200,000 Students Protected Since 'Fee Protect'

200,000 Students Protected Since Launch Of Public Trust’s ‘Fee Protect’ Service

Public Trust today celebrated a significant milestone for its student Fee Protect programme – the registration of its 200,000th student, Alistair Ballantyne. The programme is designed to protect students’ fees while studying at Private Training Establishments (PTE’s). Fees are held in an independent trust and paid to the provider over the duration of the course or held in case of a course closure.

Alistair is studying towards a Certificate in Travel Tourism and Business at the Sir George Seymour College in Auckland. A morning tea was held to mark the occasion and Alistair was presented with a gift voucher by Public Trust’s National Manager Business Services, Ian Smedley.

A fee protection policy was introduced by the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) in 2004. Public Trust is New Zealand’s largest provider of fee protection services.

Mr Smedley says, “We are very pleased to help safeguard students’ fees and help maintain the reputation of New Zealand’s education industry. Fee Protect is just one of the ways we’re able to help protect not only New Zealanders at important times in their lives but international students who choose New Zealand to further their education. We look forward to providing these services to many more students in the future.”

Fee Protect is New Zealand’s largest and most comprehensive student fee protection service. It safeguards course fees and other expenses paid in advance to Private Training Establishments (PTEs) by New Zealand and international students. The New Zealand government requires that all New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) registered PTEs and education providers must protect student fees paid to them in advance. Fee Protect was developed by Public Trust in consultation with NZQA, the Ministry of Education and PTEs.

Working with New Zealanders for over 135 years, Public Trust is New Zealand’s largest and most enduring trustee organisation. In addition to Fee Protect, its services include Wills, enduring powers of attorney, estate administration, family trusts, pre-paid funeral trusts, education and inheritance trusts and charitable trusts, savings and investments, lending and insurance.

Public Trust has 35 customer centres; eight in the South Island and 27 in the North Island including seven in the greater Auckland region.

ENDS

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