Diana Clement is a freelance journalist who has written a column for the Herald since 2004. Before that, she was personal finance editor for the Sunday Business (now The Business) newspaper in London.
Banks aren’t always the big bogeyman that some feel they are. They can provide customers with a heap of assistance with their personal finances. Customers just have to ask. And what better time to do that than Money Month?
Whether you need to get more organised, tackle debt, save moreor invest, all of our big banks, and some small ones, offer a range of free services to help.
I spoke with Kiwibank and ASB for this article about what they offer. But all the banks can set up branch-based and telephone help sessions, and provide useful digital tools.
The starting point for this article was the help banks can give to customers to structure their accounts. It’s very common for New Zealanders to have their pay go into one account, and they spend with little planning until it goes into overdraft. By splitting income as it comes in into multiple accounts for rent/mortgage, bills, spending and saving/debt reduction, people can turn their financial lives around.
A one-on-one meeting is a starting point for getting finances back on track for many customers. Debt-reduction companies often charge like wounded bulls for this advice that is free from banks.
ASB and KiwiSaver, for example, have numbers that customers can call to make an appointment for a meeting in a branch, or online, to seek help with their finances or restructure their accounts.
You can discuss things with your bank in person, on the phone or over Zoom.
Lex Thornton, ASB’s general manager of advice centres, says customers can ask: “Are my day-to-day accounts set up correctly?”, “Am I in accounts with the right sort of fees and charges?”, “Am I earning the right sorts of rates on my savings?”, “Can I accelerate debt pay down?” or “Can I consolidate my debt?” Then there’s: “How can I set up a budget to better track my spending?”
Once they’ve opened multiple accounts for different purposes, and set up automatic payments, customers can train themselves not to spend money earmarked for essentials on nice-to-haves. It becomes clear what can be spent, and what can’t.
Whether the meeting is in branch, on the phone, or on Zoom, it starts with a conversation, and the staff member then works the customer through a financial wellbeing tool, which guides a deeper dive into goals, says Thornton.
“Our team then makes good recommendations on ways [customers] might change their product setup. We did over 72,000 [reviews] across the network last year,” Thornton says.
Customers can also use the tools online themselves.
Roz Clarke, ASB’s general manager business transformation and customer outcomes, says the reviews have a really strong impact on customers at the lower end of the financial wellbeing scale. “[They] find them really valuable, even for things that we might think are small. For example, how to avoid fees and charges on your credit card, or how to set up a payment plan to get out of persistent debt.”
Banks have teams trained to deal with vulnerable customers such as people who have experienced domestic abuse. Call centres can usually handle enquiries in multiple languages as well.
Some of the tools available on the banks’ websites are getting quite smart. ASB has launched what it calls “Support Finder”, which identifies government benefits and services the customers might be eligible for. As well as identifying the benefits, it offers links to click through to the relevant government departments to claim the money. “We have had over $28 million in benefits go into customers’ accounts that they weren’t receiving prior to using the tool,” says Clarke. Anyone can use the tool, not just ASB customers.
Most banks have online KiwiSaver tools that help customers work out if they’re in the right fund for their circumstances, and to run what-if scenarios around increasing their contributions. Increasingly, such tools are using artificial intelligence to help guide customers.
The larger banks also have financial advisers on staff who can take a deep dive into people’s investing, and insurance. A cynic might say that they’re just trying to sell products. But for people who aren’t taking advice through third-party advisers, it can be invaluable. I sat in on one of those advisers in action for a family member, and he offered excellent general advice.
Banks’ financial advisers can provide customers with full financial plans, which can take into account outside investments.
Whichever bank you’re with, it’s well worth checking out its website. They all have useful tools and guidance. At Kiwibank, for example, that’s under the ThriveHQ tab.
