Houston Police Federal Credit Union

hHouston Police Federal Credit Union Online

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SUMMER NEWS 2008

Wherever you go this summer, we're already there!

Whether you’re headed off on vacation, back to school or even overseas, you’ll find Houston Police FCU ready to meet your needs. That’s because we offer a world of FREE online services that are available to you wherever you have access to the Internet—24 hours a day, 7 days a week. That’s in addition to great, convenient nationwide services like Credit Union Service Centers and Select ATMs that are available almost anywhere you travel.

With your membership in HPFCU and a connection to the Internet, you can take advantage of:

Bill Pay. Have bills that need to be paid while you’re away? Sign up for Bill Pay and choose to pay bills just while you’re away or you can arrange to have recurring bills paid automatically. Why not go online to find out more now? Go to hpfcu.org and click on the ebranch logo in the upper left to view a free tutorial. Bill pay is free on personal accounts when you also sign up for estatements.

e-Statements. You don’t have to wait for the mail to arrive to receive your latest statement from HPFCU. Instead, all you need to do is click on e-Statements on our web site at hpfcu.org. It’s the most secure and convenient way to receive your monthly statement as it can’t be lost or stolen in the mail. It’s stored on our secure servers which you can access and print whenever you need it. In fact, you can access up to 12 months of statement history (history begins with the next statement after enrollment). Need another reason to sign up for e-Statements? How about it’s a little change that will add up to a big difference in saving trees.

Even if you don’t have access to the Internet, you can still enjoy convenient services while you’re on the road like:

Access to your account at over 2,730 Credit Union Service Centers in 45 states and on military bases in 6 countries. This means you can go into any credit union that displays the swirled logo to make deposits, withdrawals and more—all at no cost to you! All you will need is your HPFCU member account number and be aware that there will be a hold on check deposits.

Use your HPFCU ATM or Visa Check Card at over 500 Select ATMs nationwide with no surcharge fee and only a $1.00 transaction fee through our Select ATM Program. Be sure to look up the Credit Union Service Centers and Select ATM locations available in the area you will be visiting before you leave. Just go to our web site at hpfcu.org and click on locations.

Have a whale of a time at SeaWorld this summer!

Discount tickets are now available online. Just visit our web site at hpfcu.org and click on the SeaWorld logo!

Shred Day

Memorial Location
10 am to 2 pm

September 19, 2008 December 19, 2008

Destroy no longer needed paper documents & protect yourself from consumer fraud free of-charge. Limit one box per member.

Holidays
Independence Day
Friday, July 4
(Memorial Drive Location also closed Saturday, July 5)
Labor Day
Monday, September 1
(Memorial Drive Location also closed Saturday, August 30)

NOTICE OF YOUR FINANCIAL PRIVACY RIGHTS

We, our, and us, when used in this notice, mean Houston Police Federal Credit Union. This is our privacy notice for our members. When we use the words "you" and "your" we mean the following types of members:

Our consumer members who have a continuing relationship by purchasing or holding financial products or services such as a(n):

Share account
Loan account
Credit card account
Safe deposit box
Self-directed individual Retirement Account

We will tell you the sources of the information we collect about you. We will tell you what measures we take to secure that information.

We first define some terms.
Nonpublic personal information means information about you that we collect in connection with providing a financial product or service to you. Nonpublic personal information does not include information that is available from public sources, such as telephone directories or government records. Hereafter, we will use the term "information" to mean nonpublic personal information as defined in this section.

An affiliate is a company we own or control.
A nonaffiliated third party is a person we do not employ or a company that is not an affiliate of ours. This is also known as nonaffiliated third party, or simply, an "other party."

THE INFORMATION WE COLLECT We collect information about you from the following sources:

Information you give us on applications or other forms
Information about your transactions with other parties
Information from a consumer reporting agency

THE CONFIDENTIALITY SECURITY AND INTEGRITY OF YOUR INFORMATION We restrict access to information about you to those employees who need to know that information to provide products or services to you. We maintain physical, electronic, and procedural safeguards to protect this information. YOUR INFORMATION AND OTHER PARTIES We will not disclose information about you to anyone except as disclosed in this policy or as permitted by law. INFORMATION ABOUT FORMER MEMBERS We do not disclose information about former members, except as permitted by law. AUTHORIZED SHARING – OUTSIDE MARKETING SERVICES We may disclose the following information to companies that perform marketing services on our behalf:

Information you give us on an application or other forms, such as:
- Name
- Address

We disclose the information listed above with companies that perform marketing services on our behalf. You do not have a right to opt out of the disclosure of this information. We may also disclose information about you to other outside marketing services as permitted by law. Types of Business Here are the types of businesses with whom we may disclose information for outside marketing purposes:

Service providers that perform marketing services for us.
Companies that produce and mail credit union informational brochures

Reasons for Disclosing We may disclose information about you to companies that perform marketing services on our behalf to provide you with information about additional products and services. Limitations on Disclosure Here are the limitations we impose on the use of information disclosed to companies that perform marketing services on our behalf:

We only allow direct mail solicitations
We do not allow telephone solicitations

AUTHORIZED SHARING – JOINT MARKETING We may disclose the following information to other financial institutions with whom we have joint marketing agreements;

Information you give us on an application or other forms, such as:
- Name
- Address

We disclose the information listed above with other financial institutions with whom, we have joint marketing agreements. You do not have a right to opt out of the disclosure of this information. Types of Businesses We may disclose information pursuant to joint marketing agreements to the following types of businesses:
Financial service providers, such as:

Financial management services

Reasons for Disclosing We may disclose information about you to other financial institutions with who we have joint marketing agreements to provide you with information about additional products and services. Limitations on Disclosure Here are the limitations we impose on the use of information disclosed to other financial institutions with whom we have joint marketing agreements

We only allow direct mail solicitations
We do not allow telephone solicitations

Statement of Condition as of 5/31/07

Assets $331.4 million Loans $152.2 million
Members 25,139 Deposits $263.5 million

Hurricane season is here. HPFCU has a disaster plan in place and you should too!

You can’t predict the future so we realize the importance to be ready in case of a disaster or hurricane. We want to be sure you can reach us anytime, anywhere even if one of our offices has to close or you must leave town. That’s why we have a disaster plan in place. Plus, we are constantly looking to improve our plan so that we are prepared for any disaster. Here are just some of our preventative measures:

• Communication with our members through our web site at hpfcu.org. Through our site, we will inform you of office closures, reopening, and any other needed information.

• Installation of a new emergency generator at our Memorial Drive location. We recently put it to the test during a spring storm that knocked out power to everyone in the area. Our Memorial Drive Office came through with full power and continued serving our members without interruption!

• Maintain a secured offsite storage on all of your accounts at multiple locations throughout the country.

• Access to a portable building that can be set up at any designated location within 3 days of notification. It’s important for you to have a personal plan in place too. There are some important things you can do now to ensure you have access to your finances in the event of a disaster:

• Sign up for ebranch at hpfcu.org. That way, in the event of an emergency, you can access your funds 24 hours a day, 7 days a week wherever you have access to the Internet. You can make sure bills are paid through Bill Pay, get estatements, elerts or, should the need arise, even apply for a loan.

• Protect important papers by storing them in a safe deposit box at our Memorial Drive location.

• Print and keep a list of the Credit Union Service Centers in Houston as well as any area you would evacuate to just in case you would not have access to the Internet. At any of these locations, you can withdraw, transfer funds, make loan payments and deposit to your account (there will be a hold on any checks deposited at one of these locations).

• Get a HPFCU VISA Check Card or ATM card and use it at more than 95 FREE Credit Union Friendly ATMs in Houston to withdraw or get an account balance.You can also use your HPFCU card for only a $1.00 transaction fee at any Select ATM.

• Apply for a VISA or MasterCard Credit Card from HPFCU. Accepted nearly everywhere you go for nearly everything you need, a VISA or MasterCard is an essential part of your emergency preparedness. Use it for hotel rooms, gasoline, clothing, whatever you need whenever you need it. For more information and tips on your personal disaster plan, visit http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/cfocus/cfrecords06/ focus.htm#friend/
DOWNTOWN, UPTOWN, IN-TOWN OR OUT-OF-TOWN, we have a mortgage loan for you.

Ready to buy a more energy efficient home, a bigger home or a second home at the lake or coast? Or would you just like to cut your commute time (and expense) by moving a little closer to work? At Houston Police FCU, we can help with a great, low-cost mortgage loan. We offer:

• A special first-time buyer’s program
• Conventional loans with terms from 15 to 30 years
• Low fixed or adjustable rates
• Low closing costs
• Easy repayment with Direct Pay or Automatic Payments

To find out more, simply call (713) 986-0200 to set up an appointment with one of our loan professionals.You can also go to hpfcu.org and click on Mortgage Loans to find current rates, determine your possible payment, get pre-approved, apply for your loan and even check on your loan status. It’s that easy!

ATM safety

Your ATM card can be a great convenience. And because it’s as good as cash, you should exercise the same care with your card as you would with handling cash.
• Always observe your surroundings before conducting an ATM transaction. If you see anyone or anything that appears to be suspicious, leave the area at once. If an ATM is obstructed from view or poorly lighted, go to another ATM.
• Take a companion along when using an ATM, especially at night.
• Minimize time spent at the ATM by having your card out and ready to use.
• When using a drive-up ATM, keep your engine running, the doors locked and the windows up at all times while waiting in line.
• Keep your “Personal Identification Number (PIN)” a secret. Your ATM card will only work with your PIN. Memorize it, and never write it on or store it with your card. Never tell your PIN to anyone.
• Report a lost or stolen card at once to your financial institution.
• Check your receipts against your monthly statement to guard against ATM fraud.

Fraud comes in all forms. Be alert!

We’ve frequently made you aware of fraudulent schemes to protect you and your money. They have been in the form of phone calls, emails and now—unsolicited text messages. These messages urge the recipient to call a number to clear up discrepancies in their financial accounts. The real purpose, as always, is to obtain your personal and/or account information to empty your accounts. As these messages may also contain spyware that can monitor or even control the use of your cellphone, they should be immediately deleted and, if possible, removed. Don’t take chances with unsolicited text messages. Don’t answer them and don’t allow them to remain in your cellphone.

Save this date!

Member Appreciation Day will be held on Saturday, October 18. There will be fun, games, and informative seminars so mark this date down on your calendar and plan to bring the entire family. More information on this grand event will be coming soon.
Make a SMALL CHANGE today. Make a BIG DIFFERENCE in the world’s ecosystem tomorrow.
Have you been deciding on whether to buy a new vehicle or not? Well maybe some of these statistics may help you decide. With gasoline prices constantly going higher, you can see how much difference annually you will pay for gas according to your mileage (based on $3.90 per gallon) with this chart. So if you drive 25,000 miles annually, and change from a 15 MPG vehicle to one that gets 35 MPG, you will save over $3,700 a year in gas. That’s based on $3.90 per gallon...gas is predicted to keep going higher! Plus, just imagine if only a third of Houstonians started driving vehicles with better MPG, we would save millions of gallons of gas in Houston each month. Multiply that by different cities throughout America...well, you get the picture. If you’ve been wanting to cut down on your gas purchases by driving a high MPG vehicle, start first by visiting HPFCU. In fact, you don’t even have to drive here...just visit our site at hpfcu.org and apply electronically or call our Loan Center at 713.22.LOANS. Both are available 24/7 and, if you call our Loan Center, we’ll usually give you an answer to your request before you hang up. Call now!