Pandemic Flu Updates

This page was last updated on Monday 17 August at 15:51

We're keeping a close eye on the emerging guidance from the UK Government and Scottish Government, as well as Public Health Scotland, to ensure we continue to operate in a manner which is safe for our staff, volunteers and members. We continue to be available to members by telephone during business hours, by e-mail and through our online request system (with a response within 1 working hour).

Our Glenrothes branch is open Monday to Friday 10am to 2pm, and by appointment up to 5pm where necessary. Our Methilhill branch can be attended by appointment only (appointments are possible Monday to Friday during business hours).

We will keep our website and facebook account updated with the latest information.

Thank you to all of our Members who have been using our online request system rather than calling our busy phone lines. We've had great feedback that it's an easy to use and fast system. Also, we want to thank Members for their support with the appointments-only system at branches. We appreciate that it is less convenient, but Members have also told us that they know it is keeping people safe and that they can still come in when they need to, by appointment. We hope all of our Members are staying safe and healthy at this time.

A message from our CEO, Wednesday 25 March 11:25

Dear Members,

We are still open for business and will continue to maintain a high level of personal service during this period via the phone, internet, and KCB website. However, we have taken the decision to close both our offices to member access at Main Street, Methilhill and Kingdom Shopping Centre, Glenrothes to protect our staff, Members and reduce the spread of the virus.

We are well equipped to continue providing our core services and where appropriate we have mobilised our team to work remotely.

Please make use of our remote services (e-mail and website) where possible:
  • Use our online account access. If you are not already registered please join here.
  • Use our Online Member Request system to get in touch and we will deal with your query within one working hour.
  • Where possible, please send digital copies of all required documentation rather than by post. However in the event this is not possible, please use our branch post boxes and/or the Royal Mail for documentation and your signed loan agreements until further notice.
  • If you have a non-urgent enquiry please contact us by e-mail ([email protected]) and we will follow up as soon as possible. This will enable our team to focus on urgent phone/web enquiries.
  • If you don't have a bank account and have no way of making an alternative arrangement to receive your money, please contact us and we'll do what we can to help.

We will continue to keep everyone updated through our communications channels and pandemic page as we monitor the situation on a daily basis.

We know this is a worrying situation and if you want to discuss your specific circumstances then please contact us through our website in the first instance. For concerns about repaying loans at this time please e-mail [email protected] and we'll do our very best to help. Thank you

Sofia Dogan,
CEO

Balance Enquiries, Transfers and Questions
We have introduced a new, online request facility for any Member to request a balance transfer, transfer money or to ask us a question during this pandemic.

As a result of the pandemic, we have some staff working from home (as well as keeping our branches open) to keep people safe and to ensure we can continue to provide a full service to Members. We have significant contingency plans in place and, thanks to the dedication of our staff and volunteers, we can continue to support Members throughout this crisis.

Please consider using the online system instead of phoning - we want to prioritise vulnerable Members who need to come in and access cash over the counter, so phones may not be answered as quickly as normal. We will prioritise our vulnerable Members who come into the branch and so waiting times for phone calls will be high. We'd like to thank our Members for their support and patience at this challenging time.

Access Points
All access points are closed until further notice. This is to protect our volunteers and Members. Branches remain open and Members can e-mail, use our website or call us during our normal open hours.

We have closed branches for walk-in use. Members need to contact us to arrange an appointment and we will let the Member in at the agreed time. This has been necessary to enforce government-mandated directions to minimise social contact and keep our staff, volunteers and Members safe. We are still offering full services, but have had to change how we interact with Members at this very difficult time.

Branches
Our branches are closed for general walk-ins, although Members can make appointments to visit a branch. They need to contact us to arrange an appointment and we will let the Member in at the agreed time. This has been necessary to enforce government-mandated directions to minimise social contact and keep our staff, volunteers and Members safe. We are still offering full services, but have had to change how we interact with Members at this very difficult time.

Paying Money In
If you normally pay money into your savings account and/or make payments toward any loans at access points you can pay money in by bank transfer or set up a standing order. To do this you must remember to provide your membership number - put this in the Reference field when you set the payment up.
Our account is in the name Kingdom Credit Union Ltd, our sort code is 80-17-33 and the account number is 06 000 893

Branches are still open as normal, so you can still pop in to make cash deposits if you want to. We will keep this page up to date should we need to adjust opening hours in any way. Always check this page before making a special trip, just in case.

Loans
We want to help our Members at difficult times and are here to provide emergency loans. We continue to process all loans as normal, with an average waiting time of around 3 days. We will do what we reasonably can to speed up decisions and payouts on emergency loans during these difficult times. Please remember that, as a responsible lender, we may have to decline some loans. We will use our discretion and carefully take into account your circumstances before reaching any decision.

If you face issues repaying an existing loan with us then please get in touch with us as soon as you can and we'll do what we can to help. The sooner you get in touch, the more help we can offer and, from feedback and experience, the more beneficial it is for our Members.

Savings
Your savings are safe, and you can access them and transfer them as normal. Savings are fully guaranteed under the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. Kingdom is financially very secure and we have full business continuity plans in place to ensure minimal disruption in extreme situations. Please do contact us if you have any questions.

AGM postponement
Our AGM was scheduled to take place on Tuesday 31 March 2020 but we have had to postpone it in line with government guidance on isolation and protection of public health. We will make alternative arrangements and advise our Members accordingly.