Important Information
Scotwest Credit Union is authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority (FRN 213616). Details appear on the Financial Services Register (www.fca.org.uk/register)
The minimum age to become a member of Scotwest is 18 years. If you are aged 16-17 years, you can join as a Young Member and will be transferred to full membership upon reaching 18 years. Young Members can take advantage of our savings products. Upon reaching 18 years, you can apply for our loans products.
Under current legislation, members have the right to cancel their membership with Scotwest, without penalty within fourteen days of their membership application being processed. However, membership of Scotwest is voluntary and your account can be closed at any time, providing no debts are outstanding. To cancel your membership, please contact the Scotwest office.
Members agree to be sent information about Scotwest Credit Union, its products and services, promotions and developments as well as account statements.
Scotwest Credit Union is committed to the provision of service of the highest quality to its members. In the event however, that a member is dissatisfied with any aspect of this service, Scotwest will endeavour to resolve any complaint as effectively and efficiently as possible. Members will be issued with further information after joining.
In addition, if we have been unable to resolve your complaint within eight weeks, or you are not satisfied with our response, you can refer this matter to the Financial Ombudsman Service. This organisation has been set up by law to help settle individual disputes between consumers and financial firms.
Scotwest Credit Union is covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. This scheme provides a safety net if a Bank, Building Society or Credit Union should fail. Further information on the scheme will be issued after joining.
Please note that all calls to our Member Enquiry Line may be monitored and/or recorded in order to maintain and improve our service.
Proof of Address
Under money laundering regulations, we are required to verify the identity and address of all new members before we can accept their application.
To do this, we will make an electronic check. This process involves checking the details you supply against those held on a number of specific databases which Experian, the credit reference agency used by Scotwest Credit Union for the check, has access to. For example they will check to see whether you appear on the Electoral Register at the address you have provided.
Scoring methods will be used in the verification process as this gives a more thorough check of the available data. A record of this process will be kept that may be used to help other companies to verify your identity.
We may also pass information to organisations involved in fraud prevention to protect ourselves and our members from theft and fraud. If you supply false or inaccurate information and we suspect fraud, we will record this and share this information with other organisations.
We may also, if necessary ask you to send us documents to confirm your identity and address.
Financial Services Compensation Scheme
The FSCS deposit protection limit is changing
The Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) deposit protection limit is changing from £85,000 to £75,000 from 1 January 2016. This change applies to all banks, building societies and credit unions in the UK.
Important information about compensation arrangements
We are covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). The FSCS can pay compensation to depositors if a credit union is unable to meet its financial obligations. Most depositors – including most individuals and small businesses – are covered by the scheme.
In respect of deposits, an eligible depositor is entitled to claim up to £75,000. For joint accounts each account holder is treated as having a claim in respect of their share so, for a joint account held by two eligible depositors, the maximum amount that could be claimed would be £75,000 each (making a total of £150,000). The £75,000 limit relates to the combined amount in all the eligible depositor’s accounts with the credit union, including their share of any joint account, and not to each separate account.
For further information about the scheme (including the amounts covered and eligibility to claim) please call us on 0845 634 7634 or ask at your local branch, refer to the FSCS website www.fscs.org.uk or call 0800 678 1100.
