Frequently Asked Questions

"Common questions about our services"

Frequently Asked Questions

Who can join?
Serving and retired employees of the Lancashire and Cumbria County Councils and the three Emergency Services. Close family members living at your address are also eligible to join. Please read our membership webpage to make sure you qualify.There is a £5 one off membership fee which is deducted from your first month’s savings.  This charge is to cover the intitial set-up admin process.

How do I join?
First of all, obtain and complete an application form from our office or Download a Membership Application from this web site. See About Us for further details.

How much must I save?
Every joining member must save a minimum of £10 per month. A dividend on the balance of your savings is calculated daily and paid annually.

How do I get a loan?
Simply complete an application obtainable from our office. Applications are strictly confidential and are processed as quickly as possible - usually within a couple of days. An added bonus is free life insurance on both savings and loans. In the event of your death your beneficiary will receive double your savings and any outstanding loan is paid off (up to the age of 65 years).

How much can I borrow?
In the first 12 months as a member you can borrow up to £5,000.  After that time the limit is £15,000.  Repayment times vary from 6 months to 5 years.  There are no set up fees or any penalty for early repayment.

Members will normally be allowed to borrow twenty times their savings although there are alternative types of loans available e.g. members who have no outstanding loan are entitled to borrow up to £5,000 without the normal 5% savings requirement. Ask for details. Please refer to the loan calculator.

How do I pay?
It couldn’t be simpler. Your employer may deduct your monthly savings and/or loan repayments from your salary. No hassle, no problems - what you’ve never had, you never miss! Alternatively you may pay by standing order.

Can I get my money quickly?
Yes. You can withdraw savings instantly without penalty and

• collect your cheque from the office, or have it posted to you. Cheques can be opened for cash but can only be cashed at Yorkshire Bank on Orchard Street, Preston. Opened cheques cannot be posted out and must be collected at the office in person.
• by bank transfer. You will need to set up this facility through the office first.

Is my money safe with you?

Important information about compensation arrangements

We are covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). The FSCS can pay compensation to depositors if a credit union is unable to meet its financial obligations. Most depositors – including most individuals and small businesses – are covered by the scheme.In respect of deposits, an eligible depositor is entitled to claim up to £50,000. For joint accounts each account holder is treated as having a claim in respect of their share so, for a joint account held by two eligible depositors, the maximum amount that could be claimed would be £50,000 each (making a total of £100,000). The £50,000 limit relates to the combined amount in all the eligible depositor’s accounts with the credit union, including their share of any joint account, and not to each separate account.

For further information about the scheme (including the amounts covered and eligibility to claim) please ask at your credit union , refer to the FSCS website http://www.fscs.org.uk/ or call 0800 678 1100.

Do you have an office?
Yes. Our main office is at Lancashire Police Headquarters.  We are open from 10am to 4pm each weekday. We also have an office within Lancashire County Council, County Hall, Preston.  This office is open from 12nn-2pm on Mondays and Thursdays. 

Please Note: Personal callers at our main office are welcome but for security reasons if you are not currently employed by the police please contact the office to let us know when you will be visiting and bring some form of photo identification with you.

Unlike a lot of banks you won’t have a multiple choice answering machine when you call our office - telephone calls are dealt with promptly when the office is open and personal callers are very welcome. Our staff are friendly and knowledgeable and will give any credit union help and advice you may need.

 How can I make a complaint?
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