Pepper Money explains its decision to continue trail payments for brokers
Having committed to continuing trail payments for brokers whose customers are impacted by COVID-19, Pepper Money hopes to provide “surety in a very uncertain environment”.
The lender announced it would honour these trail payments at least until 31 December 2020, regardless of whether the customer goes into hardship or not; the situation will be reviewed again in the new year.
This follows the Australian Banking Association’s (ABA) announcement that banks would be suspending loan repayments for small businesses for six months, and a number of support packages released by banks and lenders to defer home loan repayments.
Supporting brokers
Aaron Milburn, general manager mortgages and commercial lending, said it was Pepper’s values of ‘can do, balanced and real’ really guide them in decisions like this.
“Simply put, we understand the importance of the broker channel in this great industry of ours,” Milburn said. “Supporting our third party brokers, is something we have always done, and seek to do whenever we can.”
Milburn added that the future was difficult to predict at the moment. With more businesses being told to close or operate with restrictions, it is still hard to know what the situation will look like in a few months’ time.
But with this announcement from Pepper, brokers can at least be assured that their trail payments with the non-bank will not be affected – ensuring hundreds of dollars can continue to flow into broker businesses.
“My belief is those brokers who stay close, guide and support their customers will retain those customers and grow with them when we come through these unchartered waters,” Milburn said.
An uncertain future
Although it is difficult to know the extent of the difficulties Australians and the economy may face this year and in future years due to the pandemic, figures suggest the unemployment rate could reach as much as 11%, but is at least forecast to reach 7% in October.
To further support brokers and their customers who may face hardship over the following months, Pepper has been sending out SMS messages with information on how to find assistance. The lender has also created a dedicated COVID-19 information section on its website outlining the various options available to them. As new information comes through, the lender will update the page.
