COVID-19 Member Update
Wednesday May 6, 2020
It pays to check your insurance coverages
While many of us are currently facing financial challenges due to unanticipated changes in employment, now is the time to review your finances and in particular dust off those insurance policies that you have taken out over the years.
At Tandia we always promote planning for the unexpected and that includes purchasing insurance for your loans and mortgages – and now that the unexpected has arrived we encourage you to start digging through your files and review all of your financial documents and any associated insurance policies.
As a perfect example as to why this is so important, we would like to share a good news story with you about how insurance planning really paid off! This story is about a member who purchased a comprehensive mortgage insurance package that included Involuntary Loss of Employment insurance. As time goes by, it’s challenging to recall the details of an insurance policy as we can all relate, and this story proves this.
Two of our Georgetown branch employees were seeking ways to assist our members and proactively reached out to members who had purchased Involuntary Loss of Employment insurance offered through CUMIS when they first took their mortgage with Tandia. While most members with the coverage were fortunate to have not lost their jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic, one member was in that unfortunate position. This call from the Georgetown branch manager reminded them of this coverage they had forgotten about and they were most grateful and successfully submitted a claim.
Tandia has since proactively reached out to all members with this coverage. If you are experiencing income interruption, we encourage you to review any insurance policies you may have for similar benefits.
New CRA Direct Deposit setup
We have recently added the ability to register or update your direct deposit information with the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) within Tandia’s online banking. If you are not registered already, we encourage you to use direct deposit to receive CRA payments faster, including:
- Income tax refund
- Canada child benefit
- Goods and services tax/harmonized sales tax (GST/HST) credit
- Canada workers benefit
- Related provincial and territorial payments
- The new Canada Emergency Response Benefit
To sign up for direct deposit or update your personal details, simply login to online banking, select ‘Account Services’ and then click ‘Setup CRA Direct Deposit’. It’s that easy!
CUMIS Auto Insurance Update
Our insurance partner CUMIS is sharing the benefit of reduced Auto insurance claims with a new ‘Reduced Driving Refund’ for members who have chosen CUMIS as their Auto insurance provider. CUMIS will be providing eligible Auto insurance clients a minimum 10% refund on the premium from April 1st to May 31st.
Refunds will be processed starting in July and will be automatically applied. And, if Auto insurance clients continue to drive less and claims continue to decrease, an even larger refund may apply.
To help with immediate financial pressures, CUMIS is also offering flexible payment options, extended payment grace periods and other ways to potentially reduce your Auto insurance expense. For more information, you can call CUMIS directly at 1.800.810.2847.
Tandia Collabria Visa Update
Tandia Collabria Visa cardholders can now use contactless payments for up to $250 at grocery stores, convenience stores and pharmacies (there may be exceptions if the merchant has a lower limit). This means that you can tap your card for larger purchases, decreasing the need to touch PIN pads.
Financial relief options are also available. For cardholders in good standing and experiencing financial hardship due to COVID-19, Collabria is offering:
- A temporary interest rate reduction on purchases and cash advances to 10.9% for up to 6 months
- Deferred minimum monthly payments for up to 6 months.
Cardholders can apply for these financial relief options in three-month increments, with an option to extend for another three months. To arrange, please contact the Collabria Call Centre directly at 1.855.341.4643.
Keep in mind, we highly recommend that you reach out to us first for help if you’re having trouble making payments of any kind. We can help you prioritize. Contact Tandia’s Member Solutions Centre at 1.800.598.2891.
Post Secondary Scholarships
It’s that time of year again for our annual offering of Post Secondary Scholarship Awards to young members planning to attend their first year of post-secondary education in the fall of 2020. There’s no doubt that the COVID-19 pandemic has created extraordinary circumstances and placed additional challenges on students both academically and financially. As a result, Tandia is stepping up to offer four (4) $1,000 awards.
To be eligible to apply, the applicant must be a Tandia member prior to April 30, 2020 or the applicant’s parent(s)/guardian(s) must be a Tandia member prior to December 31, 2019 and the applicant must become a member if selected as a scholarship recipient as the award will be deposited in each recipient’s Tandia account.
The format for the award entry is a two-minute video submission that showcases the student’s proudest high school moment, whether it is artistic, athletic, academic or community service. An application package with full details is currently available on our website and entries are due by Monday June 1st.
A word from our CEO
Once again, I would like express my thanks to our members for your tremendous cooperation in adjusting to our reduced branch hours, transitioning more to digital banking, telephone appointments and making good use of telephone service through our Member Solutions Centre. We remain vigilant in doing our part to curb the spread of COVID-19 and keeping our employees and members as safe as possible. At this stage we are able to look to the future and hope to share plans of the next phase of Tandia’s service model in the coming days as the COVID-19 situation in our communities allows.
Richard Davies,
President & CEO
We are here for you
Get in touch with us at any time, whether it’s a question about our services or a comment on how we can do things better. Your voice is number one at Tandia.
To report a lost or stolen MEMBER CARD® debit card during regular business hours, call 1-800-598-2891 after hours please call 1-888-277-1043.
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