Tis the Season

There’s 85 days until Christmas, but it’s never too early to start thinking about your finances.


Yes, I’m aware that it is bad form to discuss Christmas before Thanksgiving has come and gone. The thought of stores in the mall playing carols from October to January makes everyone cringe. Not to mention the television commercials. That annoying representation of Scrooge pawning of paper towels that gets old after the first viewing yet you know you will see it every commercial break. But I come with something everyone can enjoy. Think of it as an early present.


Once again HCCU is bringing back our Santa’s Helper Loans.



That’s $2000.00 Interest free and with no payments required until March 1st 2010, at which point our variable loan interest rate applies.

For complete details click here, or visit one of our branches to speak with a loan officer.

Have You Seen Our Ads?

With back to school being just around the corner HCCU has launched a city wide campaign for Student Loans and Lines of Credit. Whether you or someone you know is heading to University, Community College, Trade school, Career College, or Apprenticeship, HCCU is here to assist in your financial needs with an extremely low rate of HCCU Prime while in school and only HCCU Prime + 2 upon completion. Contact either branch today to find out how you could qualify for a Student Loan or Line of Credit.

And in other news.........

Credit Unions Rank First in Customer Service

“For the fifth year in a row, an independent survey of thousands of Canadians has shown that credit unions rank first in overall quality of customer service among all financial institutions.

"We are pleased to see that Canadians continue to rate their at credit unions experience very highly," said David Phillips, president and CEO of Credit Union Central of Canada (Canadian Central).

"Credit unions have more than five million members across the country and do an excellent job of providing the service people want," Phillips said. "This is our core mission, meeting the needs of our members."

Global market research firm Synovate announced its 2009 Best Banking Awards, which are derived from its Customer Service Index. It found credit unions ranked ahead of all banks and other financial institutions in the following categories:

• Overall Customer Service Excellence
• Values My Business
• Branch Service Excellence

Credit unions also tied for first in the following categories:

• Financial Planning and Advice
• Recommend to Friends and Family
• Telephone Banking Excellence

Adrian Murphy, Vice President of Syndicated Research for Synovate in Canada, commented:
"The key to loyal customers is a good customer experience. The Synovate Best Banking Award
acts like a report card for our local financial institutions, highlighting their strengths and
weaknesses as well as how the industry players are performing overall."

The Synovate Customer Service Index survey had almost 39,000 responses among a regionally and demographically representative sample of Canadians. The survey has been conducted” annually since 1987. The 2009 Best Banking Awards are based on the combined results of ongoing quarterly Customer Service Index surveys ended August 2009. "

Financing Your Future

Hamilton Community Credit Union would like to cordially invite you to our Financing Your Future Seminar – an informative tutorial directed at helping a younger generation fiscally prepare.

Date: Tuesday August 11th 2009 – Beginning at 7:00pm

Place: The Ukraine Catholic Church of the
Resurrection Parish Hall
821 Upper Wentworth Street
Hamilton, ON L9A 4W5

Throughout our time we will touch on such subjects as:


Student Loans and Lines of Credit
RESP’s
CMHC and First Time Home Buyers
Saving for a Down Payment

In addition to this information we will also be holding a draw for all those that attend with the chance to win $100 gift certificate to Staples.

Please RSVP if you can attend. I hope to see you there.

Sincerely,

Jordan Moat
Business Development Manager

Phone:905-383-3395 x 104
Email: jmoat@hccu.on.ca

O Canada!

As you can see our Canada Day Celebration was a great success. Thanks to everyone who came by and helped raise funds for the LMFRC, which provides assistance to our military families. With your help HCCU was able to raise $568.14. A special thanks to Sean Noon from the LMFRC for his participation in this event.

I hope everyone had a fantastic Canada Day. We are already looking forward to next year.

HCCU’s New ATMs

HCCU is happy to announce the installation of two brand new ATM machines at our King St. and Mohawk Rd. locations. This investment in new technology is in keeping with HCCU’s dedication of providing the best services to our members.

Why did we need to replace the ATMs?

There are several reasons HCCU made the decision to invest in technology and replace our ATM machines. First, the ATMs we had reached the end of their life cycle and were beginning to malfunction. This made them very labour intensive and required plenty of man hours to keep them online and running smoothly. This was also the final year that we could obtain a service contract for repairs. With the frequency of malfunctions being reported it was time they were replaced.

The other reason for the replacement has to do with system compliancy in order to provide you, our members, with the service and convenience you require. Services such as Interac, allowing you access to your funds across the globe, and the Exchange Network, which provides service charge free transactions and depository services at 2,100 ATMs across Canada, all require HCCU to comply with certain regulations and industry standards. Our ATMs must be Interac and Exchange compatible; something our old machines were not. Moving forward with Canada’s adoption of Chip Technology requires all ATMs be Chip compliant; something our old machines could not be upgraded to.

As you can see the investment HCCU has made in to new technology and our new ATMs positions us positively for the future.

On Going Issues and Possible Glitches

During the installation of any new technology, glitches may arise and problems will have to be worked through. The installation of our new ATMs is no exception and we ask that you be patient with us as we work through any errors. There are currently a few issues we are aware of and our working around the clock to resolve.

HCCU members are being charged a $1.25 service charge for transactions at our ATM. Our banking system provider, is aware of this error and will rectify this as soon as possible. In the meantime a report is being produced and all members will have any incorrect charges reversed.

There may be several members whose debit cards need to be repinned in one of our branches in order for your card to work at our new ATM machines and on the Interac network. Regulations require a four (4) digit PIN number to be used on all ATM machines. If you were using a PIN with more than four digits at our machines, you should now be using your new four digit number as you would when using your card at any other financial institution’s machine. If you have never set up a four digit number you will need to visit one of our branches to do so.

If you have any other issues, problems, concerns or questions regarding our ATM machines or your debit card, please consult either branch and we`ll be happy to work through these issues.

Again HCCU thanks you for your patience during this installation period. In the near future you can look forward to new innovative features and functionality being added to our ATMs to provide you, our members, with the best service possible.

Canada Day

This year HCCU will be having a special celebration this June 30th in honour of Canada day and our Military Families. Come out and join us at either branch for a Barbeque with refreshments. All the proceeds will go to the LMFRC, a program that supports our local military families.

Hope to see you there, and remember, our offices will be closed on July 1st!

71st Annual Guide-Scout Parade

May 30th marked the 71st Annual Parade of the Girl Guides and Boy Scouts sponsored once again by your Hamilton Community Credit Union. Below are a couple pictures taken during the days events.

Girl Guides and Scouts parading down Main Street

On the reviewing stand at the parade: Scott Zimmerman (Chair of HCCU Board of Directors) - left, Clare Maitland (HCCU Internal Auditor) – centre