Danske Bank has announced a series of measures aimed at supporting its older and more vulnerable customers, calling over 250 people for personal support.
People across Northern Ireland have been affected by the coronavirus lockdown, but it's been particularly hard on the elderly and vulnerable. To help its customers through this period, Danske Bank has launched a series of outreach initiatives aimed at supporting its older and more vulnerable customers. It's launched a new website at http://danskebank.co.uk/coronavirus for updates about these programmes.
Through its Check In and Chat programme, the bank has identified some of its older customers who are self-isolating for a long period and may not have family or friends to help. Bank staff have placed over 250 calls to these customers so far, checking that the customer has access to the essentials they need to get through this tough time. The scheme also aims to simply reach out to those who may be particularly isolated and feeling lonely at this time and who might appreciate a chat with someone.
The bank has also launched a new Step By Step guide to help its more vulnerable customers access banking services from home or over the phone rather than visiting the branch. This follows the announcement that the first hour of branch opening each day is now reserved for vulnerable customers such as the elderly and those in immediate need of financial support, and the release of a dedicated telephone number to support older customers and medical workers.
Richard Caldwell, MD of Personal Banking, commented on the scheme: "The Check In and Chat team are all based at home during this period. They proactively phone customers to ensure they have the essentials they need to get by and then open up a normal conversation on whatever topic comes up, just spending a bit of time with the customer. We could be the only person our customer speaks to that day because they are keeping themselves away from others."
Source: Written based on press release
