The challenging times we’re all experiencing means we’re getting a lot more calls than usual and our call times are longer. So we can support people in the most vulnerable situations, we ask that you only call us if your enquiry is urgent. You can still use our online and mobile banking services and our automated service.

Coronavirus: help and support

Support for customers impacted by coronavirus (COVID-19) 


As the impact of coronavirus is felt across the UK, you may have concerns about how it could affect you and your money.

Bank securely from home with Internet Banking

The safest and easiest way to bank right now is through Internet Banking and our Mobile Banking app. Here are just some of the things you can do:

  • View your balance and transactions at any time, using any device.
  • Pay bills and send money to people, including those outside the UK.
  • Manage your direct debits and standing orders.
  • Freeze transactions – using our app you can control how your cards are used, by freezing some transaction types.
  • Pay in cheques using our app - up to £1,000 per cheque, with a £2,000 daily limit.

We use the very latest security tech to help you stay safe online. And you’re always protected by our online and mobile banking fraud guarantee.

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How are our services affected?
 

Telephone

Due to the challenging times we’re all experiencing, we’re dealing with a much higher number of calls from customers than usual and our call waiting times are much longer.

So we can support our most vulnerable customers, please only call us if your enquiry is urgent.

We have set up a dedicated phone number for customers aged 70 and over. You can find the number in either the letter or email we sent, or from one of our colleagues in branch. If you’re a nominated trusted person you can also ask for the number in branch. 

You can still use our Internet and Mobile Banking services.

Branches Update

To keep everybody safe, please only visit us in branch if what you need to do is really essential. We are currently only offering essential services in branch at the moment. Our branches will open again fully, ready to help you, as soon as it is safe to do so. 

We’re keeping as many branches open as we can, but in some cases, we may have to temporarily close a branch.

We’ve made some changes to our opening hours and services we’re providing at the moment. Most of our branches are open between 10am and 2pm Monday to Friday. We also won’t be operating any of our mobile branches for now. To find out if your local branch is open and when please check our branch locator.


You can also do your everyday essential banking at your local Post Office

You can also check your balance, make withdrawals and pay cash or cheques into your current account at Post Office counters. Make sure you check their website for up-to-date information about opening hours. Please also only visit if it is essential.

Essential banking available in branch

Internet and Mobile Banking

Managing your money
 

There are quick links below to useful content and application processes that may help you manage your money.

 

  • We’re here to support you as much as possible with your finances during these challenging times. We know you might be worried about finding time to manage your money, and we’d like to reassure you that we’re committed to helping you, as you’re helping us. Although we encourage everyone to continue using our online services, we understand that you sometimes will need to speak to a person. So we’re giving you priority access to our call centre.  We’ve also listed a number of different ways that we can help you manage your money in these times.

    As a thank you for supporting those impacted by coronavirus, personal belongings of NHS and Care workers that are damaged, lost or stolen whilst working or commuting, will be covered under standard contents policies at no extra cost during the pandemic. More information can be found in our Home Insurance FAQs.

     

  • If you have booked travel and your flights or holiday have been cancelled, you may be able to get your money back. This can be done through a number of ways:

    Contact your travel provider

    The company you booked with may be able to help. To resolve any travel disputes please contact the merchant in the first instance and check their website for helpful information.

    Below are links to the web pages for the main travel providers used by our customers, which may help you further. We’ve also included the links for their Coronavirus web pages, however we suggest you ensure you look at information across all of their web pages to understand how they can best help you. 

    Bank of Scotland is not responsible for the content or function of third party websites.

    Ways we may be able to help

    If you’re struggling to get a refund from the travel provider, and you paid on a credit or debit card, we may be able to help. Use our handy travel disruption tool to see the options available to you.

    If you are a Platinum Account holder, travel insurance is included as a benefit. If you’re abroad or if your travel plans have been impacted by coronavirus, you can check what you're covered for on our Platinum Account page.

    Customers with the Ultimate Reward Current Account can find further information on our Ultimate Reward Current Account page.

    Customers with Premier, Gold or Silver Accounts can find further information within the previous bank accounts page.

    Please note that trips booked after March 18th 2020 are not covered under the ‘Cancellation or curtailment charges and early return’ section in relation to coronavirus. However, AXA will continue to cover medical costs if you become ill in a country or region the Foreign and Commonwealth Office hasn’t advised against visiting.

    We know that this is a very confusing time, so we’ve answered some of your frequently asked travel questions to help make things simpler.

  • If you need access to your savings held in a fixed term account, we will be waiving the charge.

    To access your savings we will need to close your account and all funds will be transferred to an alternative account. 

    For Junior Cash ISAs, all money paid into the account belongs to the child and can't be returned, therefore we are not able to allow access to these accounts.

    To access your savings please call us and we will arrange for your money to be moved into an account of your choice.

     

  • £500 interest free arranged overdraft

    We have temporarily increased the interest free amount for arranged overdrafts on current accounts. 

    From 9th April until 9th July 2020, the first £500 of your arranged overdraft will be interest free. If your arranged overdraft is lower than this amount, all of it will be interest free. 

    You don’t need to do anything as we will automatically make this change. More information about overdrafts.

    Overdraft limit increase

    If you need to increase your existing arranged overdraft limit, you don’t need to call us – you can apply online.

    • Using our mobile banking app, select ‘Overdrafts’ from your bank account menu and follow the on-screen instructions.
    • Using Internet Banking, just log in and select ‘More actions’ on the bank account that you have the arranged overdraft set up on. Then select ‘Overdrafts’ and follow the on-screen instructions.

    Please find more information about our Internet Banking or help on signing up.

    Apply for an overdraft

    If you want to apply for an overdraft, you can do this online.

    • Using our mobile banking app, select ‘Overdrafts’ from your bank account menu and follow the on-screen instructions.
    • Using Internet Banking, select ‘Our products and services’, then ‘Overdrafts’ and follow the on-screen instructions.

     

  • If you’re going to struggle to make your monthly mortgage payment because of COVID-19, you may want to think about taking a payment holiday. You can ask to take a break of up to three months.

    Repayment holidays may not be for everyone, as at the end of the payment holiday, we'll recalculate your monthly payments and the amount you owe will go up. That's because even though you miss payments due to the payment holiday, we will still add interest to your mortgage.

    Learn more about payment holidays and how to apply online.

    If you have Payment Protection Insurance you may be able to claim under your policy if you are unable to work due to sickness or unemployment. Visit our Payment Protection Insurance page for details.

     

    We will contact you before the end of your repayment holiday to discuss options appropriate to your financial circumstances and continue to support you if further assistance is needed.

  • Credit Cards payment holiday

    If you’ve been financially affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, you can ask us for a payment holiday. A payment holiday is subject to approval, but if accepted you won’t need to make the usual payments to your personal credit card for up to 3 months.

    To ask us for a payment holiday, please complete our credit card payment holiday form and we’ll take care of the rest for you.

    If your payment is due now and you can’t make the minimum payment, we won’t charge a late payment fee or remove any promotional interest rates in the short term.

    Payment holidays may not be right for everyone. Your minimum payment and the total amount you owe may go up. This is because interest is still charged throughout the payment holiday (unless you pay 0% interest).

    If you have Payment Protection Insurance you may be able to claim under your policy if you are unable to work due to sickness or unemployment. Visit our Payment Protection Insurance page for details.

     

    Credit Cards limit increase

    If you need to increase your existing Credit Card limit, you don’t need to call us – you can apply using Internet Banking.

    Using Internet Banking, just log in and select ‘More actions’ button next to your credit card, then select ‘Manage credit limit’.

    To request a credit limit increase, you’ll need a payment history of at least six months on your account. We’ll only offer you an increase if we think you can afford it. You can ask to lower your credit limit at any time.

     

  • If you’ve been financially affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, you can ask us for a repayment holiday. A repayment holiday is subject to approval, but if accepted you won’t need to make the usual loan payments for up to 3 months..

    To ask for a repayment holiday, please complete our loans repayment holiday form and we’ll take care of the rest for you.

    If your loan payment is due within the next 7 working days, you will still need to make this payment and any repayment holiday you are given will start the following month. If you have a joint loan, any repayment holiday will be given to both of you. If your payment is due now and you’re unable to make the payment, we won't charge you a fee.

    We can only give a repayment holiday if your loan payments are up to date or you have missed one payment due to coronavirus. If your loan is in arrears, we have other ways of helping you. Please visit our Money Worries page to find out more.

    Repayment holidays may not be right for everyone as we’ll extend the length of your loan at the end. This is so you can make up the payments you missed. We still add interest to your loan during the break. Because you’ll be borrowing for longer and interest is still charged, the amount you repay overall will increase.

    If you have Payment Protection Insurance you may be able to claim under your policy if you are unable to work due to sickness or unemployment. Visit our Payment Protection Insurance page for details.

     

  • If you’ve been financially affected by the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, you may want to consider a payment holiday.

    We may be able to give you a payment holiday and defer your payments for up to 3 months if you need it.

    Payment holidays may not be right for everyone as you will pay more as you take longer to pay back the amount you borrowed. We will work out how much extra you need to pay, based on the interest rate shown in your agreement, and we will add this amount to your agreement.

    To find out more please have a look at helping our customers during coronavirus.

    Or to request a payment holiday log into your online car finance account and follow the instructions.

    Login to manage your account

     

  • From the 1st April you can spend up to £45 on your contactless debit or credit card. We’ve increased contactless payment limits in line with the national roll-out. 

     

  • To allow you to do more through your Mobile Banking App without having to visit a branch, we have increased the transaction limit for paying a cheque into your account via the app. The increase on each individual cheque is from £500 to £1,000, and the maximum daily limit of £1,000 per day to £2,000 per day. An easy guide of how to pay in a cheque can be found here.

     

  • We’ve extended the length of time you can leave your property empty for.  Usually it shouldn’t be left empty for more than 30 days (60 days for some policies).  However, if your property is empty for longer due to the coronavirus outbreak (for example if you’re stuck abroad or staying with family) we will still cover your property for as long as it takes for the situation to be resolved.

     

  • We’re here to help to make the process as simple as possible.  The easiest way to contact us to notify us of a death is to use our online form.

    Once we’ve received your notification we’ll freeze the accounts. Once you have a death certificate, we’ll still need you to get in touch so that we can help you with the next steps.

    If you already have a death certificate, please call our Specialist Bereavement Team and we’ll guide you through the next steps.

    We have more information on our dedicated bereavement page.

     

How to stay safe from fraud

Remember, your money is safe in your account.

People are using the coronavirus outbreak as an opportunity to try new scams by email, call and text. They’re even using online marketplaces to sell goods like face masks and hand sanitisers that don’t exist.

If you get an email with a PDF or a link that offers advice or a cure for the virus, it’s likely to be a scam.

 What you should do:

  • Don’t open emails if you don’t know who sent them.
  • Even if you know the sender, don’t reply if an email looks odd with spelling mistakes and a messy layout.
  • Don’t click on any links or attachments unless you know they’re safe.
  • Before you buy anything online it’s best to do some research and check reviews to make sure a seller is genuine.
  • Pay by card when you shop online - that way you protect your cash.

You can find out more on how to stay safe from scams on our Fraud Hub.

Managing your mental health during the coronavirus outbreak

On March 16th the UK Government announced social distancing measures for everybody, not just those who are experiencing symptoms of coronavirus and other illnesses. It’s currently uncertain as to how long this will last. This is unlike anything most of us have experienced before, and it can feel strange, confusing and overwhelming.

Many of us will be working from home, some may have lost their jobs and others may need to take time off work due to illness. All of which prevent us from having our usual daily interactions. This is bound to have an impact on our mental health. So what can we do to help ourselves and look after others during this time?

Our charity partner, Mental Health UK, has developed some useful tips and ideas to help people look after their mental health in such challenging times and some practical advice on how you can help your local community.

With our support, Mental Health UK has also launched a library full of tips and tools, to help parents, guardians, and carers have conversations about mental health with young people.

At Home Shouldn’t Mean At Risk – Domestic Abuse Support

We’re supporting the Government’s #YouAreNotAlone campaign, that helps those suffering from domestic abuse. If you’re worried or suspect that someone you know may be a victim of domestic abuse, you can get more information at gov.uk/domestic-abuse. If you’re in immediate danger call 999. If you can’t speak and are calling from a mobile, listen to the operator and, when prompted, dial 55 to connect to the police, who will help.

If I am impacted by coronavirus, what does it mean for my money?

Whilst the current focus is on people’s physical and mental health, the fallout and dramatic changes caused by the coronavirus outbreak could also have an impact on people’s financial wellbeing.

Find out more

Frequent questions from our customers

We understand that this is a very confusing time, so we’ve answered some of your frequently asked questions to help make things simpler.

Coronavirus FAQsCoronavirus FAQs

Telephone Banking

So that we can support those in the most vulnerable situations, please use the numbers below if your enquiry is urgent. Our call wait times are much longer than normal. 

Call us on 0345 721 3141 (or +44 1313374218 if you’re calling from abroad) to access your accounts using our quick and easy 24/7 automated service and our advisers are available 7am to 11pm if you need to speak to someone. If you aren’t already registered, we can help you start the registration process to make it easy for you in the future.

You can call us on 0345 850 1022 to register for our voice ID service.

 

Important information

Calls may be monitored or recorded in case we need to check we have carried out your instructions correctly and to help improve our quality of service. Not all telephone banking services are available 24 hours, 7 days a week. Please speak to an adviser for more information.

Bank of Scotland Credit Cards are issued by Bank of Scotland plc, Registered in Scotland No.SC327000. Registered Office: The Mound, Edinburgh EH1 1YZ. Authorised by the Prudential Regulation Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulation Authority under registration no. 169628.