There are plenty of well-meaning responses to the news that someone close to you has cancer, but not all are helpful.
Poor fire retardance, alleged worker smoking among fatal Hong Kong blaze theories, SCMP reports Hong Kong’s note-issuing banks are replacing burnt cash for Wang Fuk Court residents, following emergency measures introduced by the city’s Monetary Authority and lenders to support those affected by last November’s devastating fire at the Tai Po estate.
The extent of the residents’ financial losses came into the spotlight as they returned to the site to collect their belongings during a 15-day government operation that wrapped up earlier this month. When residents visited Wang Tai House, one of the most severely damaged blocks, on April 30, the South China Morning Post observed two people recovering more than HK$100,000 each in fire-damaged cash.
Other returning residents said they had discovered bundles of blackened banknotes in their safes, prompting some to carefully place the cash in plastic bags to prevent it from further deterioration. Mrs Ho, a resident of a middle-floor flat in Wang Tai House, later told the SCMP that her life savings, a six-figure sum, had been damaged in the fire.
She said her valuable coins had already been replaced, and that she sent the damaged banknotes to the Bank of China Hong Kong for authentication, a process that took about two weeks.
“The bank did not disclose the details of the authentication process, so I have no choice but to accept the final amount they provide for the exchange,” she said. , note-issuing banks should exchange damaged currency if at least 75 per cent of each bill is intact and its security features remain verifiable.
However, the HKMA introduced emergency measures last December allowing the city’s three note-issuing banks – HSBC, Standard Chartered and BOCHK – to provide a one-stop exchange service for damaged legal tender. Residents were advised not to attempt repairs on the fragile notes and to present their identification at bank branches for individual assessment.
A source said that while the statutory 75 per cent requirement had not been relaxed, the banks would exchange the affected notes as long as the issuing bank and denomination could be identified. The SCMP also learned that several other affected residents had successfully exchanged their charred banknotes. Wang Tai House resident Mrs Wong, who found her late father’s inheritance burnt inside her safe, said a bank relationship manager reached out after the fire to offer help.
“He called on the third day to check on our situation after we returned to our flats,” she said. “There is not much we can do if the bank cannot exchange the cash for us. ” HSBC and BOCHK, the issuers of Ho’s and Wong’s damaged cash, said they were offering a one-stop verification and exchange service for damaged banknotes and coins. The lenders added that they aimed to take an empathetic and pragmatic approach in supporting affected residents.
-- SOUTH CHINA MORNING POSTCheers, pride as Hong Kong’s first astronaut heads off on missionTwo arrested in Vietnam over shooting of Australians
Hong Kong Monetary Authority Note-Issuing Banks Burnt Cash Wang Fuk Court Tai Po Fire Bank Of China Hong Kong Damaged Banknotes One-Stop Exchange Authentication Process Financial Losses
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