For bushfire affected communities – an amount of significant information by way of care from the Financial and Consumer Rights Council The Financial and Consumer Rights Council is keen to link any of CALD communities in the regions with financial counsellors that have been assigned as part of the emergency response. Introductions to the Council for financial assistance are available.
Financial assistance
Households in the local government areas of East Gippsland and Towong can now access the following emergency payments to relieve personal hardship.
Emergency Relief Assistance Payments
- Emergency relief assistance is available for up to seven days after the event if you are unable to access or live in your home because of an emergency.
- Payments of up to $560 per adult and $280 per child (up to a maximum of $1960 per eligible household) are available to help meet immediate needs, including emergency food, shelter, clothing and personal items.
- The payments are designed to help eligible people experiencing personal and extreme financial hardship due to the fires. https://services.dhhs.vic.gov.au/personal-hardship-assistance-program
Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment
- $1000 per adult and $400 per child
- For people who have been seriously injured, have lost their homes or whose homes have been directly damaged, or are the immediate family members of a person who has died, as a direct result of the bushfires.
Disaster Recovery Allowance
- Up to 13 weeks income support for those who have lost income as a direct result of the bushfires
- Equivalent to Newstart or Youth Allowance
Emergency Re-establishment Payments
- Emergency re-establishment assistance is available if your principal place of residence (your home) is uninhabitable for more than seven days because of an emergency.
- Provides up to $42,250 per eligible household experiencing financial hardship, who have been affected by fire at their primary place of residence.
- The grants will be available for clean-up, emergency accommodation, repairs, rebuilding (a principal place of residence), and replacing some damaged contents.
- Re-establishment assistance is available to individuals or families who do not have building (home) insurance or contents insurance.
https://services.dhhs.vic.gov.au/personal-hardship-assistance-program
Households should contact their local council, or visit a relief centre, to discuss assistance options.
Assistance is being provided through the jointly funded Commonwealth-State Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA).
(Source: Vic Emergency website)
Red Cross Emergency Grants
Emergency grants are open across Australia to people whose primary place of residence has been destroyed or rendered uninhabitable as the result of bushfires from 1 July 2019 to 28 February 2020.
Your primary place of residence is the place you reside in on a permanent basis, whether as an owner/occupier or a tenant.
A grant of $5,000 is available per household.
Grants will be open until 30 April 2020.
NAB customers
NAB has announced a $1 million Disaster Relief Fund to help people affected by bushfires across Australia.
NAB customers who have lost homes this bushfire season can immediately access $2,000 grants to help cover costs such as temporary accommodation, food and clothing. For information on how to access the grants contact the NAB Assist team on the dedicated number 1300 683 106 (8am-8pm Monday to Friday; and 9am-1pm Saturday AEST/AEDT).
(Source: NAB website)
Westpac customers
Westpac Group has today announced additional support for customers and communities impacted by ongoing bushfires across Australia.
For Westpac mortgage customers who have lost their principal place of residence due to the bushfires, Westpac will pay the customer’s mortgage repayments for one year (up to $1,200 per month).
Westpac can also provide up to $2,000 in emergency cash grants for customers whose properties have been destroyed or damaged by the bushfires
(Source: Westpac website)
The Financial and Consumer Rights Council is keen to link any of CALD communities in the regions with financial counsellors that have been assigned as part of the emergency response.
