Many of them are not seeking lender assistance, research shows
Australians are being urged to directly seek financial hardship assistance from their banks or lenders, as new research has revealed that almost half or 47% of Australian adults with debt, equating to 5.8 million people, have struggled to make repayments in the past 12 months due to cost-of-living pressures, reduced income, and unexpected expenses.
Despite these challenges, the nationwide research published by ASIC’s Moneysmart program has found 30% of Australians saying they would not seek hardship assistance from their bank or lender. Instead, they would prefer to sell belongings and assets (42%) or obtain a second job (40%) before applying for such assistance.
“For many Australians, the path to seeking help feels daunting, confusing, and challenging,” said ASIC commissioner Alan Kirkland (pictured). “It is concerning that people would rather sell their personal belongings or get a second job rather than seek financial hardship assistance.
“Customers in hardship are entitled under the law to request assistance. These findings should be top of mind for lenders when supporting Australians in financial hardship.”
Kirkland emphasised that banks and lenders have a responsibility to support customers experiencing financial stress.
“If you aren’t happy with your bank or lender’s response, make a complaint and, if that doesn’t resolve the issue, contact the Australian Financial Complaints Authority,” he said.
Nearly half of Australians who have debt say they’ve struggled to make repayments in the last 12 months, but 3 in 10 say they wouldn’t seek #hardship assistance from their lender. A new ASIC @MoneysmartTeam campaign is empowering consumers to ‘Just Ask’ https://t.co/VSFRnyRGm3
— ASIC Media (@asicmedia) June 2, 2024
The research highlights significant barriers to seeking help, with 55% of respondents unaware they could request financial hardship assistance and only 20% having ever done so. Practical barriers include a lack of awareness of available assistance programs (37%), uncertainty about where to seek help (33%), and distrust of sources (31%). Emotional barriers include anxiety and stress (51%), feelings of shame or embarrassment (40%), and a sense of failure (40%).
Almost all survey respondents (96%) who experienced financial hardship reported negative side effects, including stress or anxiety (73%), loss of sleep (56%), and a decline in physical health or appearance (41%).
Among those unwilling to seek hardship assistance, 50% worried it would cost them more in the long run, 32% feared it would negatively impact their credit scores, and 31% doubted their lender’s willingness to help.
In response, ASIC’s Moneysmart is launching an awareness campaign titled “Just Ask! Hardship Help is available”, encouraging Australians in financial difficulty to contact their lenders for support. The campaign follows the release of ASIC’s report “Hardship, hard to get help: Lenders fall short in financial hardship support”, which found that lenders need to improve their support for struggling customers.
ASIC is following up with lenders to enhance their processes for assisting customers in financial hardship.
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