How does hardship assistance actually work?

Most hardship assistance is temporary in nature, for example a short payment holiday or reduced payment period to help while you’re in a period of financial difficulty. After your assistance has finished we will continue to work with you for a six month support period to ensure you’re back on track. If you do qualify for financial hardship, the assistance will be determined on a case by case basis and could cover all lending you have with Westpac or only the account(s) you need support on. These solutions may involve additional costs to you over the life of your lending. To help you make the best decision for your situation, our Financial Solutions team will explain any extra costs you will incur as a result of entering into hardship assistance with us. They’re available on 0800 772 771 weekdays between 8am to 6pm.