Weekly Videos to Come

This blog has been dormant for some time now and I realized that it is time to add some short video content to assist members and consumers on a variety of everyday financial scenarios. Topics will include fraud/scams, account services, financial tips, and happenings at our credit union and within the credit union industry itself. 

It's much easier for you to watch video content than to have to read about it. This will be a work in progress so hopefully some of the content will be beneficial. Stay tuned! 

The Coronavirus Effect

Every credit union President/CEO is working through their pandemic plans that they hoped would never become a reality. The global pandemic of course is real and impacting credit unions everywhere. Our credit union , like many others throughout the country, has just moved our operations to drive thru only to reduce the person to person transmissions of the Coronavirus. Services other than transactions will be available by appointment. This operational change was not taken lightly. Emergency management teams of the state and local government have asked businesses to reduce the social space of interactions. Ultimately, the safety of our employees and members were the guiding force in our temporary operational changes.

The lives of credit union members are being negatively impacted more by the financial impacts of this pandemic emergency more than the health considerations. Yes, the health risks are real and people of all ages should take the guidance of the Centers for Disease Control seriously. The domino effect though is that people are losing their income and jobs because of this worldwide situation. Credit unions will be here to help their members with loan assistance efforts that include payment skips, payment reductions, interest rate reductions, and recovery consolidation loans to decrease the monthly expenses.

Fear and panic create more damage than the actual emergency in some situations. The hoarding of toilet paper and essential supplies has been an example of that. Our credit union is limiting the amount of cash back to members on a daily basis to insure that all of our members have access to cash. We have increased the daily purchasing limit on debit cards by an additional $1,000 to provide access to funds. All deposits are insured to at least $250,000 by the National Credit Union Administration. There was a story from another credit union where one of their older members was requesting over $100,000 in cash from their account. That is panic hoarding that is both dangerous for the member and potentially damaging to financial institutions. No financial institution keeps cash on hand that equals the amount of deposits on hand in all accounts. Credit unions are a financial cooperative so money deposited is also used for loans to other members and investments to produce the income needed for operations and payment of dividends. 

Common sense and empathy towards others will go a long way in helping all of us to get through this pandemic situation. People helping people was the genesis of credit unions being created in the first place following the Great Depression era. Credit unions are here now for our members and will remain available for recovery efforts throughout this situation and beyond. 

Top 10 Financial Tips for Young Members

Throughout the year there are several opportunities to speak with young people on financial tips as they move into the world of account ownership. Money does not come with any instructions and financial mistakes can be very costly. The "learn as you go" approach with banking accounts and money is not ideal as a result. Working in the credit union industry for over 32 years has revealed the good, the bad, and the ugly in terms of stories with account holders and their money. The objective with our youth should be to avoid the financial mistakes made by those in the past. 

Below are the Top 10 Financial Tips covered in financial presentations to schools and youth groups. If any schools or youth groups are interested in a financial tips presentation, please email your inquiry to feedback@naecu.org . 
           
Top 10 Financial Tips

• Establish an account somewhere, preferably somewhere that does not charge you any fees just to have an account.
• Review your account history. Errors can and do occur plus fraud can take place and your rights have time limits.
• Do not accept fees as a way of life. Fees are like rent, money gone forever.
• Be leery of strangers offering gifts. Scams are born from greed and unrealistic offers. Don’t ignore red flags.
• Have a plan for your money and resolve to save some designated percentage. 5-10% is a good savings goal.
• Do your homework on purchases and financing. It is your job to find the best offer. Quick and easy can have a high cost.
• Do not trust text messages, calls, or emails as being legit. NEVER provide personal information from an unsolicited contact. Trust but verify with the real source.
• If having an amount drafted from your account, it is preferable to having it done by ACH rather than with a debit card. You can’t put a stop payment on a debit card monthly transaction and debit card numbers can change often due to fraud listings.
• Protect your credit history by paying debt as agreed. Your cost of credit increases dramatically when poor credit history exists. Your availability can be limited as well. Talk to your lender if help is needed to maintain your good history.
• Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Money doesn’t come with instructions. Banking issues can be confusing and costly at times.

        It's your money, how much do you want to keep?

Current Expected Credit Losses (CECL): How it Could Impact YOU

Have you ever been presented with a solution in search of a problem? The general outlook for most people is if it isn't broke, don't fix it. The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) several years ago decided that the method by which all financial institutions reserve funds for loan losses needed to be changed. The current method of reserving funds for loan losses is historical, meaning it looks at loan losses of the past and applies that loss ratio to similar loan pools on hand now. Sounds reasonable, right? It should also be noted that financial institutions in general, especially credit unions, have not suffered any major problems with adequate funding of reserves for loan losses under the current system.

FASB has decided, on their own, that a new method of reserving for losses called "Current Expected Credit Losses (CECL) would be a better method for providing a more accurate picture of a financial institution's balance sheet to potential investors or anyone evaluating a particular institution. When implemented, a credit union would have to immediately incur an expense to the allowance account (a reserve fund for loan losses) when a new loan is funded. This would be before any loan interest is collected on that loan or before a first payment even has the chance to be delinquent. The allowance amount to be funded would be the "expected" total loss of that new loan. Again, no income will have been earned yet before the credit union is being asked to incur expense for funding a loan. Seems a bit backwards, doesn't it? Crystal balls are also not readily available so determining a future loss is largely reliant on what we use now, past loss history of a loan type.

What could be the negative impact of CECL on consumers? Some institutions could limit lending to higher credit risk members who have lower credit scores. The cost of that credit will also likely rise to offset the added expense of immediate funding for a loss that may or may not occur. Our delinquency rate by the way is consistently less than 1% of our total loans to members so delinquency is not a huge problem now. Members with lower credit scores need access to credit just like everyone else does. CECL could greatly impact a credit union's ability to serve the very members that we exist for. It is generally accepted that most credit unions will see more expense to their bottom line using the CECL method versus our current allowance for loan losses method.

Unless further delays are enacted, CECL funding requirements will be required of all institutions by the fiscal year after December 15, 2021. Significant expense resources are also being utilized to insure that data systems are in place to support and comply with CECL prior to the implementation date. All these adverse impacts for a solution to a problem that never existed. North Alabama Educators Credit Union is proceeding with CECL models for consideration/testing and use by the required date in accordance with what the regulation will require.

There is a Senate bill in Washington, DC to delay implementation of CECL to study the possible negative effects on consumer credit. Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina introduced the Continued Encouragement for Consumer Lending Act (S. 1564) earlier this week.

Caller ID Spoofing Fraud

Local credit unions combined forces to produce a Public Service Announcement (PSA) on the growing Caller ID Spoofing problem going on throughout the country.


Here is a link to the PSA video: CLICK HERE


Basically, Caller ID as a reliable technology is dead. Do not rely on Caller ID as a verification of who is calling you. Caller ID can be tricked to show any number that the caller wants, such as a financial institution or government agency.


Credit unions have spent decades of building trust with our members and scammers are abusing that trust with Caller ID Spoofing. NEVER give out personal information on an unsolicited call regardless of who is supposedly calling you. Scammers are trying to gain the 3-digit security code on the back of your credit or debit card. Don't do it!

Video Surveillance

All financial institutions will employ a variety of video surveillance equipment throughout the offices of each operational location. Video recording is taking place both inside and outside of our offices. This video is there to document a number of events taking place over the course of a given workday. Video is capturing vehicle and pedestrian  traffic as they come and go from our parking lots. This capability has assisted the credit union in cases of vehicle accidents, property damage to our buildings, personal injury falls, and fraud and/or crimes to document vehicles being driven. Several years ago our main office was robbed and we were able to capture images of the getaway vehicle that dropped off the robber before the robbery.


The outside cameras have helped while we are closed also to document storm damages or criminal activity taking place on our lots after hours. Police departments often review our outside video coverage for events that have taken place near our offices.


Once an individual steps into one of our offices, there are numerous cameras throughout the building that will capture different angles of people coming and going. This is why we ask that hats and sun glasses be removed. If you've ever seen robbery suspects the vast majority have hats and sun glasses on to help disguise their appearance. We once had one of our credit union members walk in with his full face motorcycle helmet on while doing a transaction at the teller window. When I saw this live on my office monitor I immediately went to verify that all was ok but to also counsel that member to never to do that again. We have tellers who have been involved in robberies and they do not need scary situations being presented to them in the course of their daily jobs. Our cameras at the teller lines have helped to document disputes over money exchanges and service. Video is pretty honest and comes in handy often.


Video surveillance is there for both your protection and that of the credit union employees.



Con Artists Taking Advantage of Western Union Settlement

If you were a victim of a scam between January 1, 2004, and January 19, 2017, and used Western Union’s money transfer system, you are able to file a claim to get your money back.
However, scammers are now trying to take advantage of this settlement to scam you again!


They will send an official-looking email about the Western Union settlement and ask you for information about your transaction, along with your name and ad...dress. The thing to know is that you cannot apply for a refund by email. These emails are scams. Do not respond and do not give any information.

Better Business Bureau offers tips on how to submit a claim:
· Go to www.ftc.com/WU for more information and to file your claim. The deadline is May 31, 2018. · Only the amount you transferred via Western Union is eligible for a refund. Other expenses like Western Union fees, other losses, or transfers sent through other businesses are not eligible for a refund.  · If you sent money to a scammer via Western Union and don't have paperwork related to the transfer you may still be eligible for a payment.


If you have already applied for a refund and you get an email about it, call Gilardi & Co., the claims administrator, at 1-844-319-2124.


If you have not yet applied for a refund and get an email asking you to apply for one by responding to the email, please tell the FTC.


Source: BBB.org and Federal Trade Commission: United States Federal Trade Commission, www.ftc.gov - not subject to copyright protection. 17 U.S.C. 403.


This tip provided by the BBB of North Alabama.