There is no strict time limit on being a member to apply for a loan. However, as a rule of thumb, new members and first-time borrowers are asked to save regularly for a period of 3 months before they can borrow. We will look at individual requests under this time limit on a case-by-case basis.

Members can apply in person or online

The maximum personal loan is €50,000, Cultivate up to €75,000, Secured Cultivate up to €225,000.

All members have cover up to €100,000 under the deposit guarantee scheme but for insurance and regulatory reasons the maximum a member can have in their Arklow Credit Union account is €15,000.00.

You can pay into your account over the counter (cash, cheque or debit/credit card), standing order, online banking, over the phone with your debit card or at our Online Payment page

You can withdraw your shares at any stage, provided that they are not pledged against a loan. Members are encouraged to keep their savings intact thus ensuring that:

• The Member can maintain creditworthiness and capacity to borrow
• They continue to earn a dividend

NOTE - After the age of 55, share withdrawals have a negative impact on Life Saving Insurance as this is calculated on the lowest share amount.

The Deposit Guarantee Scheme covers share and deposit accounts with all banks, building societies and credit unions in Ireland. The maximum amount covered under the scheme is €100,000 for each institution. If you have more than one account with an institution, including joint accounts, the money in those accounts will be added together to calculate the total amount of your deposits with that institution.

If you have deposits with more than one institution, you are entitled to claim up to a maximum compensation payment, per institution.

Loan Protection insurance is the cover Arklow Credit Union takes out on the lives of eligible members with credit union loans.

Should a member with an outstanding loan balance die, the balance is repaid in full, subject to terms and conditions and certain cover limits which may apply. Loan Protection insurance is paid by Arklow Credit Union. There is no additional direct cost to you, the member. The insurance is underwritten by the credit unions’ own insurance company, ECCU Assurance DAC and is paid for by credit unions.

You should enquire when making your loan application to see if you are eligible. If you are an eligible member, this means that you can borrow from us in the full confidence that your dependents will not be obliged to repay the outstanding loan balance in the event of your death. The insurance benefit payable is the amount of the member’s outstanding loan balance.

When borrowing from Arklow Credit Union, a loan is eligible for cover if:

• The borrower has not reached their 85th birthday.
• The borrower can confirm they can actively and regularly perform all of the usual duties of their occupation and in good health.
• The borrower has a minimum of €200 in their share account to allow for affiliation fee deductions.
• Further terms and conditions may apply. Please enquire with Arklow Credit Union for further details.

Please check with Arklow Credit Union for full details of cover under their loan protection policy.

Arklow Credit Union provides Life Savings Insurance to eligible members as an additional benefit for those who maintain regular savings.

In the event of the eligible member's death, the benefit is made payable in addition to the amount held in their savings. The amount paid out is dependent on the member's age when savings were lodged and the accumulation of lodgments saved over the term of their membership.

The premium for this Life Savings insurance is paid by Arklow Credit Union. Therefore, there is no additional direct cost to you, the member. The insurance is underwritten by the credit union's own insurance company, ECCU Assurance DAC.

Please note:
The insurance benefit payable after a member's death is linked to the amount of savings that a member has made during the term of membership.
The benefit is also dependent on the member’s age at the date lodgements are made to the account.
Amounts saved after the member's 70th birthday are not insured and any withdrawal of savings after age 70 can permanently reduce the amount of cover held.
Withdrawals of savings at any age can reduce the level of cover held.
Talk to a member of staff for maximum Life Savings Insurance limit.

Insurance Cover Provided

Arklow Credit Union also offers a funeral grant of €1,300.00 at no additional cost to members. Terms and Conditions apply.

To qualify for the Life Savings Insurance the minimum shares to be held at time of death is €150.00.

Death Benefit insurance is provided by Arklow Credit Union to its members at no additional cost.

The service provides €1,300.00 towards funeral costs in the event of the eligible member's death.

Members are eligible for the service if:

• The member joined Arklow Credit Union in good health before the age of 70 years.
• The member is above the age of 16 years.
• The member has remained a member of Arklow Credit Union.
• The member has been a member with Arklow Credit Union for 12 months.

To qualify for Death Benefit Insurance the minimum shares to be held at the time of death is €150.00.

• Retrieve accurate information on Covid-19 from Government websites and Government affiliated social media pages. Fake news is increasingly polluting local news stations and unreliable social media outlets.
• Remember that email addresses can be spoofed. Always take extra time to validate who the sender is.
• Make sure operating systems and web browsers for all your devices are up to date.
• Phones are increasingly attacked with malicious SMS messages. Exercise caution when opening and responding to these messages.
• Back up all of your data on a cloud or external drive.
• Never download attachments, software or grant access to anyone to log into your computer remotely following a call or email that you have received out of the blue.
• Install a paid Anti-virus on all of your devices.
• Remember, weak user passwords and the lack of MFA (multi-factor authentication) assists criminals to take over accounts every day.

Emails usually try to lure people into clicking on a link or providing personal information that can be used to commit fraud or identify theft. Below are some tips to avoid getting tricked.

• Beware of online requests for personal information. A coronavirus-themed email that seeks personal information like your bank details or login information is a phishing scam. Legitimate government/bank agencies will not ask for that information. Never respond to the email with your personal data.
• Check the email address or link. You can inspect a link by hovering your mouse button over the URL to see where it leads. Sometimes, it is obvious the web address is not legitimate. But keep in mind phishers can create links that closely resemble legitimate addresses. Delete the email.
• Watch for spelling and grammatical mistakes. If an email includes spelling, punctuation, and grammar errors, it is likely a sign that you have received a phishing email. Delete it.
• Look for generic greetings. Phishing emails are unlikely to use your name. Greetings like “Dear sir or madam” signal an email is not legitimate.
• Avoid emails that insist you act now. Phishing emails often try to create a sense of urgency or demand immediate action. The goal is to get you to click on a link and provide personal information - right now. Instead, delete the message.

See below for examples of recent phishing, payment fraud and diversion scams affecting the general public.

Business Customers
Some business customers are being targeted and invited to purchase a “Covid Bond”. Alternatively, business customers are being asked to send money to a different account due to claims that their account is currently frozen by a foreign government.

Schools
Some parents have received fake emails claiming that their child is entitled to free school meals. Parents are then asked to send their financial details so they can get help with funding while schools are closed.

Health Workers
Recently, health workers have received fake texts offering a goodwill payment from Revenue or MRC because of Covid-19.

Government Relief Payments
The general public has received fake text messages requesting them to click on links to apply for government relief schemes and tax refunds.

Even if and when this current crisis passes, the above should still be used to help with online cybercrime. Keep yourself safe, knowledgeable and up to date.

Go to https://www.fraudsmart.ie/ for more in-depth information.

Source: www.creditunion.ie

Your address can easily be changed on your account. Members must submit evidence of the change which is anything that’s been sent to you in the post which has your full name, address and a date within the last 3 months.

The members account will then be updated.

1. IDENTIFICATION

• Valid Passport
• Valid Driving Licence
• Gardai Age Card
• ML 10 Form completed by a Gardai

2. PROOF OF ADDRESS

• Recent Utility Bill
• Current Bank Statement
• Anything that’s been sent to you within the last 3 months

3. PROOF OF PPS NUMBER

• Pay Slip
• Revenue Correspondence
• Medical / GP Visit Card
• European Health Insurance Card

Here are many different ways to pay into your account with Arklow Credit Union:

In branch at our teller counters. Just fill in a pay-in slip and hand it with your payment to one of our staff. You can pay with cash, card or cheque. Using our quick lodge facility in our branch. Envelopes are provided, just complete a pay-in slip and place in the envelope with your payment and put into the quick lodge box. By using your debit card, you can securely make a payment through the website. Over the phone with your debit card. Just call 0402-39972 and one of our staff will process the payment.
Set up a standing order with your bank which will go directly to your credit union account(s).
Make *SEPA transfers from your bank into your credit union account. You can get your BIC and IBAN from your credit union statement or by contacting our branch.

*Arklow Credit Union is registered for SEPA payments only.

If as a member you wish to transfer funds into your account, then the payment should be made as a SEPA payment only. If you are aware that a third party is making a payment into your account, it is advisable that they tell their financial institution that the payment should be made via SEPA. If a payment is sent in any other way, for example by SWIFT, the payment will be rejected by our processing Bank and the Payer may incur a rejection charge that he/she may be liable for.

What is a SEPA payment?

SEPA stands for Single Euro Payments Area. A SEPA payment is sent through the SEPA Scheme. The SEPA payment scheme was created to simplify euro transfers between EU member states.
The SEPA scheme consists of the 27 EU Member States plus Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Monaco, the United Kingdom and San Marino.

To make a SEPA payment you need:

1. The IBAN of the person you want to pay
2. The bank to which you are sending the payment to be a member of the SEPA scheme
3. The payment to be in euro

Please note: Arklow Credit Union is unable to accept SWIFT payments. You may incur charges if you attempt to send money to your account in Arklow Credit Union via SWIFT.

Get registered here or please contact our office on 0402 39972 and receive your PIN by text to your phone