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Tag: Customers

  • HUNGER ! Confusion as Band A customers request downward review of high tariff

    HUNGER ! Confusion as Band A customers request downward review of high tariff

    As hunger continues to bite harder many electricity consumers in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) on Band A, have appealed to the Federal Government to lower the high tariff to ease the situation.

    Indicators are that Band A customers are those who enjoy at least 20 hours of electricity daily and are expected to pay N209.5/kilowatts per hour (KWh).

    The consumers who live at Lugbe, Area 10, Apo resettlement area, and environs made this disclosure at the weekend.

    They said that Band A was okay because they enjoy constant power supply but added that the tariff was too high and so could not cope with the present situation.

    Mrs Amen Odigie, a civil servant residing in Lugbe, said that she found herself paying so much to enjoy power supply, which was okay.

    Odigie said that what she paid for electricity in the two-bedroom flat she occupied was more than N30,000 in a month.

    “This is really telling on me, as what I earn as salary cannot go anywhere with the present economic hardship in the country.

    ”I want to appeal to the government to review the high electricity tariff as this Band A is taking most of my income, ” she said.

    Mr Ugochukwu Okafor, also residing in Lugbe, said that the electricity tariff for Band A customers was too high.

    Okafor, a Vulcaniser, said that his income in a month could not pay for the Band A tariff.

    According to him, he wants the Federal Government to do something about the Band A tariff, as it is too high, in view of the present hardship in the country.

    Mrs Anita Adaje, a fashion designer residing in Apo resettlement, said that she used electricity a lot to run her business, and with this Band A tariff, she was not making any profit.

    ”When you bill customers so high, they will refuse to pay, and this is really affecting my business.

    ”My appeal is that government should look into this high tariff and do something about it,” she said.

    Mr Festus Ogunbor, a printer in Area 10, said that he recharged more than N30,000 daily to run his printing machines.

    Ogunbor said that the high cost of electricity was affecting his business as he could no longer do much work.

    ”How much do I make that I have to be paying so much for electricity? Please, I want the government to look into this high tariff as it is seriously affecting businesses and cost of living,” he said.

    Mr Chidi Okeke, also a printer in Area 10, said that he had been finding it difficult to power his printing machines because of high electricity tariff.

    Okeke said that the government should look for a way of reducing the high cost of electricity to boost businesses as well as encourage more Nigerians to go into business.

  • Reason for delay in payment of Heritage Bank customers – NDIC

    Reason for delay in payment of Heritage Bank customers – NDIC

    The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) says account names discrepancies in Bank Verification Number (BVN) linked alternate account of some defunct Heritage Bank customers is delaying the payment of their insured deposits.

    Mr Bello Hassan, the Managing Director of NDIC disclosed this on Sunday in Abuja.

    Hassan said the corporation had paid substantial amount to depositors of the defunct bank without BVN account linked issues.

    He called on depositors of the bank who were yet to receive their insured deposit credit alert to visit the NDIC’s website and complete their verification forms for their payment.

    The managing director said the verification would also include depositors without BVN alternate account.

    ”We have already commenced the payment of customers since June 6.

    ”We have paid substantial amount to the customers.

    ”What we leverage in making the payment is BVN of customers. We trace alternate accounts in other banks and pay them their insured amounts.

    ”There are some that we have challenges linking up because of some discrepancies between the names and others.

    ”We are calling on customers that have not received their alerts in their alternate accounts to come forward and complete their verification forms so that we can pay them,” he said.

    On payment of depositors with more than five million naira with the bank, Hassan said they would be paid liquidation dividend.

    According to him, NDIC have already commenced the process of disposing the physical buildings and also set the process in motion to make sure that we recover the loans and advances that were granted the bank.

    ”That is what we use in paying those liquidation dividends.

    ”We are not going to wait until we recover everything, no.

    ”As we recover, we will also advertise to say that we will pay liquidation dividends so that concerned depositors will be on the look out for alerts in their accounts,” Hassan said.

    Recall on June 3, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) revoked the banking licence of Heritage Bank Plc.

    CBN said the decision was made due to the bank’s failure to improve its financial performance, posing a threat to financial stability.

    NAN

  • Electricity tariff hike: DisCo apologises to customers over wrongful charges

    Electricity tariff hike: DisCo apologises to customers over wrongful charges

    The Abuja Electricity Distribution (AEDC) has issued an apology on wrong charges faced by some Band A customers who tried to recharge their meters following the new tariff regime.

    The Management of AEDC tendered the apology in a notice to its customers in Abuja on Thursday.

    It said, ” This is to inform customers across the AEDC franchise that we are aware of the wrong charges faced by some Band A customers who tried to recharge their meters following the new tariff regime.

    “This is due to a system glitch caused by the reclassification of some Band A customers who have now been downgraded to B due to the number of hours of electricity supply enjoyed over the past few weeks.

    “These erstwhile Band A customers who vended were charged the new tariff of N225 per Kilowatt Hour. Our team is working to identify the customers affected and all excess charges will be refunded, ‘’ it said.

    According to AEDC, the situation also saw some Band A customers who are now charged N225 vend at the old rate.

    The company said that once the glitch is resolved, these categories of customers would now recharge their meters at the new rate of N225, which will ensure they enjoy a minimum supply of 20 hours daily.

    “We apologise for any inconvenience caused to our customers during this change.

    “We remain committed to improving the power supply to all categories of customers, and we crave your understanding and support as we do this, ‘’ it said.

  • African Alliance restates commitment to effective partnership with customers

    African Alliance restates commitment to effective partnership with customers

    African Alliance Insurance has expressed commitment to exceeding the expectations of its stakeholders, particularly in this period of hard times.

    The company, a stalwart with over 62 years of expertise in the life assurance sector, is presently charting a course to making live more meaningful and worth living for both the customers and shareholders.

    The new direction, an outcome of recent retreat and strategic evaluation of both the local and global happenings that have the potentials to reduce life expectancy, is expected to usher in intentional actions and policy options that will illuminate the lives of its stakeholders.

    In a resounding affirmation and demonstration of Commitment to this course, Managing Director Joyce Ojemudia, in a chart with select Journalists last week in Lagos declared “African Alliance remains committed to swiftly and professionally settling all valid claims, ensuring enduring happiness and satisfaction for our valued customers.”

    Going into memory lane, Ojemudia said the company had performed the feat before and cannot afford to relent, adding that the present economic and social realities call for efficiency based on cutting edge technology.

    Specifically, she said, for instance, from 2019 to 2023, African Alliance exemplified this commitment by disbursing an impressive sum of over 40 billion Naira between 2019 and 2023.

    The breakdown showed that this substantial payment spanned diverse business units, from individual life, comprising Esusu, Takaful and Annuity totalling about N9 billion in 1019 alone.

    Also, in 2020, about N7 billion, 2021,N7.7 billion disbursements were made to reserving customers.

    Similarly, the managing director went further, N9.4 billion and N7 billion claims were promptly paid to the delight of stakeholders.

    According to her, the examplary and worthy performance is being carried into 2024, with African Alliance proactively paying out over 1.1 billion Naira in claims within the initial 58 days of the year.

    Ojemudia expressed the determination of the board, Management and staff of the company to sustaining the positive trajectory, underscoring the ongoing strategic initiatives aimed at propelling African Alliance to the forefront of the life assurance business in Nigeria.

    These initiatives, and based on the critical core values of the company, will,according to her, secure a larger market share while upholding the utmost standards of integrity and placing customer satisfaction at the forefront.

    “African Alliance continues to be a beacon of reliability and dedication in the life assurance landscape, promising not just financial security but a journey filled with contentment and assurance for all stakeholders,” Ojemudia said.

  • Kaduna Electric set to refund customers

    Kaduna Electric set to refund customers

    Kaduna Electric says it is set to comply with the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission’s (NERC) directive mandating it to refund over billed customers.

    This is contained in a statement issued by the Head of Corporate Communication, Abdulazeez Abdullahi, Kaduna Electric.

    Kaduna Electric and other distribution companies in the country were sanctioned for non compliance with NERC’s Capping Order, directing them to ensure unmetered customers are not billed beyond a certain threshold.

    According to NERC,  capping is aimed at aligning the estimated bills for unmetered customers with the measured consumption of metered customers on the same supply feeder.

    Abdullahi stated that all customers who were to benefit from the refund must be ready to settle all their outstanding debts or risk disconnection.

    He added that the company was weighed down by a huge debt burden, which hampered its efforts at efficient service delivery to customers.

    “The company said it now had zero tolerance for electricity debt accumulation by customers.

    “The company which operates in Kaduna, Kebbi, Sokoto and Zamfara states, has to confront the reality with the recent developments in the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry.

    “There distribution companies are required to ensure full remittance to the market for energy received and wheeled to it.”

    He explained that one of the major constraints hampering adequate supply of electricity had been the issue of illiquidity in the sector.

    He added that the bottleneck can only be overcome with full payments for energy consumed by customers.

  • NDIC pays over N1.7bn to customers of closed banks

    NDIC pays over N1.7bn to customers of closed banks

    Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) says it has paid insured sum of over N1.7 billion to customers, following the revocation of licenses of Microfinance Banks (MFBs) and four Primary Mortgage Banks (PMBs).

    Mr Bello Hassan, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, NDIC, said this at the 2023 NDIC Editors Forum, on Saturday in Lagos.

    The meeting had the theme, “Stocktaking of Deposit Insurance Practice: Assessing the Past, Evaluating the Present and Forecasting the Future.”

    Hassan said, “recall earlier this year the Central Bank of Nigeria revoked the licenses of 183 institutions comprising Microfinance Banks and Primary Mortgage Banks.

    “And we quickly advertised and told affected depositors to get the required documents and come forward for verification so that we can pay them the insured amount.

    “So, in terms of insured amount, we have paid more than 1.7 billion to more than 22,000 customers and we are calling on those customers that had no Bank Verification Number attached to their accounts to come forward to get their claims verified so that we can pay them the insured amount.

    “We are still on that. So, I’m using this opportunity to appeal to those depositors to come forward so that they can be verified and their claims paid.”

    The insured deposit is the first claim that NDIC pays to depositors upon revocation of a bank’s licence by the CBN.

    The maximum specified limits for the MFB and PMB sub-sectors are N200, 000 and N500, 000 per depositor per bank, respectively.

    The NDIC boss said the Deposit Insurance System implemented by the corporation was an important component of the nation’s financial safety net.

    He said the corporation’s operations focused on minimising banks’ risks and failures through strict banking supervision, reimbursement of insured depositors in the event of failure, and orderly liquidation of failed banks.

    “It complements the efforts of the Central Bank of Nigeria to achieve a secure and stable banking system as well as support the fiscal authority in maintaining stability within the broader financial system, serving as the foundation for economic growth and development,” he said.

    Hassan also said the corporation, like other financial safety net players in Nigeria, had been faced with similar challenges that had impacted the nation’s financial system.

    These challenges, he said, were caused by two main factors: macroeconomic factors and the changing dimensions of the financial services industry.

    “Though some of the challenges are universal, others are unique and domesticated.

    “It is within this context that the NDIC aligns itself with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s efforts towards strengthening the banking industry through enhancing prudential thresholds and other regulatory instruments,” Hassan said.

    NAN

  • BVN, NIN: Sanction banks, not customers – Expert urges CBN

    BVN, NIN: Sanction banks, not customers – Expert urges CBN

    A Financial Expert, Mr Okechukwu Unegbu, has urged the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to sanction banks that allowed customers to operate accounts without their BVN and NIN.

    Unegbu, a past president of the Chattered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Abuja.

    He spoke against the backdrop of the recent directive by the apex bank to freeze all bank accounts without a Bank Verification Number and National Identification Number from April 2024.

    The directive was contained in a recent circular issued by the CBN to all Deposit Money Banks (DMBs).

    The circular was jointly signed by the Directors, Payments System Management Department, Chibuzo Efobi, and  Financial Policy and Regulation Department, Haruna Mustapha.

    The apex bank also directed that all the BVN or NIN associated with all accounts/wallets must be electronically revalidated by January 31, 2024.

    It said the directive was part of efforts to promote financial system stability and strengthen the Know Your Customer (KYC) procedures in all financial institutions.

    According to Unegbu, the apex bank should spare the account holders and impose heavy sanctions on the DMBs.

    “It is the fault of the DMBs; instead of punishing the customers, the CBN should sanction the banks heavily.

    “They were instructed to ensure that every account holder had the BVN and NIN, but they failed to comply because of the greed to have deposits,” he said.

  • EXCLUSIVE: Customers stranded at Shoprite Lekki as mgt turns deaf ears to inquiries [Photos]

    EXCLUSIVE: Customers stranded at Shoprite Lekki as mgt turns deaf ears to inquiries [Photos]

    The popular ShopRite housed by Palms Shopping Mall in Lekki, Lagos failed to open today as customers wait endlessly for feedback from management.

    TheNewsGuru.com, (TNG) reports the customers who arrived at the shop as early as 8am waited after reading a short notice pasted on the entry point indicating that the giant supermarket will resume activities late today.

    A customer who spoke to TNG under the condition of anonymity said: “We’ve been here for several hours and nobody even cared to attend to us.

    “The notice pasted on their wall simply said, we will open late and many of us here including expatriates had waited for several hours to no avail.

    “It’s already 2.35pm and the store is not open on Monday, November 13, and nobody to talk to. It can only happen in our nation!

    “The expatriates looked at the notice and laughed clearly mocking how the system here works.

    “0901 400 0001

    Truecaller: Shoprite – The Palms Shopping Mall: Official line switched off.

    “Nobody speaking to members of the public coming to the shop to patronize them.

    As at the time of filling this report, it was confirmed that after waiting for several hours ShopRite opened its doors to customers by 2.36pm.

    See photos below:

  • Strike: Abuja electricity company advises customers on how to manage power outage

    Strike: Abuja electricity company advises customers on how to manage power outage

     

    The one day old NLC nationwide strike has started having its toll as Abuja electricity company on Tuesday advised customers on how to effectively manage power outage.

    In a statement issued on Tuesday and signed by its management, customers were advised to unplug power sources as the outage could destroy gadgets.

    It however pleaded for understanding pending when things take appropriate shape as the two-day strike lingers on.

    See statement below:

  • SMEs, customers laud Polaris Bank for sponsorship of Fashion Souk event

    SMEs, customers laud Polaris Bank for sponsorship of Fashion Souk event

    Polaris Bank, Nigeria’s leading Digital Retail Bank, has received immense commendation from Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) and customers for its invaluable sponsorship of The Fashion Souk event. Without a doubt, this commitment to enterprise growth has earned appreciation and testimonials from fashion enthusiasts, industry experts and style icons at the just-concluded Fashion Souk 2023, held at Harbour Point, Victoria Island, Lagos.

    The 2023 Fashion Souk which held last Saturday and Sunday, July 8th and 9th 2023, surpassed all expectations with its dynamic display of innovative fabric designs, leather works, trendsetting collections and fashion concepts amidst a cross-section of brands and discerning audiences. Over 150 SMEs and 5000 fashion enthusiasts converged at the event.

    Key highlights of the Fashion Souk included:
    Designer Exhibitions: Attendees had the exclusive opportunity to shop directly from a carefully curated selection of designers at the pop-up boutiques. From avant-garde designs to classic ensembles, the Fashion Souk catered to every fashion taste.

    Networking Opportunities: The event fostered an environment of collaboration and networking, enabling designers, buyers, stylists, and fashion enthusiasts to forge meaningful relationships.

    Beauty and Lifestyle Exhibitions: Complementing the fashion extravaganza, the event featured exhibitions of beauty and lifestyle products. Attendees were able to explore a range of cosmetics, skincare, and wellness brands, leather works, enhancing their overall fashion experience.

    Adebimpe Ihekuna, Group Head, Products & Market Development Group of Polaris Bank, in responding to comments by reporters, stated that, “Polaris Bank remains committed to the growth of SMEs in the country and we are proud to have partnered with Eventful to host this remarkable event. The Fashion Souk has not only highlighted the incredible talent in Nigeria’s fashion industry but also contributed to its growth and development.” “As a Bank, we have supported numerous SMEs with loan facilities and will continue to support them through innovative product offerings and easy to access loans on VULTe digital bank without a need for collateral, branch visits and at competitive interest rates”, she added.

    Adebimpe also used the occasion to disclose an exciting news that the Fashion Souk will be heading to Abuja in October to avail SMEs in the fashion industry operating in the FCT, Middle belt and Northern Region the opportunity to showcase their offerings.

    Yewande Zacchaeus, the Chairperson of Eventful Limited, the promoters of The Fashion Souk said, “I am thrilled with the overwhelming response and support received for the Fashion Souk. Polaris Bank’s partnership has been instrumental in making this event a resounding success.”

    Tunde Lawal, a customer at the fashion souk summer sale noted “I applaud Polaris Bank for their dedication to the fashion industry and for bringing such a remarkable event to life. The assembly of diverse fashion items under a roof is remarkable. Its indeed an experience I’ll relish for a long time.”

    Polaris Bank continues to earn accolades as Nigeria’s digital Bank of the year and a leading financial brand in innovation and digitization. The Bank’s digital banking platform, VULTe provides an ecosystem for individuals, SMEs, and corporates to do transactions, access loans at competitive rates and be empowered for the next level.

    Polaris Bank was adjudged Digital Bank of the Year in 2021 and 2022 by Business Day’s Banks and Other Financial Institutions (BAFI) Awards. It also emerged as the best MSME Bank because of its ability to use technology to enable bottom-up support to the MSME sector.