Long delay for pensioner's KiwiSaver withdrawal could end in repossession

It's taken so long to withdraw money from an ANZ KiwiSaver account that Waverley's John and Jenny Nix feared their new car would be repossessed.

Mrs Nix is 67, and has been able to get the $15,000 from her ANZ KiwiSaver Scheme since she turned 65. She began the process by going to Whanganui's ANZ branch on November 15.

She and her husband wanted the money to finish paying for their new Mazda CX3 car. Final payment is due on December 15.

But an ANZ employee told them there's a backlog of KiwiSaver withdrawals, and their name was nowhere near the top of the list.

Then, on Tuesday, after the Wanganui Chronicle contacted ANZ, the Nixes were emailed to say their withdrawal was being processed. An ANZ spokesman couldn't say whether it was because they had contacted the paper.

It was normal practice for KiwiSaver withdrawals to take 10 working days, he said, but the ANZ was two days behind due to an IT upgrade at the end of November.

"We apologise for the additional days' delay. We're making every effort to get urgent payments through."

The ANZ KiwiSaver Scheme is one of the most popular in New Zealand, with 720,000 investors and more than $10 billion invested. It is run by ANZ Wealth, which is part of the bank.

The Nixes have been banking with ANZ for 23 years. They thought it would be a simple matter for the bank to transfer the money from one account to another.

It has been nearly a month, with lots of paperwork, and they only heard their withdrawal was being processed on Tuesday.

Mrs Nix has been ringing the bank and checking her account online every day. She and her husband are angry about the delay, and plan to move to another bank.

They said other people could be worse affected than them, including first-home buyers.

"What peeves me off is the fact that they haven't contacted us. Being so close to Christmas I just feel drained. I'm really angry that nothing has been done," Mrs Nix said.

After she got the KiwiSaver withdrawal forms from the bank on November 15 she had to prove her identity, because her driver licence had expired.

She had to show her birth certificate, bills that would prove her address, and pay $65 for an 18+ ID card. It was couriered to her within five days, but then needed to be verified by police as well.

"It was eight forms and pieces of paper, just to prove I'm me."

She's been to the bank five times, and also to Whanganui Courthouse, Whanganui Police and Whanganui Post Office - all 45km from her home.

It's standard practice to require proof of address and identity before KiwiSaver money is withdrawn, the ANZ spokesman said. If there is no passport or driver licence, or if other information is incomplete, there can be delays.

Mrs Nix's application to withdraw funds was finally faxed away on November 27, and she was told it would be processed in 10 working days. Those 10 days were up on Monday, but the money hadn't been transferred.