Banks to offer taxi industry payment holiday

Thursday, July 16, 2020

Distressed taxi operators will breathe a sigh of relief at learning that banks are offering the economically-strained industry a much-needed reprieve in the form of payment holidays.

Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula announced this development during a media briefing on Thursday, following the Ministry’s fruitful engagements with the Banking Association of South Africa.

The industry, like many sectors of the country’s economy, has seen profit returns dwarfed as it complied with lockdown regulations aimed at thwarting the spread of COVID-19.

President Ramaphosa on Sunday announced that taxis traveling locally were permitted to load passengers to the vehicle’s full capacity. Inter-provincial taxis are still only allowed to load to 70% capacity.

“We have also held productive engagements with the Banking Association of South Africa on further relief measures they can extend to the taxi industry,” said Mbalula.

During these engagements, said the Minister, banks were responsive to the department’s proposals to provide appropriate financial relief. 

“Individual banks have their own procedures and measures in place and will make the appropriate pronouncements in this regard,” he said.

Various banks have since offered repayment holidays and re-determination of the terms of agreement with individual borrowers.

“The banks will also in due course communicate their decisions to the borrowers and the public in this regard on their COVID-19-related relief measures,” said the Minister.

Over the last few weeks, the department has been engaging in intense discussions with the taxi industry on the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the significant losses the industry continues to incur.  

“We engaged with the taxi industry leadership in good faith and we found each other in many areas, but there are areas where we differed. However, the door remains open for further engagements on issues where we are not in agreement,” Mbalula said.

He emphasised that during these engagements, government was not the "trade union representative" of the taxi industry.

"We... took up issues that require the attention of the industry [in order] to help when it comes to issues of debt relief and to provide the appropriate relief,” said the Minister.

He said the intervention was critical as the industry is a catalyst to the country’s economy and a vitally important mode of transport.

Mbalula conceded that public transport could pose a real threat to the efforts towards the containment of the rapid spread of COVID-19.  

“It is for that very reason, that having duly and widely consulted, we have put in place additional and more stringent measures, as we incrementally resume public transport operations across various modes,” he said.

He stressed that society has the obligation to arrest the spread of Coronavirus and preserve human life. 

“Government will therefore not tolerate conduct that places the lives of public transport users at risk. 

"Violation of the regulations and any of the directions we are issuing today is a criminal offence and law enforcement authorities will act without fear or favour,” he said. – SAnews.gov.za