About Credit Union’s and Solent Credit Union
What is a credit union?
A credit union is a cooperative financial institution that is owned and controlled by its members and operated for the purpose of promoting thrift, providing credit at competitive rates, and providing other financial services to its members. Many credit unions exist to further community development or sustainable international development on a local level.
Solent Credit Union encourages members to save regularly, and can thereby provide affordable loans.
About 10percent of members of Solent Credit Union volunteer to work within the credit union, and thereby benefit all the members, and the local community.
How does it work?
All the members have something in common, called a “common bond”. For Solent Credit Union, the common bond is people who live or work within the Southampton postcode area.
Members save regularly together to build up a pool of money. Members can then apply for a loan from the pool when they need it, provided they can afford to pay it back. Rather than applying its profit to pay corporate investors and other financial institutions, the credit union is directed to provide low cost loans, very low service charges and dividends to its member savers.
Members can pay regular savings by standing order (please click here to download a form) or in cash at our office or one of the collection points. Back To Menu
Is my information safe?
Solent Credit Union is registered with the office of the Information Commissioner and operates entirely within the requirements of the Data Protection Act 1998. This also allows you to get copies of information we might hold about you in our records.
All board members and staff sign a confidentiality agreement and none of your details are passed outside of the Credit union except with your permission or as allowed under our Data Protection Registration or where required by law. None of your details are passed to others within the Credit Union unless there is a valid reason for doing so. Back To Menu
Is my money safe?
Your money is totally safe. The Credit Union is a part of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, which covers 100% of your savings up to £85,000. We are authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority, fully insured and both internally and externally audited. There is no danger to your savings.
Who runs it?
It is run by the members who each get a vote to elect a board of directors from the membership. All members over 18 can stand for election to the board. Solent Credit Union is run by voluntary staff supported by one part-time worker who is not a manager.
The volunteer Board of Directors which includes the following positions:
President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Secretary, Marketing Director, HR Director, Loans Officer & Credit Committee member.
The board has three other member places and they have no portfolio. Back To Menu
In an addition there is:
• A Credit Committee which considers loan applications, the chair of which is a member of the general board of directors
• A Supervisory Committee which checks on procedures and day-to-day operation of the credit union
All board and committee members are members of the Credit Union and are elected at the Annual General Meeting.
Why is this different from a bank?
Members of the credit union are also owners of the credit union and live or work throughout in the SO postal are. The relationship with members is important and decisions are based on that relationship. You won’t be talking to a call centre, but to real local people that you will get to know. Each application will be considered individually. A computer won’t make decisions and your circumstances will be taken into account. The credit union is not-for-profit and any excess income is returned to the members after being agreed at Solent Credit Union Annual General Meeting
Joining and being a saver
Who Can Join?
• Membership of Solent Credit Union is open to anyone over the age of 16 either living, or working, or both within the SO postcode area.
• There is a one-off joining fee of £1 for adult members (to cover administration costs).
• Solent Credit Union also operates a Junior Savings Club which is freely available to under 16s. Back To Menu
How do I join?
You will need to complete an application form and bring it to the Solent Credit Union Dolphin House office or one of our collection points with proof of identity and proof of address (see below) along with the £1 joining fee and your first deposit of at least £1. Your share balance (savings) must increase to more than £5 within one year of joining.
If you wish to pay future deposits by standing order please click here to download a standing order form and return it to the office along with your application. Click Here to download the Application Form
Young people under the age of 16 can join the JUNIOR SAVERS. Please see the relevant Junior Savers page for further information.
We need to see at least two documents: one for evidence of identity (including date of birth), and one for proof of address. Refer to the list below for acceptable items. Click here to download the SCU ID Policy
The documents must be originals and valid (if a utility bill, it must be no more than 3 months old), current or the most recent.
Solent Credit Union, as an authorised firm, is operating within the Money Laundering Regulations and the Criminal Justice Act 1993. We require proof of your identity, date of birth and address before you can become a member.
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Proof of Identity and Address. Why does SCU need this?
All financial organisations need to know who their customer is. The level of ID we request will be the level required by the Money Laundering Regulations.
How much do I have to save?
You can save as much as you like up to £10,000. The minimum amount is just a £1. Collection Points will not take more than more than £400 over one month from one member.
Can I continue to save while I repay my loan?
Those using our loans services can also contribute to the Credit Union by saving alongside their loan repayments. Your savings history affects your ability to borrow. Back To Menu
What happens to the money that I have saved if I die?
When you join, you will be asked to fill in a ‘Nominated Beneficiary’ section on the Application Form, indicating who you would like to receive all your savings when you die. Should you die under the age of 65 years, the first £5000 is covered by a free Life Insurance Scheme. You can change your Nominated Beneficiary at any time by requesting and completing a new form. It is important that you complete the Beneficiary Form and keep it up-to-date.
This insurance is held by CUNA Mutual. This is a Mutual Insurance Society, in 1935, founded and owned by credit union to provide insurance for Credit Unions and their members.
Your savings are automatically insured free of charge, so that if you die under the age of 65 your savings will be doubled and paid out to your nominated beneficiary.
As with most insurance some exemptions apply; for example you may not be covered if you have a pre-existing medical condition. Check with us for latest up to date details.
Will I receive any interest on my Savings?
You may receive an annual dividend payment. This is like Interest but it is not paid automatically. The Credit Union is a members’ co-operative run on a not-for-profit basis. Once operating costs have been covered, any excess income can be paid back to saving members in the form of an annual dividend, approved by members at the Annual General Meeting.
The amount paid to Members, if any, will depend on the financial performance of the Credit Union. There is no guarantee that a dividend will be paid every year, especially in the first few years of the Credit Union. Dividend payments to individual Members will be calculated on their average Savings over the previous year. Priority will always be given to Junior Savers.
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How do I withdraw my savings?
To withdraw your savings, you would complete a “Shares Withdrawal Application” form and send it through to us. We would then process this and process the credit transfer or raise a cheque that can be collected from the Credit Union Office. Alternatively if you let us have a pre-paid envelope, your cheque can be posted to you. This choice can be indicated on the form by tickling the appropriate boxes. Please remember to sign and date the form.
To process a credit transfer straight to your bank account we want to see some paper confirmation of your bank account and branch number, such as a recent bank statement. We do not carry out credit transfers to bank accounts if the member is closing their account. In this case a cheque is the only form of payment issued.
If you are thinking of removing your savings, you might also consider keeping your savings intact and applying for an affordable credit union loan for your needs instead.
You need to keep at least £1 in your account if you wish to remain a member of the Credit Union. If you wish to just leave a lump sum in the account or be a non-active member having no transactions in any one year, you will need to have at least £5.00 in savings or we may be trying to contact you in order to close your account.
The Credit Union has an arrangement with Lloyds Bank at the High Street Southampton Branch who will cash cheques. If you do not have a bank account and would like the cheque to be cashed please indicate this on the Withdrawal Form, so that appropriate paper-work can be prepared.
The cheque will normally be ready for picking up at the Dolphin House Office within a day or two of us receiving the completed form. However, in very exceptional circumstances, the Credit Union is allowed to take a period of up to sixty days before it makes a payment.
Can I take out all my Savings at one time?
Yes, - except, if you have a Loan from the Credit Union you can only withdraw any savings which exceed the outstanding Loan balance. Also if you have pledged your Shares to guarantee someone else’s Loan you will not be allowed to withdraw them below the total guaranteed sum.
Closing My Account. How would I do it?
You can close your account by withdrawing all your savings. Your savings are your shareholding in Solent Credit Union Limited and you must have at least one pound, equating to one share, in the Credit Union. Simply complete a “Shares Withdrawal Application” form ensuring that you tick the box “If you wish to close your account,” and send it through to us . We would then process this and a raise a cheque which can be collected from the Credit Union Office or if you let us have a pre-paid envelope, your cheque can be posted to you. Your account will then be closed. We do not pay out by credit transfer when closing accounts. Please read the note below.
Note: If you have a Loan from the Credit Union you can only withdraw any Savings which exceed the outstanding Loan balance. Also if you have pledged your Shares to guarantee someone else’s Loan you will not be allowed to withdraw them below the total guaranteed sum. Under these circumstances you would not be allowed to close your account.
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If I move or change address?
Please let us know by any means as soon as possible so that we do not send any information to your previous address. In order for us to record your new address in our system or send any information out to your new address, we need to see “Proof of address”, in the form of a tenancy agreement or letter for a government office or a bill, not a mobile phone bill. This is to comply with the money laundering laws. Identity theft can be achieved by getting someone’s information sent to another address where it can be intercepted and so we have to be very careful to be certain that the member has actually moved. Download Change of address form.
What happens if I leave the area?
Up to 10% of the total credit union membership can be people who have ceased to qualify. Back To Menu
Once this level is reached Members may be asked to leave.
Note: New law passed Autumn 2011 to be enacted in 2012, will enable us to extend the limit on this rule, but we must put the change to our members at our AGM in a resolution posted to members with the meeting notice. Our AGM is usually held during late March. Link to new legislation
How do I change the level of savings I make to SCU?
If you pay by standing order, you could complete a standing order form and send it to our office in Dolphin House. The form can be downloaded via our website. Back To Menu
Can I deal with my account over the telephone?
You may contact us about your account by telephone provided that you can answer security questions. Some transactions, such as loan agreements, will always need to have your signature before they can be processed.
Can I check my balance or carry out transactions online?
Not yet, but this may be available in the future.
What is a Credit Union member?
A Credit Union Member is a part owner and share-holder of the Credit Union. All members have an equal say, one vote at meetings of the Credit Union. Credit unions are not-for-profit financial cooperatives. We exist to serve our members, not to make a profit. Unlike most other financial institutions, credit unions do not issue stock or pay dividends to outside stockholders. Instead, earnings are returned to our members in the form of lower loan rates, very much lower fees and an annual dividend.
