- Banking’s new face Anna Bligh knows what mortgage strain is like and has advice for those in strife
- By John Rolfe
- 15/05/2017 Make a Comment
- Contributed by: Ben ( 3 articles in 2017 )
BANKING’S new face Anna Bligh says she knows what it’s like to worry about not being able to make the next mortgage repayment and has urged struggling borrowers to talk to their lender as a priority.
The former Queensland Labor premier said she bought her first home in the Brisbane suburb of Annerley in 1988 for $89,000 when interest rates were 12 per cent but heading to 18. She had just had a baby and was on maternity leave, which was unpaid.
“So I do know exactly what it’s like to worry about being able to pay your next mortgage repayment and it’s very distressing,” Ms Bligh, the new Australian Bankers’ Association (ABA) CEO, told News Corp Australia yesterday.
A recent survey found 669,000 of the nation’s 3.1 million mortgaged households were in loan stress. The proportion under pressure is growing as living costs rise while incomes flatline.
The banking industry, now represented by Anna Bligh, has pledged to radically revamp the way retail staff are paid to end a “sales culture”.
Ms Bligh said if there was one message she could send to those doing it tough it was to “see your bank early rather than later”.
“For very understandable reasons banks are often the last place that people want to go and confess and explain their trouble because they worry about penalty. But banks have very experienced financial hardship teams.
“I’ve seen them turn people’s lives around,” she said, having cited her time running the charity YWCA NSW, which would often take homeless people to see their bank.
“The banks can do much more if you get to them early,” she added.
Former Queensland Premier Anna Bligh is the new CEO of the Australian Bankers' Association.
The comments came after the under-siege industry pledged to radically revamp the way retail staff are paid to end a “sales culture”.
In summarising the changes, Ms Bligh said it will no longer be acceptable for an employee’s job to be to “sell 10 credit cards today”.
It was critical to make the change to protect customers.
She said a bank whistleblower had recently revealed a teller had encouraged a customer to open nine separate accounts to help the branch meet its target for new accounts opened.
After talking to another teller, the customer closed the unnecessary eight accounts.
“The second teller was reprimanded,” Ms Bligh said. “What you reward is what gets done.”
Aussies experiencing mortgage strain should speak to their banks as a matter of priority, Anna Bligh says.
Ms Bligh said that since officially starting her new job eight days ago she had met with Treasurer Scott Morrison and Labor’s treasury spokesman Chris Bowen.
When Ms Bligh’s appointment was made public in February it was seen in some quarters as banks betting Labor would win the next federal election, particularly when it emerged Ms Bligh had pipped one of Mr Morrison’s senior advisers for the post. Then it was reported he intended to snub her and work directly with the major-bank bosses.
“There were some unfortunate conclusions jumped to when my appointment was first announced,” she said.
The meeting with the Treasurer had been productive and professional.
The former Queensland Labor premier said she bought her first home in the Brisbane suburb of Annerley in 1988 for $89,000 when interest rates were 12 per cent but heading to 18. She had just had a baby and was on maternity leave, which was unpaid.
“So I do know exactly what it’s like to worry about being able to pay your next mortgage repayment and it’s very distressing,” Ms Bligh, the new Australian Bankers’ Association (ABA) CEO, told News Corp Australia yesterday.
A recent survey found 669,000 of the nation’s 3.1 million mortgaged households were in loan stress. The proportion under pressure is growing as living costs rise while incomes flatline.
The banking industry, now represented by Anna Bligh, has pledged to radically revamp the way retail staff are paid to end a “sales culture”.
Ms Bligh said if there was one message she could send to those doing it tough it was to “see your bank early rather than later”.
“For very understandable reasons banks are often the last place that people want to go and confess and explain their trouble because they worry about penalty. But banks have very experienced financial hardship teams.
“I’ve seen them turn people’s lives around,” she said, having cited her time running the charity YWCA NSW, which would often take homeless people to see their bank.
“The banks can do much more if you get to them early,” she added.
Former Queensland Premier Anna Bligh is the new CEO of the Australian Bankers' Association.
The comments came after the under-siege industry pledged to radically revamp the way retail staff are paid to end a “sales culture”.
In summarising the changes, Ms Bligh said it will no longer be acceptable for an employee’s job to be to “sell 10 credit cards today”.
It was critical to make the change to protect customers.
She said a bank whistleblower had recently revealed a teller had encouraged a customer to open nine separate accounts to help the branch meet its target for new accounts opened.
After talking to another teller, the customer closed the unnecessary eight accounts.
“The second teller was reprimanded,” Ms Bligh said. “What you reward is what gets done.”
Aussies experiencing mortgage strain should speak to their banks as a matter of priority, Anna Bligh says.
Ms Bligh said that since officially starting her new job eight days ago she had met with Treasurer Scott Morrison and Labor’s treasury spokesman Chris Bowen.
When Ms Bligh’s appointment was made public in February it was seen in some quarters as banks betting Labor would win the next federal election, particularly when it emerged Ms Bligh had pipped one of Mr Morrison’s senior advisers for the post. Then it was reported he intended to snub her and work directly with the major-bank bosses.
“There were some unfortunate conclusions jumped to when my appointment was first announced,” she said.
The meeting with the Treasurer had been productive and professional.
Source: https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/moneysaverhq/bankings-new-face-anna-bligh-knows-what-mortgage-strain-is-like-and-has-advice-for-those-in-strife/news-story/ca3a3d9a519df2607219b737ce3c9006
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