Payment Assistance Policy

Summary

You have a right to apply for free payment assistance if you cannot pay a heardle bill because of financial hardship. You can apply for short-term help (up to three billing cycles) or long-term help (more than three billing cycles).

Financial hardship means you cannot meet your payment obligations because of circumstances such as illness, unemployment, low or reduced income, domestic or family violence, a death in the family, a change in personal or family circumstances, a natural disaster, or another unexpected change — and you believe you could meet those obligations if we agreed an assistance arrangement.

Our goal is to keep you connected. We use disconnection only as a last resort.

Help we can offer includes extra time to pay a bill; a payment plan that matches what you can afford; a discount or account credit; moving you to a lower-cost plan; spend controls or removing extras you do not need, at no cost; and a free way to pay that is not automatic debit.

Apply by calling 1300 1 Heard (1300 143 273) between 9:00am and 5:00pm Australian Eastern Time, Monday to Friday (excluding NSW public holidays); emailing billing@heardle.com.au; writing to Factory 8, 3 Fairmile Close, Charmhaven NSW 2263 or PO Box 4604, Lake Haven NSW 2263; or submitting a request in YOUR.heard. Tell us you need payment assistance. You do not need a special form. We will give you a reference so you can check progress.

If you disagree with a decision, use our Complaints Handling Policy or contact the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman, which is a free and independent service, on 1800 062 058 or tio.com.au. Making a complaint does not stop you agreeing an assistance arrangement.

Independent financial counselling: National Debt Helpline 1800 007 007 or ndh.org.au.

1. Our intention

This policy is issued by JND Comms Pty Ltd (ABN 58 686 602 666), trading as heardle. It explains how we help residential, small business, and not-for-profit customers who are, or may be, in financial hardship. It is free to apply, to be assessed, and to use an arrangement. There is no administration fee.

The goal of this policy is to keep customers experiencing financial hardship connected. Disconnection is a last resort.

You have a right to apply for financial hardship assistance. This policy is approved by heardle’s managing director (or equivalent), who is responsible for its implementation. We review it at least once every 12 months.

In this policy, a business day is a day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or a public holiday in New South Wales.

2. What is financial hardship?

You are in financial hardship if you cannot meet your payment obligations to us because of circumstances including:

• personal or household illness
• unemployment
• low or insufficient income, including reduced access to income
• being a victim survivor of domestic or family violence
• a death in the family
• a change in personal or family circumstances
• a natural disaster
• unexpected events or unforeseen changes that have affected your income or spending
• other reasonable causes

and you consider that you will be able to meet those obligations if we agree an assistance arrangement.

You may also be a financial hardship customer if you mention money problems, struggling, cost of living pressure, or that you need help paying a bill. You do not have to use the words “financial hardship”.

3. How to apply

You can apply using any method you ordinarily use to contact us. There is no separate application form. Tell us you need payment assistance (or that you cannot pay, or need help with a bill).

• Phone: 1300 1 Heard (1300 143 273), Monday to Friday 9:00am–5:00pm Australian Eastern Time (excluding NSW public holidays). Ask to speak with someone authorised to deal with payment assistance.
• Email: billing@heardle.com.au
• YOUR.heard: submit a support request when signed in
• Post: Factory 8, 3 Fairmile Close, Charmhaven NSW 2263, or PO Box 4604, Lake Haven NSW 2263

An authorised representative or advocate can apply for you. If you have accessibility needs, are from a culturally or linguistically diverse background, are a victim survivor of domestic or family violence, or have other special needs, tell us and we will help you apply.

If you are deaf or hard of hearing, use the National Relay Service on 1800 555 660 or accesshub.gov.au. Interpreters: Translating and Interpreting Service 131 450.

We will give you a reference (usually your YOUR.heard ticket number) so you can monitor progress by phone, email, or the portal. We will not use multi-step processes that unreasonably delay an application.

4. How we identify customers who may need help

If you tell us you are having trouble paying, we will tell you about this policy, discuss options and timeframes, and offer a copy of this policy in a form that suits you. We will give you the phone and email above so you can speak with staff authorised to deal with hardship matters.

We will also try to contact you in writing if you have more than two consecutive overdue bills, three overdue bills in the previous six months, or arrears of more than $200.

5. Eligibility and assessment

You are eligible if your situation meets the definition of financial hardship in section 2 and you want to use one of our assistance options.

Short-term assistance is for no more than three billing cycles. Long-term assistance is for more than three billing cycles.

We will not ask you for evidence if you are applying for short-term assistance, or if it appears you may be a victim survivor of domestic or family violence. We will not ask for information that is irrelevant or unreasonably onerous.

We may ask for supporting information only if the arrangement is likely to be long-term assistance and either the amount to be repaid is more than $1,000, you have been a customer for less than two months, or we reasonably believe there may be fraud — and only if that information is strictly necessary. If we ask, we will do it in writing (or another form that suits you), name a contact point, explain how we will use and keep the information, and give you a way to present documents for sighting (email, YOUR.heard, or post). We keep copies only as long as needed to finish the assessment. Providing false or misleading information may result in us cancelling the assessment.

6. Timeframes

• We will tell you how long we estimate the assessment will take.
• We will complete the assessment as soon as practicable and within 5 business days of receiving a complete application.
• We will tell you the outcome as soon as possible and within 2 business days after completing the assessment.
• If it becomes clear you are not eligible, we will tell you immediately.
• An agreed arrangement starts as soon as you tell us you agree.
• We will send written details of an agreed arrangement within 2 business days of agreement.

7. Options for assistance

We will offer options that are realistic, appropriate, and tailored to your circumstances and capacity to pay, including if you are a victim survivor of domestic or family violence. We always make available at least these six options:

1. postponing, extending, or deferring the time to pay a bill
2. a payment plan tailored to what you can afford
3. discounting a bill charge
4. applying a credit to your account
5. moving you to a lower-cost plan that better suits your circumstances, or removing non-essential extras at no cost
6. spend controls, or a free way to pay that is not automatic debit (for example paying an invoice by a method we offer that does not take a scheduled debit)

We may also waive a debt, match payments, adjust internal limits so you are not disconnected, or restrict a feature where that helps you stay connected without increasing debt. We will not charge you to access or administer an arrangement.

8. If we agree an arrangement

The written notice will set out the details, your rights and obligations, the duration, when credit management might still apply, that you must tell us within 14 days if your situation changes, and that you may ask for a review if it does.

If you tell us your situation has changed, we will review the arrangement within 5 business days. If we think you have not met a term of the arrangement, we will contact you promptly, discuss it, and offer a review.

9. Keeping you connected

Before we take credit management action (restriction, suspension, or disconnection), we must take all reasonable steps to determine whether you are in financial hardship. If you are, we must offer suitable assistance and take all reasonable steps to keep your service connected.

We will not take credit management action while you are discussing options or have an application on foot, or while an arrangement is in place, unless:

• you have not met your obligations under the arrangement, we have offered to review it, and we have either discussed other payment options with you, been unable to contact you after reasonable steps, have a genuine reason to believe you cannot or will not pay (to stop the debt growing), or you agree the arrangement cannot be completed

Reasonable contact attempts means at least 3 separate attempts, on separate business days, over no more than 10 calendar days, using at least 2 methods, with at least one in writing. A written contact will say we propose to take credit management action, which may include restriction, suspension, or disconnection.

If credit management action is still open, suspension or disconnection is a last resort. We will give you at least 10 business days’ written notice of what we will do, when, why, any charges, effects on other heardle services, and contact details for us, the TIO, and financial counselling.

We will not sell a debt while you are discussing options, have an application on foot, have an arrangement in place, or while we are reviewing an arrangement.

10. Complaints and review

If you disagree with a decision about your application, ask us to review it or make a complaint under our Complaints Handling Policy. You may also contact the TIO. Making a complaint does not prevent you agreeing an assistance arrangement.

If you are not satisfied with how we have handled your complaint, you have the right to take it to the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman, which is a free and independent service: tio.com.au or 1800 062 058.

11. Other support

• National Debt Helpline: 1800 007 007 or ndh.org.au (free financial counselling)
• Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman: 1800 062 058 or tio.com.au

If you need this policy in another format, tell us. See also our Accessibility page.