trapped in the U.S.”
Jim Reid of Toronto told a story about being in line at the grocery store when he got a phone call from a woman at his home RBC branch, which he hadn’t visited in probably a decade. His summary of the call in an e-mail: “Good feelings, and it didn’t come from a call centre or big machine. Very personal.”
Here are some other stories of banks being singled out as pandemic good guys by their customers:
- A Bank of Montreal branch manger in London, Ont., called an elderly couple to fix a problem with a property tax payment made through the branch, absorbed the late fee and helped them set up mobile banking.
- Toronto-Dominion Bank helped a small business owner in Eastern Ontario. “One phone call was all it took to have principal payments deferred for six months,” he wrote. “Furthermore, even though we were too late to defer the April principal payment, they refunded it within a few days. I was so impressed.”
- An RBC investment adviser in Toronto got a shoutout from one client. “He has been there for me 24/7.”
- A TD branch in Winnipeg came through for a client who needed help getting started with online banking. “Even though they were busy, they took the time to assist me with the problem.”
- The B.C. credit union Vancity has temporarily cut credit card interest rates to zero and deferred imifor members in financial trouble in the pandemic – this shoutout came from someone who isn’t even a Vancity client.
- Bank of Montreal lowered the interest rate on a customer’s personal line of credit to 2.45 per cent from 5.45 per cent for 12 months.
Several auto insurance providers were given a shout-out by customers for cutting premiums, including Allstate, The Personal, the CAA, Desjardins, Travelers and TD Meloche Monnex.
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Rob’s personal finance reading list…
Stocks are cheery, the economy’s dreary
Answers to the question on a lot of investors’ minds – why are stocks rising when the economic outlook is so negative? A great point made here is that major stock indexes don’t necessarily represent the broader economy.
An advanced class in cutting household spending
Six ideas for people who are running out of ideas for ways to reduce their day to day spending.
Top 10 financial skills for modern families
A great read from Dr. Moira Somers, an expert on the psychology of money. These tips cover saving, spending plus much more.
Retirement planning in a pandemic
Thoughts on how to prepare for retirement at a time when the pandemic has cranked up anxieties about investing.
Ask Rob
Q: While the date to file 2019 income taxes was deferred to June 1 and payment to Sept. 1, has anything been done to defer 2020 instalment payments for individuals?
A: This is straight from CRA: “For individuals who pay by instalments, the June 15, 2020 instalment payment due for the 2020 tax year will be deferred until August 31, 2020.”
Do you have a question for me? Send it my way. Sorry I can’t answer every one personally. Questions and answers are edited for length and clarity.
Today’s financial tool
This calculator will show you what car insurance rebates you might be eligible for during the pandemic.
In case you missed these Globe and Mail personal finance-related stories
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- Lessons from one of the greatest investors of all time
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