Amisha’s story: Natural disaster

Our house recently got severely damaged in a wildfire. A wildfire is devastating under any circumstances, but it happened at the worst possible time for us financially. 

On top of our monthly mortgage payments, my wife and I had just spent the majority of our savings on a new car. Summer was right around the corner, and we didn’t want our situation to affect our children. So we still had to make sure we could pay for all of their summer activities.

We took comfort in the fact that the home insurance we had on our house would cover most of the damages. We knew that the money wouldn't come in for several months, though. We also had no idea how much of the expenses they'd cover.

Despite my steady income, I was finding it difficult to make my minimum payments. My wife and I had a combined yearly income of $100,000 and had never found ourselves in a situation like this before. We were very worried about our credit score and confused about what to do.

We could no longer keep up with our minimum payments on our credit cards, and our debt just kept growing. My wife and I decided to talk to a credit counsellor at CIBC to see whether they could help us.

Speaking to a credit counsellor made us realize that we had options. The credit counsellor explained that they could offer us financial relief on our mortgage. This allowed us to make a manageable payment arrangement on our overdue credit card payments.

CIBC took the time and steps to make sure we had everything we needed. They also set us up with a financial plan so that we’re better prepared if something unexpected happens again.

While this story is based on a combination of real client experiences, it was created using fictional characters to show how CIBC can offer help and strategies to those dealing with debt.