It’s the little things that screw up your plans
A couple of weeks ago I blogged about paying off the forgotten balance on an SSS loan I made years back so that I could apply for another loan. We are looking at quite a few expenses in this first quarter (the least of which is budgeting for an aluminum fence installation). Jan 30 2009 it was when I lined up at the forms processing counter at SSS Makati 2 (J.P. Rizal) which is the servicing branch for the company I work for. Though this branch is far more cramped compared to the Pasay Branch, the line at processing went smoothly, with an average of 3-5 minutes per transaction.
When it was my turn the lady at the counter checked my records on her computer and said that indeed I was already qualified for a two-month loan. However (and this is where my heart sank) our company has not renewed its signature card (SSS Form L – 501) since 2007 and was therefore expired. She told me to get a SPECIMEN SIGNATURE CARD at the other counter, have our HR sign it and bring it back with my loan form.
Since it was Friday afternoon there wasn’t much I could do except go back to the office with the Form L – 501 and give our HR the heads up. But true enough our HR had the completed form ready for me on Monday Feb 02, so I took an early lunch break and visited SSS Makati-2 again. This time my loan form and the signature card were accepted with no issues. Now it’s time for the 3-week wait, although I read a blog (click here to read Tom’s post) who reported getting his check a mere 11 working days after filing.
Hope I’m as lucky.
Almost there, SSS
Two weeks ago I wrote about my pleasant experience at the Social Security System (SSS) Branch in Pasay at the HK Sun Plaza on Macapagal Street near Blue Wave and right beside the PNB Head Office.
The two weeks that they told me to wait after having paid the tiny but forgotten balance on my last salary loan was almost up, so just before going to bed last night I checked the SSS online inquiry system and voila, indeed they had already credited my payment. In truth I checked (actually kept checking) one week after, just in case they would outdo themselves, but no. Two weeks they said it would be and two weeks it was.
A couple of days ago our HR team was at the SSS seminar for companies explaining why the online system works (or rather doesn’t work) the way it does. This was because of a misunderstanding between SSS and the development company they hired to develop the computerized system, the ID system in particular. Simply put, a change in the specifications presented by the SSS to the developer has resulted in an impasse on what should be finished and what should be paid for. If you work in a development environment, you will know what a rigid impasse this is, as elliptical as a chicken and egg case.
Anyway, I’m off to the SSS today to file my loan. As for the rumors that you should take advantage of your SSS loan benefit because someone else might use it, it’s true, but not in the way some people think. More on that after I gather several experts’ opinions.
Surprise! Service with a Smile – SSS Pasay
Here in the Philippines when you have regular legitimate work, you usually have a few standard benefits courtesy of the Philippine government. Yes, believe it or not, we have Social Security (for workers in the private sector), Pag-Ibig Housing and GSIS (for government employees). Some companies even offer salary loans to their employees with the help of a banking institution. Unfortunately the company I work for is too small to offer such loans, so for financial help I must turn to the government and the financial benefits that it offers in return for the contributions that are deducted from my monthly pay.
I visited the Social Security System branch in Pasay. This office used to be located at the Diplomat Hotel in Baclaran, but it has since moved to the HK Sun Plaza (on the side facing PNB). Sam and I were quite surprised to find the office spacious and well-lighted, with plenty of seats for clients waiting their turn at the service counters. We were there at around 10 in the morning on a Friday, so we expected the waiting area to be filled to capacity, but it was not.
Transactions at the counters were so efficient, none of the clients that were ahead of me was at the counter for more than 5 minutes. Even my own transaction, which was to verify the amount inadvertently left over from a previous loan from several years back, and to inquire as to how to pay for it—was answered in less than five minutes. The answer was simple and quick: Yes the amount I had seen on the SSS online inquiry is correct, and I can pay for the loan balance upstairs at the cashier’s. I then need to wait two weeks before filing an application for a salary loan. And I need to use the new forms because the ones downloaded from the internet were obsolete.
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