Service Family Finance

• Money Helper has some handy tools and guides to support your everyday finance. 
• Managing your Money in Uncertain times – guidance. 

Service personnel and their families can have trouble in accessing commercial products and services due to their mobility and time spent outside the UK. This guidance provides you with top tips on getting a fair deal when accessing financial services.  

Before choosing any kind of insurance, you may want to seek advice from your unit administrative staff, and also check the Services Insurance and Investment Advisory Panel (SIIAP). 

SIIAP is a Ministry of Defence recognised panel. It is made up of individuals and firms who are insurance and independent financial advisers specialising in providing services to members of HM Forces. 

All Member Firms must be authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in the UK, offer compensation rights to customers and adhere to the SIIAP Code of Practice. 

When living in Service Family Accommodation (SFA), you will need to insure your home. Standard home liability insurance does not cover SFA. 

 

The MOD recommends that you take out a ‘Licence to Occupy’ insurance for up to £20,000. Check out the above section to find a provider for this special type of insurance. Full guidance can also be found via JSP 464, Volume 1, Part 1, Section I, Paragraph 0605. 

 

** It is advisable to also take out home contents insurance. 

March 2017 –  

Armed Forces personnel will no longer have to face cancellation fees for their broadband and media packages when posted overseas or to another part of the UK. 

The commitment from the UK’s biggest broadband providers representing 95 per cent of Britain’s broadband market comes into force immediately and will benefit tens of thousands of Forces households in the UK and abroad. 

The change agreed to under the tenets of the Armed Forces Covenant includes BT, EE, Plusnet, Talk Talk, Sky and Virgin Media, who have all committed to treating Service personnel fairly when cancelling their contracts. 

Up until now, members of the Armed Forces who are deployed overseas or to different parts of the UK not covered by their provider could be forced to pay a cancellation fee. They will no longer have to face this cost and be disadvantaged due to the mobile nature of Service life. 

June 2022 –  

A new protocol was launched in June 2022 to help ensure that motor finance works better for those who are assigned overseas. 

 

This provision, jointly published by the Finance & Leasing Association (FLA) and the National Franchised Dealers Association (NFDA), will operate as part of the existing Armed Forces Covenant, so that personnel are not disadvantaged compared to civilian customers. 

  

The key commitments are as below: 

• FLA lenders who participate in the protocol will allow a financed vehicle to be taken overseas for the remainder of the finance agreement, so long as the vehicle is comprehensively insured while there. Where Service personnel do not wish to/unable to take their vehicles or are deployed overseas before the end of a motor finance agreement, motor finance providers should use their best endeavours to find a solution that that is acceptable to the customer. 

• The FLA will also include these principles in the Specialist Automotive Finance learning material which used by dealers, brokers, and motor finance provider staff across the industry. 
• For Service personnel, they should notify their Service commitment to the retailer when seeking financial arrangement. If possible, give an indication of the likelihood of receiving an overseas assignment. 
• The Ministry of Defence (MOD – Armed Forces People Support team) and the FLA will keep the effectiveness of this Protocol under regular review, exchange information on its operation, and support each other’s functions under it. 
• You can read an article about this news from Homeport magazine (Autumn ‘22, p. 68). 

  

This news is a result of the NFF advocating on your behalf. 

  

Last April, we were contacted for advice by a Service personnel who was due to begin a short notice draft in Portugal. His vehicle was under a Personal Contract Purchase (PCP) agreement. At the time that he took out the PCP, he was advised verbally that overseas postings would not be an issue. However, the company informed him that this is not possible upon notifying his intention. Although the Service personnel had written to their dealership and finance provider, he had to take a loan to buy the car outright. 

  

With his permission, our team took his lived experience to the MOD and the Defence Relationship Management (DRM) team, alongside other stories and feedback from the wider Service community. 

  

We are delighted to share this positive news story with you. The NFF cannot influence changes without your input, please contact us.