Last chance to save RBS branch
Locals urged to use it or lose it over three months
Residents in Comrie have three months to save their Royal Bank of Scotland branch.
RBS has announced the appointment of Johnston Carmichael, Scotland’s largest independent firm of chartered accountants and business advisers, as the independent reviewer who will decide its fate.
The firm will review how much Comrie and the other nine branches across Scotland, which have been given a temporary reprieve until the end of the year, are being used. They will also consider feedback from local customers, local representatives and other groups to understand the impact of each individual closure.
The review is set to conclude in September and RBS has agreed to implement whatever is recommended by Johnston Carmichael “in full.”
The review will consider how each branch is used including, but not limited to: the number of transactions per The future of the Comrie RBS remains unclear
month; number of transactions for nonRBS customers; number of transactions by customers with accounts not based at the branch; number of customers using the branch; alternative banking options available locally, and any circumstances that may have changed since the closures were announced.
Pauline Toole, of Comrie Community Council, welcomed the move. She said: “It is good that we are at last seeing some movement on this, as the review was promised back in February. I hope Johnston Carmichael will liaise with the community councils - Comrie and St Fillans - so that we can make sure they hear all of the villages’ concerns.
“I will be contacting them on behalf of Comrie Community Council to start that engagement.”
Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife said: “The Royal Bank have taken their time to get this review going and there is now a really small window to change the bank’s mind.
“Details about how you can take part in the review will be announced shortly, but in the meantime, I’d encourage anyone who opposed the closure of the Comrie branch to get in touch with my office and, crucially, to make sure you use the branch in the next few months.”
The news comes the week before the final RBS branch in Perth and Kinross in the current round of closures shuts its doors for the last time.
The Perth South Street branch will follow Aberfeldy, Pitlochry and Kinross in closing to customers.
Les Matheson, CEO of personal and business banking for Royal Bank of Scotland, said: “The way people do their banking is changing rapidly and the Royal Bank of Scotland needs to react to that change, but we also realise that we must manage the change carefully.
“We listened to customers, colleagues and elected representatives of all stakeholders and as a result we have asked Johnston Carmichael to carry out an independent review of ten specific branches which are nearly all last banks in town and more than nine miles from the nearest Royal Bank of Scotland branch.
“Johnston Carmichael is perfectly suited to undertake this independent review because of their history, knowledge and understanding of rural Scottish communities and businesses. I am confident that they will undertake a thorough review of these ten branches and whatever their recommendation, The Royal Bank will accept it in full.”