FFJ employer Lloyds provides banking services for around 64,000 military customers, which is a third of armed forces personnel in the UK.
So, to mark Armed Forces Day on 26 June, we caught up with Louise Stiles, the Lloyds Bank branch manager in Catterick Garrison, the largest British Army garrison. She tells us about the support Lloyds provides to military customers.
"We have a really strong relationship with the garrison and the team here have built up an excellent knowledge of how to support our military customers. We provide all the usual services including our friendly counter service, cashpoint and deposit point facilities and are welcoming and empathetic to the diverse customer base.
“We go on a journey with many of the soldiers and are by their side from opening their first bank account, progressing through life changes including service overseas, getting married, starting a family, buying their first home, right through until they retire. Our experience means we’re well equipped to give them the financial guidance they need, whether it’s encouraging them to start saving early or assisting them when they receive their lump sum on retirement.
“Our armed forces move around the UK a lot, as well as spending time overseas, often leaving their families behind. We make sure they’ve got everything set up to help them through these periods, whether it’s access to internet banking, phone banking or making sure their family has access to funds. We’re flexible and open-minded when it comes to their individual circumstances.
“That said, it’s not always as easy as it might seem to strike up a relationship so it’s important for us to spread the word and raise awareness of what we can do for them.
“They have vulnerabilities too”
“Our military customers and their families have vulnerabilities too. Some have sustained physical disabilities and some suffer with mental health issues following experiences within their career or from being apart from their loved ones. We also have family members of Nepalese soldiers who have settled here in the UK and need assistance with interpretation, and we have a great relationship with the garrison families’ officer for the Gurkha community who can give guidance and support.
“I recently dealt with a situation where one of the local Gurkha soldiers came in to transfer money to ‘a friend’. I was aware that, culturally, lending money is something that he might do, but something just didn’t feel right about the situation.
“I talked to him more so I could cover the process for potential fraud and was horrified to discover that the fraudster was listening in from the phone in the customer’s pocket. He’d been told that if he didn’t transfer the money, he could lose his job and be sent back to Nepal without his wife and baby. We managed to control the situation, and the customer was delighted and relieved. I got the military police involved who were pleased with our vigilance and they posted on social media to warn others.
Other connections
“Over the years we’ve employed many military partners and have a new team member, the wife of a soldier in the Scots Guards, starting with us very soon. Some of us have other links, such as my father. He was in the military and passed away during the first lockdown. We were unable to get flowers due to COVID-19 restrictions so my mum knitted some poppies which my daughter made into a lovely wreath.
“Not long after, I learned that the husband of one of my customers had passed away and he’d been in the Royal Air Force. I offered to make her a wreath of knitted poppies which helped her and her family honour her husband’s military service.
“And the knitted poppies didn’t stop there. When the celebrations planned by the Royal British Legion to recognise the 75th anniversary of VE Day were shelved due to the pandemic, we decided to do something different. To show our respect to the soldiers who were working to support the situation, we created a display of my mum’s knitted poppies for people to enjoy as they drove by. Our branch is situated on the route to the only local supermarket, so it’s great that so many local residents got to see this support for the local community.”
Military life creates specific financial challenges
As Louise says, military life is unique and creates its own financial challenges. That’s why we’ve taken the time to explore the specific needs of our armed forces customers through in-depth customer research. We found that many service personnel feel they’re at a disadvantage when dealing with financial services companies.
We’re working with the community banks and Customer Services to increase the level of understanding among our people around bespoke product offerings and treatment strategies for the military community.
Further information
Read more about our Support for the Armed Forces including the Armed Forces Covenant which we signed in June 2015.
Visit the Armed Forces Network Group on Yammer to find those among us who are military partners, working with military customers, members of the UK Reserve Forces, or veterans.