Media Release

14 January 2014 - St.George Bank has today announced a Disaster Relief Package to customers impacted by the WA Bushfires which has affected the Perth Hills district.

The Disaster Relief Package is available to all impacted by the bush fires and St.George Bank encourages customers to seek the bank's support.

"Our thoughts are with those impacted by these devastating bushfires and we’d like to thank the amazing firefighters and volunteers who continue to support the community," said Larry Scott, State Manager, St.George Retail Banking.

"We understand that times like these can be extremely hard - emotionally, physically but also financially. By offering support to our customers, we hope to help alleviate any concern they have with their financial commitments so that they can concentrate on more important issues at hand."

"We are also fast-tracking insurance claims and our assessors are ready to assist all St.George customers in the worst affected areas."

The Disaster Relief Package offers the following assistance:

• If you have a St.George Bank home loan, you may apply to defer repayments for up to three months
• Affected businesses with existing loans can request loan restructuring without incurring the usual bank establishment fees
• If you have a St.George Bank credit card, you may request an emergency credit limit increase
• You may also apply to defer repayments to your card for up to 90 days
• Should you wish to purchase replacement goods you may apply for a personal loan at a discounted interest rate with no establishment fee
• St.George will waive interest rate adjustments should you wish to withdraw from an existing term deposit
• If you have home and contents insurance with St.George Bank, you may be eligible to receive assistance including emergency funds and temporary accommodation
• Customers experiencing severe hardship will also be offered a halt on all interest accrual on unsecured credit products for a period of up to three months.

St.George customers who wish to utilise these special relief measures or need assistance should contact St.George Assist on phone 1800 629 795, or alternatively call their local Branch Manager.

Insurance customers

All affected customers should contact us on 1300 655 489 so we can assist with temporary accommodation and emergency funds. Claims can be lodged 24 hours a day, 7 days a week by calling this number.

Claims can also be lodged through St.George’s new online claims service which can be accessed via www.stgeorge.com.au or by going direct to this link: https://www.stgeorge.com.au/content/dam/stg/downloads/personal/insurance/stg-residential-claim-form.pdf

Our assessors will be ready to assist all customers in the worst affected areas. Customers should not put themselves at risk by going into affected areas to retrieve insurance documents or to take photographs. We understand proof of loss may not be possible and we will accept the word of customers in these instances.

"We are here to help and encourage customers, please to make contact as soon as possible if you have been impacted by the events of the last few days," said Mr Scott.