Credit Review Office Identifies Frustration of Farmers in Dealing with Banks

IFA Farm Business Chairman Martin Stapleton said farmers share the frustration expressed by the head of the Credit Review Office John Trethowan about the inflexibility of banks in dealing with customers.

Welcoming the report of the Credit Review Office, Martin Stapleton said, “The role of banks should be to encourage and enable farmers and SMEs to undertake investment. However, the experience on the ground is very different. The most basic loan application is getting tied up in all sorts of red tape because the banks have moved away from their customers.”

The IFA Farm Business Chairman said the Credit Review Office is correct when it points out that viable farmers that could trade out of their difficulty are being denied the opportunity to do so because the loans are now with vulture funds and they cannot re-finance.