Managing your money can be complex enough without also having to overcome difficulties outside of your control that makes communicating with us more difficult.
The theme of this year’s Deaf Awareness Week, which runs from May 5th to May 11th, is “Beyond Silence”, and as well as celebrating the deaf community and promoting awareness and understanding of hearing impairments, it aims to encourage greater understanding of the diverse ways in which deaf and hard of hearing people communicate. These can include British Sign Language (BSL) lip-reading, written communication and assistive technology.
At UTB, our aim is to make dealing with us as easy as possible, and we have a number of ways we can help members of the deaf community communicate with us so they can manage their money in a way which works best for them.
Hearing and Speech Impairments
If customers have a Textphone (also known as a Minicom) or a computer with the appropriate software, they can use a Relay UK service. Or, if a customer has a smartphone, they can simply download the Relay UK mobile application. They can assist if they are deaf or have impaired hearing or speech. Alternatively, customers simply dial 18001 followed by the standard telephone number and an operator will join the call and read the written request to us.
The operators are bound by confidentiality and are acting on the customer’s behalf, so they can share the secure details needed for identification and verification questions. Customers can also download the app and link their phone number when they are ready to start making calls to us.
Online banking
Our online banking service allows customers to access their account information, open new accounts and set their maturity options. Online banking allows people who may struggle to talk to and hear others to avoid any anxiety that can come from having to make a phone call.
Other non-verbal communication methods
All of our customers can, if they wish, communicate with us by email at [email protected], post and secure messaging which can be accessed through online banking.
Third party
This is a formal instruction from our customer, telling us that they would like to give someone authority to get information about their accounts on their behalf. The third party should be someone that they trust, like a family member or professional advisor and it is designed to assist someone who can manage their account but needs administrative help, or in the case of someone deaf or hard or hearing, help with communication.
Let us know
Some of our deaf and hearing impaired customers have let us know that they find some forms of communication difficult, and we are able to adapt our service to suit their needs. If you would like to tell us about any problems you may have communicating with us, because of hearing difficulties or any other reason, please get in touch through the best channel for you and we’ll do our best to meet your needs.
Alternatively, if you would like to know more about the ways we can support our customers with alternative arrangements, you can find more information on our website here.