VCNB Announces Plan For Reopening Branch Lobbies

Posted on May 25, 2020 by vcnbfamily

We have some exciting news to share! We will begin reopening our lobbies for transactions, new account openings, loan inquires and other everyday banking on June 1, 2020. However, we will be taking extra safety precautions to keep our customers and our employees safe.

The following branch lobbies will reopen on June 1, 2020:

McArthur
Lancaster (East Main Street)
Chillicothe (Main Street)
Canal Winchester
Ashville
Logan
Wilkesville (closed on Wednesdays)

The remainder of our branch lobbies will reopen for business on June 15, 2020.

Business as usual will look a little different when we reopen. Please read carefully so you know what to expect should you visit the branches after they reopen. Remember, the safety and the health of our customers and employees is always our first priority.

Masks: Our employees will be required to wear masks in areas where they are not able to maintain a 6 foot social distance or where a barrier is not installed between customer and employee. We strongly encourage all of our customers to wear masks when visiting our lobbies, for the safety and health of our employees and for other customers. Should you be unable to wear a mask due to a valid medical concern, please allow us to handle your transaction in a manner which keeps both you and the employee safe while maintaining distance. It may also be difficult for us to identify you properly while wearing a mask. Because of this, we ask that you please bring your identification with you when visiting a branch.
Limited Occupancy: Each branch will have their maximum occupancy posted on the door. Please read all signs posted on the doors before entering. We will do our best to have an employee at each door, directing traffic flow and assisting customers. Should the lobby be at maximum capacity, we may ask that you wait outside or in your car until a customer exits the building. We thank you for your patience when this occurs.
Maintaining a Social Distance: Each lobby will have proper 6 foot social distance stickers marking the floor. We ask that you maintain that distance when standing in line to see a teller at their window. In addition, we have installed plexiglass barriers and have some movable plexiglass shields in offices where maintaining social distancing may be of concern.
At-Risk Individuals: Those individuals that are the most at-risk may visit each branch lobby between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 9 a.m. During that time, only the at-risk population will be able to enter the branch lobby. The branches will open to the general population at 9:00 a.m.
Cleaning and Sanitation: The branch employees will conduct regular sanitation and cleaning throughout the business day. This will include wiping counter tops, door handles, pens and other high traffic areas. Our cleaning companies will conduct a deep cleaning and sanitation routine each night, ensuring that the branch is up to CDC cleanliness standards. We do ask that every customer sanitize their hands on the way in and on the way out of the branch lobby. Hand sanitizer will be available throughout the branch.
Lobby Restrictions and Signs: Please be sure to review all signs posted on the doors before entering the branch lobby. Additionally, if you are feeling ill or have any symptoms of COVID-19 we ask that you do not enter the branch for the safety of others. You will notice that our branches will look different, with the furniture arranged to maintain a 6 foot social distance. We will not be providing beverages, food, lollipops, dog treats, etc. during this time to maintain a healthy standard.
Drive Thru, Technology and Appointments: While the branch lobbies are reopening, we still encourage our customers to conduct their banking business in the drive thru when possible or via “curbside service.” Additionally, the VCNB Mobile app and our Online Banking are available to conduct everyday business. Our network of over 32,000 surcharge-free ATMs through MoneyPass® will allow you to get cash when you need it. Our bankers and lenders will be available to customers by appointment as well.

We want to thank each and every customer who has been patient with us while we have made changes and have adapted to a new normal. We always strive to do the right thing for our customers, employees, shareholders and communities. We appreciate you! We miss our customers and hope to see you all soon . . . from 6 feet away of course!

Here For You: Beware Of Scams

Posted on May 4, 2020 by vcnbfamily

These are confusing and challenging times for many Americans. Sadly, there are criminals out there who understand that trying times are the ideal conditions for scamming others. The IRS has provided us with some tips about current scams that we wanted to share with you.

Robocalls making fraudulent offers to sell respirator masks and other sought after supplies with intent of delivering.
Fake COVID-19 related apps and websites that install malware or ransomware.
Phishing emails asking for money or presenting malware.
Social media scams fraudulently seeking donations or claiming to provide stimulus funds.
Sales of fake testing kits, cures, immunity pills, and protective equipment from fraudulent sources and that requires the recipient to enter his or her bank account number.
Fraudulent offers for free COVID-19 testing in order to obtain Medicare beneficiary information that is used to submit false medical claims for unrelated unnecessary, or fictitious testing or services.
Prescription drug schemes involving the submission of medical claims for unnecessary antiretroviral treatments or other drugs that are marketing as purported cures for COVID-19.
Antiviral treatments or other drugs that are marketed as purported cures for COVID-19.
Scams involving the IRS Stimulus payments including calls from individuals attempting to obtain personal information. The IRS will not call, email, or text to verify payment details.

As your community bank, we want to remind you that if something sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Remember that your bank, local government, and IRS will not contact you to request your personal information, social security number or account information. We encourage you to be cautious, to ask questions and to safeguard your personal information.

If you feel that you have been victim to a scam, please notify the United States Attorney General.

We Are Here For You

Posted on April 20, 2020 by vcnbfamily

These are challenging times for Americans. Whether you’re an essential employee, working from home, or not working at all, everyone has dilemmas ahead. Some of you are homeschooling your kids for the first time and need ways to keep them busy. Some of you are quarantined alone and need ways to keep up morale. Many of you are essential, working overtime, and fearful of what will happen if you get sick.

Some of you are struggling financially and in other ways.

We want you to know that we will be here for you no matter what the future holds. The wonderful thing about being a community bank is that we are able to quickly change with the times and adapt to the needs of our customers.

VCNB President Mark Erslan praised bank employees for how well they have adjusted in changing times. “I’m amazed at how quickly our employees have been able to adapt to this fluid situation. We’ve had a mix of employees working from home and in our limited access lobbies doing what we can for our customers. Whether we’re discussing options for payment relief or how to bank remotely or helping a customer refinance a mortgage without physically coming in the bank, our employees are working hard to adapt and do what they must to get the job done,” Erslan said. “We’ve been handling routine requests in new ways and our volume has been significant. Our customers have been very understanding and patient with us as well.”

Our lobbies are available by appointment only and transactions are handled through the drive-thru, except in Jackson where they are practicing social distancing in the absence of a drive-thru. Some of our branches have made some small changes to their business hours as well. We are encouraging customers to take advantage of all the tools that allow them to bank and communicate with us from home. That’s for your safety and ours as we do our part to flatten the curve in our state.

With that in mind, we have been working to educate customers on the various ways they can safely do their bank business. For example, we recently wrote about the ins and outs of banking outside the branch and about how the ATM can be used for more than accessing cash and account balances.

We have been interviewing our branch managers for a blog series called “Meet Your Banker.” It’s been fun telling their unique stories. It’s also been heartwarming to hear very similar messages from them all about how they love getting to know their customers and helping people.

As community bankers, we love people and we are committed to being here for you – not just when times are easy – but all the time.

That’s why we’re offering relief options for both personal and business customers. If you are experiencing financial difficulty related to COVID-19, please don’t hesitate to ask for help. Simply call our Customer Service Team at 1.800.542.5004. They will be happy to connect you with the right person who can explain your options and help you best.

We look forward to the day things go back to normal and we are able to greet you in our lobbies. Meanwhile, we encourage you to stay safe wherever you are and know that VCNB is still here for you.

As always, thank you for your patience and for allowing us to be your community bank through this challenging time. Follow us on Facebook and subscribe to this blog to keep up to date with all the ways we are here for you and proud to be your community bank.

Lending A Hand With Hand Sanitizer

Posted on April 15, 2020 by vcnbfamily

Once commonly found in every retail store across America, hand sanitizer has become one of the most difficult commodities to buy thanks to COVID-19. This has been especially troubling to front line essential workers who don’t have immediate and frequent access to soap and water.

Tom Faris used his business to make hand sanitizer for essential workers.

Vinton County native Tom Faris saw a need for hand sanitizer and decided to do something about it. Faris is a chemist who owns Vampire Optical Coatings in Pataskala. For the last seventeen years, the business has made films that control the reflection of light. In doing so, Vampire Optical has a 275 gallon stainless steel mixer and access to commercial quantities of ingredients, providing opportunity to make a great deal of money off this high demand product.

Instead, he made a large batch and gave it away.

“It just seemed like the right thing to do,” Faris said. “This is going to sound silly but I was contacted by someone who wanted me to help them get the supplies to make a bunch of hand sanitizer and charge an ungodly rate for it. And it made me mad so I decided to make it and do the exact opposite. I gave it away.”

At first, Tom said he wasn’t convinced the hand sanitizer shortage was as bad as the media made it sound. But after talking with a neighbor who is a Licking County Sheriff’s Deputy and to his mother, an Administrative Assistant at the Vinton County Sheriff’s Department, he learned there was a dire need for the product among first responders around the region.

So he set about making and bottling 200 gallons of hand sanitizer. Some went to sheriff’s departments in Franklin, Licking, Muskingum and Fairfield counties. The rest, his mother Lottie Faris carried back to southern Ohio for distribution where it was needed. She got it out to police and sheriff’s departments in Jackson, Gallia, Meigs, Athens and Ross counties as well as in Vinton County where it went to cops, EMS, fire departments, the nursing home, and even to Vinton County National Bank.

McArthur Branch Manager Jeremy Robson expressed his gratitude to Tom and Lottie. “With our retailers having limited supplies, we were fortunate to have been given the sanitizer. Cash is dirty and we make every effort to keep our employees safe so it was a great relief,” he said. “We are grateful to have been thought of as a place to donate to and I know all the other places that benefited from his generosity are grateful too.”

Lottie said that she has heard nothing but kind words and thanks. “As I was calling around to the sheriff’s offices in the area, they were so grateful to get it and several offered to pay. We just wanted to get it out to as many places as we could to slow the spread of the virus,” she said. “When Tom thought about someone else price gouging to get ahead, well that’s not how he was raised and he just wanted to donate and give back instead.”

The 1989 Vinton County High School graduate grew up at Creola and studied chemistry at Ohio University. He said that he was glad to help and downplayed his efforts. “It took about five hours to make and bottle it all. Just a half day’s work so it wasn’t too bad,” he explained. “I think it has given people peace of mind.”

He did make a second batch which he has sold to businesses like VCNB at cost.

Thanks to Tom and Vampire Optical for their generosity and kindness and to Lottie for her hard work as well. We appreciate what you have done to keep our employees and customers safe! Click here to learn more about Vampire Optical.

Select VCNB Branches Adjust Hours

Posted on April 9, 2020 by vcnbfamily

Some of our branches are temporarily adjusting their hours to maintain safe environments for our employees. While we regret inconveniences caused to our customers, these changes are necessary. See the list below to learn if your local branch has been effected.

Please remember that most of our branch lobbies are offering services through the drive-thru only at this time. We encourage customers to use contactless means of doing business such as Online and Mobile Banking. Deposits can be made via Express Drop and at most VCNB branch ATMs which we are disinfecting regularly. Our Customer Service team is ready for your calls at 1.800.542.5004 and our branch staff will be happy to serve you via the phone and drive-thru. If you require services that cannot be completed outside the branch lobby, please call your local branch to discuss your options.

Commercial Point
Monday – Thursday 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Friday 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Saturday Closed

Grove City
Monday – Thursday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Friday 9 a.m. to 5 pm.
Saturday 8 a.m. to noon

Jackson
This branch continues to practice social distancing as it has no drive-thru at this time.
Monday – Thursday 8:30 a.m to 5 p.m.
Friday 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Closed for lunch from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. Monday through Friday
Saturday 8:30 to noon

Richmond Dale
Monday – Thursday 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Friday 8:30 to 6 p.m.
Saturday Closed

Wilkesville
Monday – Tuesday 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Wednesday – Closed
Please note that items place in the Express Drop after 4 p.m. on Tuesday will not be processed until Thursday
Thursday – Friday 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Saturday 8:30 to noon

COVID-19 Update: We’re Here For You

Posted on March 30, 2020 by vcnbfamily

A lot has happened in the last few weeks and here at VCNB we have been working to stay on top of the latest developments. Our goal every day is to provide our customers with the services you need and deserve while keeping our employees and all of you as safe as possible.

As you know, the Ohio Department of Health has issued a Stay at Home mandate that is effective through April 6. Banks are a vital part of our country’s infrastructure and we offer important services to you. At this time, our lobbies are currently closed, but our drive-thrus are still open. In order to minimize face to face contact, we are encouraging our customers to use our online banking, mobile banking and local branch ATMs and drive thrus. We realize that may not always be possible, so we are allowing customers into our lobbies by appointment only in order to limit the face-to-face exposure for both our customers and employees. Should you need to make an appointment, please contact your local branch or call 800.542.5004. We appreciate our customers patience with us during this time.

We are taking steps to keep the drive-thru tubes and ATM keypads clean but we still encourage you to keep hand sanitizer in your car as a precaution.

Safety for our people is a priority that we take most seriously. That’s why we have been proactive in practicing social distancing and in encouraging employees to keep work areas, common employee areas, and public spaces as clean as possible.

Many of our employees must report to the office but there are a lot who can telecommute and we are actively deploying technology necessary for them to do so. Meanwhile, we have also eliminated travel among our branches and are encouraging conference calls or web meetings instead.

We know that many of you are experiencing financial hardship and uncertainty related to COVID-19. With that in mind, we do have some relief options available to personal and commercial customers. If you think you may need help, do not hesitate to ask. Simply call our Customer Service Team at 1.800.542.5004 and they will direct you to the banker who can best help your individual situation.

No matter what you do, be sure to wash your hands often and don’t touch your face after handling anything in public. If you’re on the front lines working in vital areas like farming, retail sales, the food industry, trucking, health care, first response, or one of the many other areas that’s keeping our state going, we thank you. Be safe and take care of yourself.

Please know that social distancing isn’t the same as social isolation. Your bankers are still here for you. Have a question for your banker? Call us at 1.800.542.5004 or chat with us from our website. Member FDIC.

COVID-19 Update: Working To Serve You

Posted on March 20, 2020 by vcnbfamily

VCNB_V_CMYK Part of being a community bank is being a good neighbor and steward of the communities where we do business. That’s why we have taken steps to protect our employees, customers and neighbors against the spread of COVID-19.

On Thursday, we made the very difficult decision to close lobbies and to direct all customers to our drive-thru. Our customers who require in-lobby assistance can complete their business simply by calling to discuss options or to make an appointment. Call your local branch or our Customer Service Team at 1.800.542.5004.

Much of your business can be completed online or with VCNB Mobile. You can access accounts, transfer funds, open accounts, and apply for a loan online. You can even deposit a check using the mobile app and skip the post office using Online Bill Pay.

Our Customer Service Team is also waiting for your calls at 1.800.542.5004 and prepared to chat online, a service available from the homepage of our website.

We often say that we have seen it all in our 153 year history. However, none of us can recall a time that we’ve limited lobby access to customers at our branches for a pandemic. Despite the uncertainty you may be feeling, we can assure you that your money is safe in the bank and that we’ll be here for you whenever you need us.

Relief Options
We understand that many of our customers will face financial uncertainty due to the events surrounding this pandemic. VCNB will offer some relief options and will be happy to discuss with you all your individual needs and concerns. If you are experiencing hardship caused by COVID-19, please call our Customer Service Team at 1.800.542.5004. They can direct you to the right person to discuss relief options available regarding your particular situation.

Banking Options
Online Banking – Many of our customers already choose to bank online with us every day. With Online Banking, you can open accounts, apply for loans, transfer funds, pay bills, and do much more. If you haven’t used it before, click here to view a tutorial and to register for Online Banking today.

VCNB Mobile – Carry the bank with you in your pocket! Download this mobile app from the app store on your mobile device. Here you can pay bills, transfer funds, check balances, open an account and even deposit a check using your camera’s device.

Mobile Deposit – Customers who use VCNB Mobile can deposit a check from anywhere in the world by using the camera on their mobile device. Want instructions? Click here! It’s a free service!

Telebanc – Our Telebanc telephone service is also available to you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Simply call 1-800-317-5990 and you’ll have access to all of your accounts at your fingertips.

By Appointment – We have closed lobby doors to slow spread of the virus. However, you can still access in-lobby services if you require them. Simply call your local branch or our Customer Service Team at 1.800.542.5004 to discuss your options. You will still receive the same great service you have come to expect from your neighborhood VCNB branch. We just have to be smart about how we serve you until this threat has passed.

Scams
Sadly, times of crisis and hardship often bring out the worst in people. Be aware of potential scams. If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is and always question the motives of someone trying to gain access to your home or who is asking for money.

We know these are uncertain times but please understand we are still open and here for you. Our core values guide us as we attempt to always do the right thing, to honor the relationships we have with our customers, and to be forward thinking in how we offer you the best service possible.

We will continue to monitor the advice given by Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, the Ohio Department of Health as well as the CDC. Please continue to look here for the latest news on our bank and how we are working to serve you through the challenges to come.

COVID-19 Update

Posted on March 19, 2020 by vcnbfamily

ATTENTION CUSTOMERS

In order to protect against the spread of Covid-19 and for the health of our employees and loyal customers, effective March 20, 2020, our branches will be available by Drive Thru Only. If a customer requires in-branch assistance to do their banking, we ask that you contact the branch directly or contact our customer service team at 800.542.5004 so they can discuss with you how our team can best serve your needs. For our Jackson Branch customers, we will be practicing social distancing by allowing one person in the lobby at a time due to the fact that no drive thru is available.

We realize this may come at an inconvenience for some, but want to assure you that there are many ways to conduct your daily banking business in addition to the drive thru. Our branch ATMs will be available to do deposits and withdrawals. In addition, you can withdrawal money surcharge free from any Moneypass ATM Nationwide. To find an ATM near you, visit moneypass.com. We encourage you to download the VCNB Mobile App to conduct transfers, pay bills, deposit checks and more. Our Customer service team will be on stand-by to assist you via phone at 800.542.5004 or via online chat through VCNBFamily.com. Through our website you can also open accounts and apply for loans.

We are guided by our mission to do the right thing for our customers and our employees. We are closely monitoring the situation and the recommendations by Ohio Governor Mike Dewine and the CDC and will update you as soon as anything changes. Thank you for your cooperation.

A Message From Our President On COVID-19

Posted on March 12, 2020 by vcnbfamily

At VCNB, our customers are like family. Like you, we’ve been following the news and focusing on ways to keep our employees and customers healthy and safe. We are encouraging our employees to monitor their own health and to practice good hygiene to prevent the spread of germs. We are also taking steps to clean our common areas and restrooms more frequently to keep the bank as safe as possible for everyone.

Mark sitting on desk Our customers are always welcome in our branches. However, we do want to remind customers that many banking activities can be handled online or with VCNB Mobile. You can access accounts, transfer funds, open accounts and apply for a loan online. You can even deposit a check using the mobile app and skip the post office using Online Bill Pay.

Our Customer Service Team is ready for your calls at 1.800.542.5004 and prepared to chat online from the homepage of our website.

Here at VCNB we are guided by our values to serve our communities, to build relationships with our customers and to be forward thinking in how we provide our customers with the best service possible. We will continue to monitor the advice given by the Ohio Governor and Department of Health as well as the CDC. Visit the CDC website for the latest news and recommendations.

Thank you for being a loyal customer,
Mark Erslan

VCNB President

VCNB Family

Our Family Serving Your Family Since 1867

Tag Archives: COVID – 19