Elyn Corfield, Lloyds Banking Group’s regional ambassador for the North-East, discusses the help available to residents managing their finances during this unprecedented time.

We are currently living in extraordinary times.

Coronavirus has disrupted all of our daily lives, and, as each of us learn to adapt, we’re finding new ways of doing day-to-day things like shopping, keeping in touch with loved ones and managing our finances. We’ve been truly humbled by the acts of kindness we’re seeing across the North-East. We know, like everyone else, we need to club together and do all we can to help.

Here at Lloyds Banking Group, we’re helping people across the region keep on top of their finances and reach the services they need. For those needing more immediate and practical support, we’ve introduced payment holidays on loans, credit card repayments and mortgages, and access to interest free overdrafts of up to £500.

We’ve already agreed almost 900,000 payment holidays, including more than 400,000 for mortgages, in excess of 200,000 for credit cards and more than 100,000 for motor finance.

But as well as the usual telephone and internet banking systems, we’ve also set up a range of dedicated services specifically for vulnerable people, including a dedicated helpline for the over 70s.

Calls from NHS employees are automatically being given priority. Since launching these services, the helpline for over 70s has received around 95,000 calls and thousands of NHS workers have been helped, allowing them to focus on the vital work they do for us all.

We’re also making sure as many people as possible can take advantage of our online services. Late last year our research found that one in ten people in the North-East are completely offline, so to help, we’ve partnered with We Are Digital to give practical support to help people access the internet and stay safe online, avoiding scams and misuse of information.

The partnership will also deliver 2,000 tablets to people over 70 who don’t have the devices they need to access the internet.

These are crucial interventions that can make a real difference in helping North-East families weather this crisis and come through the other side. However, it is equally vital we play our full part in supporting the wider regional economy and the businesses which make it tick.

There has been a focus on the Government’s CBIL (Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan) Scheme and the other initiatives designed to give businesses access to the funding they need.

We also welcome the introduction of the new Bounce Back Loans, which will provide a fast track solution for those smaller firms that are in need of support now and as they move to reopen for business. In fact, in the first day of the scheme, more than 32,000 businesses received BBLs totalling£3.6billion from Lloyds Banking Group.

But these aren’t the only forms of support available. Indeed, from the tens of thousands of conversations we have had with our small and medium-sized business customers, the majority don’t want to take on additional borrowing at this time.

Instead, they want to reduce overheads by seeking shorter term cashflow solutions like capital repayment holidays and fee free overdraft extensions, which at Lloyds Banking Group we have been able to support through a dedicated £2bn coronavirus fund.

Finally, I would like to say a huge thanks to the thousands of front-line colleagues who have been working tirelessly throughout this crisis. They really are going above and beyond – in some cases, making ‘wellbeing calls’ – just a phone call to make sure some of our older customers are keeping safe and well. It’s not business as usual, but it is what’s needed and it makes me certain of one thing; that by working together and supporting every member of our community, we will come through this together.

For more information about the support available to residents and businesses visit: https://www.lloydsbankinggroup.com/Media/coronavirus/support-for-customers-impacted-by-coronavirus-covid-192/