Two Nedbank customers had their loans settled by the bank through its Greenbacks programme after they continued paying their instalments through the Coronavirus pandemic.
According to the bank, it settled Jennifer van Tonder’s personal loan and Naomi Rheeder’s home loan after they were identified as having demonstrated consistent management of their respective loan accounts.
The bank said the two customers managed to continue making payments, even through the pandemic and its associated economic crisis.
Nedbank said the Greenbacks programme encouraged good money management, particularly loan management under the Responsible Borrower package.
“This package is linked to Nedbank Home Loans, Personal Loans, and Vehicle Asset Finance offerings and is free to join, with customers rewarded through a competition mechanism,” it said.
According to the bank, clients were entered into a quarterly competition for their qualifying loan products.
“The eligibility for the quarterly competition is to have all respective instalment payments for each qualifying loan product paid up for the full quarter, with the prize being a settlement on the outstanding balance of the loan up to the value of R1.5 million. The higher the customers’ level in the programme, the more entries they get into the competition and the greater their chances of winning,” added the bank.
Nedbank executive for loyalty and rewards Dharmesh Bhana said: “This is compelling to consumers, who were rewarded for practising sound money management.
“For the bank, the obvious benefit is a reduction in default rates, but over the long-term, consumers reap the benefits of making smarter lending choices and managing their debt obligations well, supporting a strong credit record, as well as the chance to reap life-changing rewards, like winning your Home Loan back, as an example,” he said.
Rheeder said: “Since Lockdown started in March 2020, I was concerned about what would happen and if I would still have a job. I made sure that I had some provisions in case something happened, so I would only buy what I needed and save money to cover unexpected expenses over several months.
“My husband and I were lucky to keep our jobs, but some of our family members weren’t as fortunate. So, after we covered our home loan and other obligations, we helped them where we could. My husband also helped and collected clothes and food for homeless people who were living in a nearby park,” she said.
Van Tonder, who took out the personal loan to help her daughter with a dental procedure, said: “I was lucky to keep my job, although still working from home. Some people were not as fortunate, and others struggled to manage their finances to prepare for the hard times.
“It takes a strong and disciplined person to manage debt and personal finances. Besides the pandemic, the economy was very depressed and as the country recovers, people need to save more for the future,” she added.
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