Dozens of residents gathered at the crack of dawn throughout Grand Cayman for the reopening of money-remittance services after a six-week closure.
For Ainsley Hall, a father of three and a Jamaican national, it could not have come sooner. Hall said prior to COVID-19, he worked two jobs each day, and would send money back home at least three times per week.
“When I found out [remittance services] were going to close, I sent a portion of money, but eventually it’s been closed so long, [the money] ran out and they are in need of food right now,” said Hall.
In order to reopen, the money-remittance services had to present detailed plans to the government to demonstrate how they could effectively implement social distancing to mitigate against the spread of COVID-19. Each plan had to be specifically tailored to the individual stores.
“We have gotten the approval to open five of our 10 locations,” said Horace Hines, general manager of JN Money.
Hines said a new appointment system has been implemented that will run alongside the government-imposed alphabetised-surname system, which dictates on which day a person is to able to access certain goods and services. All money-remittance business have to abide by this system.
“It’s our pleasure to be able to serve the public once again. However, it is being done a little different from what our customers are used to,” said Karen Diaz, general manager of Financial Integrated Services MoneyGram. “They no longer can walk in and do a transaction; they must first make an appointment. That has been dictated to us by the government.”
But the new appointment system has caused the money-transfer services to be flooded with requests.
For customers like Ratcliffe Collins, the new system has proven to be difficult and expensive to navigate.
With no credit on his phone, he had to try and find a way to call the remittance services to make an appointment.
He explained, “Yesterday, at 12:30, I get a message … [from] Western Union and JN saying you have to have an appointment to come. I was shocked because, you know, it was Sunday; the government lock down the whole country. Nobody can’t go on the road to go get a [phone] credit….”
Collins said his friend transferred him $2 phone credit and then he tried to call the various numbers to secure an appointment. He said he called around 40 times, to the two money-transfer companies.
“When I called, it was busy,” he said. “When I call it back, it ring, ring, until it hang up. When I tried to call it back, same thing, it’s busy.”
Collins said he spent nearly three hours trying to secure an appointment, to no avail.
“I called from the time I got the message, because I want to send money to my family,” he said. He said his phone credit eventually ran out, and he still had not managed to reach anyone.
Collins said he was able to secure another $2.30 worth of credit, only to encounter the same issue.
When he attended MoneyGram on Monday morning, he was turned away because he did not have an appointment.
Another customer, Lindal Haughton, was also turned away.
“This is the second location I’ve gone on,” said Haughton, who spoke to the Cayman Compass a few minutes after 7am on Monday. “I tried the information they gave the whole day [on Sunday] and still don’t get through. This morning, I came, got into this line and they are saying [I need an appointment].”
Diaz said appointments are necessary as they are part of the conditions under which remittance companies are allowed to reopen.
“The [customers] have to understand that we are here to help them, but they have to work with us and be respectful and just try to get the situation to their betterment, to their liking, and it is going to take some time because it is all new to us,” she said. “Until we are directed differently by government, this is the way in which business is done. This is the new normal for all of us.”
Collins said he understands the need for social distancing, but he believes the appointment system is flawed and should be dropped. “I think they should change out the appointment thing and people come on their [alphabet] day,” he said.
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