ABA members play an active role when a natural disaster occurs to support customers in impacted communities and offer a range of services to help.
Bank hardship contact details
| Bank | Number | Website |
|---|---|---|
| ANZ | 1800 149 549 Insurance: 13 16 14 | Natural Disaster Support |
| AMP | 1300 721 862 | Financial Hardship |
| BankAust | 132 888 | Hardship Support |
| Bankwest | Loans: 1300 769 173 Credit Cards: 13 17 19 Small Business: 13 7000 | Emergency Assistance |
| Bendigo | Mortgage Help Centre: 1800 652 146 Insurance: 13 24 80 | Help |
| Commbank | 1800 314 695 | Emergency Assistance |
| ING | 133 464 | Disaster Relief Info |
| Macquarie | Credit Cards: 1800 674 922 Car Loans: 1300 364 050 Home Loans: 1300 363 330 | Financial Assistance |
| NAB | 1800 701 599 | Natural Disaster and Crisis Support |
| St George | 1800 629 795 | Disaster Relief |
| Suncorp Bank | 13 11 75 | Suncorp Bank Customer Assist |
| Westpac | Business: 1800 067 497 Insurance: 1300 369 989 | Disaster Help Hub |
| BOQ | 1800 079 866 | Natural Disaster Support |
ABA natural disaster protocol
The ABA has a dedicated natural disaster response protocol in place to support customers following a natural disaster event.
The protocol is in recognition that natural disasters are increasing in frequency and intensity and there is a heightened focus placed on disaster resilience across government and the community.
The protocol covers:
- Better coordination to ensure a consistent, supportive and timely response by the banking industry to natural disasters when they arise
- Coordinating key messages for customers and the community for communications about banking during disasters
- Designing and collecting industry data to assist government and other stakeholders
- Improving cross-sector collaboration & customer financial resilience
- Providing advocacy to improve decisions made by policy makers and other industries
Bank Assistance
When considering the type of assistance that might be appropriate, banks will assess the situation on a case-by-case basis and consider a customer’s specific circumstances.
Examples of bank assistance include:
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- deferring scheduled loan repayments, restructuring and consolidating loans
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- changing limits on lines of credit (e.g. credit card)
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- waiving certain fees and including break costs on early access to term deposits
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- providing a moratorium on collections action.
Many of our member banks have put in place initiatives to support people and communities suffering from the impact of natural disasters, including:
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- providing access to free accommodation or emergency funds
- deploying hardship banks to provide on-the-ground specialised advice
- ensuring communities have access to banking services, including deploying mobile ATMs
- providing grants or donations to not-for profit organisations and community groups, such as Australian Red Cross and volunteer services
- offering support and counselling to customers through the bank’s assistance programs
- supporting staff in affected communities by providing extended leave and expanding their organisational volunteering policies.
Natural disaster resources
Insurance cash settlements fact sheet
While the customer must work directly with their insurer regarding an insurance claim, if a customer has a mortgage and intends to make an insurance claim on their home, it is a good idea for them to contact their bank to discuss their circumstances and the options available.