Mobile bank to call weekly
CUSTOMERS at NatWest in Aberdare – which recently announced its closure – will soon be able to use a mobile bank that will visit the area once a week.
CUSTOMERS at a Cynon Valley NatWest that recently announced its closure will be able to use a mobile bank that will visit the area once a week, as well as Post Office services.
It follows the news last month that the NatWest store on Victoria Square was to close after the number of transactions over the counter declined by 31% since 2011.
But after a public outcry, Cynon Valley AM Vikki Howells met local CEO of NatWest bank, Mike German, to present the case for keeping the branch open.
It was decided that in its place, a mobile bank will visit Aberdare once a week on a Friday afternoon for an hour, with the precise timings and location to be confirmed.
NatWest customers will also be able to use the Post Office for banking functions, and the company will hold events to highlight other ways for Cynon Valley customers to use its services.
Ms Howells said: “NatWest would not budge on their decision to close their branch in Aberdare. I argued that the decline in usage was linked to the reduction of opening hours in 2016 by nearly half, and also had photographic evidence of how busy the branch was.
“However, I did get NatWest to agree that they will look to increase the number of hours of mobile banking offered in Aberdare if the service proved to be well used.”
Last year, the bank nearly halved the opening hours of the branch from 37.5 hours per week to 20.
It is one of eight NatWest and Royal Bank of Scotland branches across Wales to close, with 150 across the UK and a total loss of 470 jobs.
After the closure, the closest NatWest for customers in Aberdare will be the Heads of the Valley branch in Merthyr Tydfil – over seven miles away.
The closures are being blamed on a “dramatic shift” in the way that customers use the bank – with a switch to people banking online or through apps.
Ms Howells said she was also concerned about the building itself, it being in a “prominent town centre location” but remaining vacant.
She said: “I raised this with Mr German, who gave me assurances about the ongoing work the bank will do to maintain its physical condition and a commitment that if the building was not sold in six months, it would be made available for community use.
“NatWest had also announced they were withdrawing their mobile banking service from Hirwaun, and I got them to commit to bringing the service back. The mobile bank will stop off in Hirwaun after it visits Aberdare, and hopefully this will also increase use.”
The other branches in Wales to close include Ystrad Mynach, Ebbw Vale, Monmouth and Pontypool.