Taking care of your members during a stressful situation

As we continue to deal with the impacts of the coronavirus (COVID-19) in the U.S., credit unions are in a unique position to provide their members with much-needed relief during this time of stress. In particular, members need help addressing varying degrees of financial strain, access to funds (either on deposit or acquired through lending), and a continuous stream of information to help make informed decisions. There are many relatively simple solutions that can help your members in these difficult times, and many already exist – often your members simply need education to fully understand how they can best leverage these solutions.

When it comes to helping your members through stressful situations, the following are four areas of focus for credit unions to consider:

Helping Members Meet Their Obligations

• A skip-a-payment program is an effective way to help members stay current on their payment obligations. Given the unique circumstances of COVID-19, consider extending the payment skip beyond the traditional one-month duration – perhaps two or three months.

 

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