Terms and Conditions

1. Membership

1.1 Any individual, who is at least 16 years of age, meeting the membership qualification may join the Credit Union. The membership qualification is set out in the Credit Union’s Rule Book and is agreed by members from time to time at general meetings.

1.2 The Credit Union may request reasonable evidence of an applicant’s eligibility to join before admitting them into membership.

1.3 A minimum of £10 must be deposited to complete the membership process and no individual shall be admitted into membership without making this initial deposit.

1.4 A minimum balance of £5 must be maintained in a Regular Saver Account to maintain membership.

1.5 A regular deposit of £10 per month must be made into a Regular Saver Account in order to remain a member.

1.6 All active members have the right to vote at general meetings of the Credit Union and to put themselves forward to serve as Officers of the Credit Union. All members have a single vote regardless of shareholding.

1.7 There is no fixed upper limit on the total savings an individual may place in the Credit Union, however there is a dynamic limit imposed by regulation. In the unlikely event that any member approaches the limit, the Credit Union will contact them and discuss how to ensure this limit is not breached.

1.8 Members may withdraw from membership at any time by completing the Account Closure Form which is available by contacting the Credit Union or by telephoning the Credit Union. However, no member who has an outstanding loan with the Credit Union is permitted to withdraw from membership until the loan is settled.

1.9 Members may be expelled from membership for any grave reason as set out in the Credit Union’s Rule Book.

2. Dormancy

2.1 Any member who does not maintain the minimum £5 balance in a Regular Saver Account and/or the regular £10 monthly deposit shall, after 12 months of inactivity, be declared dormant in accordance with the Credit Union’s Rules. A £10 annual administration charge may be applied in these circumstances.

2.2 The Credit Union will make attempts to contact the member to determine the future of their membership and any balance remaining in any accounts belonging to them. The account must either be reactivated by the resumption of regular monthly payments, or any remaining funds withdrawn and the account(s) closed by completing the Account Closure Form.

2.3 Dormant members’ accounts will not attract the annual dividend and those members will not be eligible to vote at general meetings of the Credit Union or put themselves forward to serve as an Officer of the Credit Union.

3. Shares

3.1 Members may make their regular deposits into their Regular Saver by payroll deduction (where available) or Direct Debit.

3.2 Members may amend their regular deposit amount by contacting the credit union via telephone or via email though they may not reduce their monthly contribution to an amount less than £10.

3.3 Shares are withdrawable without restriction (unless placed on an account to which separate terms and conditions also apply) in normal circumstances, however the Credit Union’s Rules allow for a delay of up to 60 days to be placed in extraordinary circumstances.

3.4 Additional savings accounts may be offered by the Credit Union in addition to the Regular Saver and will have their own terms and conditions.

4. Dividends

4.1 All shares held in eligible accounts with the Credit Union may attract a dividend which is declared annually by the Board at the Annual General Meeting and agreed by a vote of members present at that meeting. A dividend is not guaranteed in every year and is subject to the financial performance and position of the Credit Union. It will be explained when you open an account whether it attracts a dividend, interest or neither.

4.2 The dividend is calculated based on the daily balance of shares held by members in the relevant financial year (which runs from 1 October to 30 September).

4.3 If a dividend is agreed, it is paid following the approval of members at the Annual General Meeting each year. This usually takes place in December which means that dividend will be paid for balances held in a period October to September in the following December.

4.4 Membership must be held at the time of the AGM in to be eligible for dividend. That means any members withdrawing from membership before it is paid will forfeit any dividend that may be payable.

4.5 The dividend is paid gross of tax and members are responsible for declaring any relevant amount of dividend to the relevant authorities.

4.6 Those members with tax residency in another jurisdiction will be included in the Automatic Exchange of Information return as required by HMRC which discloses dividend values.

5. Financial Services Compensation Scheme

5.1 Your eligible deposits held by a UK establishment of Serve and Protect Credit Union Limited are protected to a total of £85,000 by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme, the UK’s deposit guarantee scheme. Any deposits you hold above the limit are unlikely to be covered. Please click here for further information or visit www.fscs.org.uk.

6. Data Protection

6.1 We process your data in accordance with data protection legislation and details can be found in our privacy policy.

7. Complaints

7.1 Members may complain about any aspect of their membership by contacting us through your preferred channel of communication or using our dedicated email address resolve@serveandprotectcu.co.uk.

7.2 The Credit Union aims to resolve any complaint swiftly and to your satisfaction However, should you not be satisfied with our response then you have the right to refer it to the Financial Ombudsman Service (FOS) by calling 0800 023 4567 or visiting https://www.financial-ombudsman.org.uk/consumers/how-to-complain.

8. Amendments

8.1 These terms and conditions may be amended from time to time at the Credit Union’s discretion or as a result of changes in law, regulation or changes to the Credit Union’s Rule Book. Members will be notified of such changes.