Natwest & RBS support its customers impacted by coronavirus

Wednesday, 25 March, 2020

Natwest have updated me and measures they are taking to support their customers effected by COVID-19. Please see below for more details.

Dedicated support lines

For customers over 70 and those in isolation: They have created a dedicated support line for customers over 70 and those who are in a period of isolation. This dedicated line has been set up so they can help those most in need and is open 8am-8pm 7 days a week. Those who need it can call on:

NatWest – 0800 051 4176

Royal Bank of Scotland – 0800 051 4177

NHS Workers: They have also set up an emergency customer care line for NHS workers. Their team of experts are ready to help with emergency banking support such as lending assistance and lost and stolen cards. This line is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week for customers:

NatWest – 0800 046 2418

Royal Bank of Scotland – 0800 0466734

Personal customers

There may be circumstances where a personal customer may fall into financial difficulty as a result of the impacts of coronavirus. The bank will look to understand each customer’s situation on a case-by-case basis and can offer a number of options to help them manage their finances. They have a range of options to assist all customers in financial difficulty and have made available the following:

Mortgage and loan repayment deferral for up to three months. This is available to both residential and buy-to-let customers whose tenants are experiencing issues with their finances. They have also agreed a three-month moratorium on residential and buy-to-let possession action
Customers can close fixed savings accounts to access cash with no early closure charge
Refunds on credit card cash advance fees
Customers can apply for increased credit card limit
Customers can request an increased cash withdrawal limit of up to £500 (debit card)

Customers can continue to access their banking through a range of channels, including digital, mobile, ATMs, telephony, video banking, branches and the Post Office.

Access to Cash

There are several ways we can support customers’ cash needs – and we are working to develop more options too. Customers can use ATMs, Post Offices and can call us or log into the mobile app to get a ‘GetCash’ code, which can be used to withdraw cash without a card.

Business customers

The impacts their customers experience will vary from sector to sector, but they are being proactive in the way they support them and the bank is speaking to many of them about the steps they can take and the support that’s available to them. For business customers we are:

Ensuring customers are reassured that they are here to support with £5bn additional working capital funding for SME’s through an extension of the Growth Fund:

Additional lending designed to support businesses adapt to a rapidly changing external environment; and,
Availability of fee free loans.

The bank is taking part in relevant government schemes:

The Government’s Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBIL) for lending up to £5m is being rolled out with a streamlined approach and, where possible, minimised requirements to ensure they can support their customers as quickly as possible; and,
They are also supportive of the Bank of England’s Covid-19 Corporate Financing Facility (CCFF) and are supporting customers who wish to apply.

Immediate measures to support cashflow and provide additional working capital:

Up to 6-month Capital Repayment Holiday on variable rate lending;
The granting of an overdraft or extension of existing overdraft limits;
Customers can have immediate access, if required to surplus cash in their Treasury Reserve Deposit account.

Provision of additional advice and support to customers:

Relationship Managers are proactively speaking to business customers offering help and support.
Relevant and up to date information is available on the NatWest / Royal Bank of Scotland Business Hubs (see below for links)

Further information for our customers can be found on the: