Coronavirus support for Co-operative Bank and smile credit card customers

If you are experiencing financial difficulty due to coronavirus and are worried about making your payments, we may be able to help you with an initial payment holiday of 3 months or a payment holiday extension of a further 3 months if you have already had an initial payment holiday and still require further support.

Initial payment holidays and how to apply

An initial payment holiday is a temporary break from making your payments for up to 3 months. If approved, we will amend your credit card agreement so the minimum monthly repayment is £0 for three months, Please note that interest will still accrue and be added to your balance. Your monthly payment due date will remain the same after this payment holiday.

You can apply for an initial payment holiday any time up to 31 March 2021 if you have not already received one from us

You can apply if:

• Your finances have been affected by coronavirus
• You are up to date with your monthly credit card payments or no more than one payment in arrears on your account, and
• The account is held in your name (you’re not an ‘additional’ cardholder).

You can request a payment holiday on up to 3 different credit card accounts per application. If you have more than 3 credit card accounts with us, please complete multiple forms.

You will need the last 4 digits of your 16 digit credit card number (you will find this on the front of your card.)

Please note that if you have a non UK address and postcode, you will need to contact us directly to apply for a payment holiday.

We'll do our best to process your payment holiday within the next 7 working days. If your next payment is due within this period then you may be expected to still make that payment. We will of course endeavour to process your request as soon as possible and will let you know in writing whether your application has been successful.

If you also hold loan accounts with us and need to request a payment holiday for them, please complete another application for these accounts separately.

To apply you will need to complete the pdf form below, save it and then email to the specified email address. Please note we will only be able to process completed forms. 

Apply by completing our application form here 

Where possible please complete this form using a desktop and if using Chrome we would recommend saving in a PDF format. 

Please note: We use Transport Layer Security (TLS) to encrypt and protect email traffic. This encrypts data sent over the Internet to ensure that hackers are unable to see what you transmit which is particularly useful for private and sensitive information. Most modern email services support TLS. If your mail server does not support TLS, you should be aware that any emails you send to us, or emails you request from us, may not be protected in transit.

Alternatively you could call us on 03457 212 212, 8.00am to 6:00pm Monday – Friday and 9.00am to 5.00pm Saturday and Sunday.

Will my credit file be affected?

Payments we’ve allowed you to miss during your payment holiday will not be reflected as a missed payment on your credit file, and you will not be charged any late or over limit fees. However please be aware that other lenders may take your payment holiday into account which could impact your ability to obtain credit in the future.

Payment holiday extensions and how to apply

If you are still worried about making your payments after your initial 3 month payment holiday is ending, you can apply for a payment holiday extension, which if approved, will extend the temporary break from your payments for another 3 months meaning you can receive a maximum period of 6 months payment holiday. If we approve this, we will amend your credit card agreement so the minimum monthly repayment is £0 during this period. Please note, interest will continue to accrue and be added to your balance.

You can apply for a payment holiday extension before 31 March 2021 if you have had an initial payment holiday and have not already requested an extension.

After 31 March 2021, payment holiday extensions will only be considered for customers that have a payment holiday arrangement in place at the time of the request for an extension. All payment holiday extensions must end by 31 July 2021.

To apply you will need to complete the pdf form below, save it and then email to the specified email address. Please note we will only be able to process completed forms. 

Apply by completing the application form here

Where possible please complete this form using a desktop and if using Chrome we would recommend saving in a PDF format. 

Please note: We use Transport Layer Security (TLS) to encrypt and protect email traffic. This encrypts data sent over the Internet to ensure that hackers are unable to see what you transmit which is particularly useful for private and sensitive information. Most modern email services support TLS. If your mail server does not support TLS, you should be aware that any emails you send to us, or emails you request from us, may not be protected in transit.

Alternatively you could call us on 03457 212 212, 8.00am to 6:00pm Monday – Friday and 9.00am to 5.00pm Saturday and Sunday.

Once you have submitted this form, we will assess your account and call you within 14 days to discuss your request and agree with you the most suitable outcome given your financial circumstances.

How we can help you if you have already received 6 months of payment holidays

If have already been subject to a full payment holiday/extension period of 6 months and you are still experiencing financial difficulties, please contact us to discuss this us on 03457 212 212, we are available 8am – 6pm Monday to Friday, and 9am – 5pm Saturday and Sunday (call charges). We may be able to support you with alternative payment plan arrangements.

Unfortunately, we are experiencing a very high volume of calls at this time so we apologise in advance for any delays you may experience. Please bear with us – we want to help you as soon as we can.

Please note, that if we don’t hear from you by the date your first repayment following your payment holiday is due, we will assume you intend to start making your minimum monthly payments again, as detailed in your statements. To remind you, if you miss payments and have not contacted us first then this may impact your credit file.

Protecting you from fraud and scams

We may contact you about your payment holiday request, by phone, letter or email. To protect yourself from scams, it’s important that you remember the following advice;

The Bank, police or any other trusted organisations will never contact you out of the blue by phone, email or text message and then ask you to:

Download an app or software on to your device and then ask you to log in to your online banking or tell them your online banking verification codes.

Move your money to a new or ‘safe’ account, or ask you to help with an investigation.

Ask you for your card details or bank security information in full.

If we do contact you by email, we will not include any links or attachments within the email asking you to complete more information.