Covid-19 relief: You can defer 3 EMIs but that may be a very costly option

SBI informed customers that in some cases, deferring 3 EMIs on a home loan may force the borrower to pay 8 more EMIs.

After RBI allowed commercial banks to provide their customers a moratorium of three months for repayment of term loans, public sector banks have sprung into action. Public sector banks have informed their customers about deferment of EMIs and interest dues to help soften the blow due the coronavirus crisis. The deferment may come at a price though.

The country's largest lender State Bank of India on Wednesday warned borrowers that deferment of equated monthly instalments (EMIs) offered under the RBI's relief package on account of COVID-19 could put an additional cost on them. The lender also advised borrowers to repay their loans if they are in a position to do the same.

SBI said on its website that deferring the EMIs for a home loan of Rs 30 lakhs with a remaining maturity of 15 years, the net additional interest would be approximately Rs 2.34 lakhs, which is equal to eight EMIs. In other words, if customers defers three EMIs then they will end up paying 8 EMIs more.

Last week, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) gave a relief package for retail borrowers and businesses, by way of announcing a three-month moratorium on payment of all term loans due between March 1, 2020, and May 31, 2020.

The dispensation is aimed to mitigate the burden of debt servicing brought about by disruptions on account of COVID 19 pandemic and to ensure the continuity of viable businesses.

"In terms of RBI COVID-19 regulatory package, SBI has initiated steps to defer the instalments and interest/EMIs on term loans falling due between March 1, 2020 to May 31, 2020 and extended the repaymentperiod by 3 months. The interest on working capital facilities for the period March 1, 2020 to May 31, 2020 is also deferred to June 30, 2020," country''s largest lender SBI said.