Town runs out of cash

Machines empty or broken

There was chaos for tourists over the weekend, as one Highland Perthshire town completely ran out of cash.

Every cash machine in Pitlochry was either broken or empty over the weekend, leaving the town’s many residents, business owners and tourists without money.

Two of the three ATMs in the town were broken, leaving only one – which inevitably ran dry during the busy tourist season.

This left cashback at the town’s Co-op, limited to only £50 a go, as the only option for getting money during the weekend.

Residents have now blamed the closure of the town’s Royal Bank of Scotland last month.

The RBS branch on Atholl Road closed in June, with its outdoor ATM also stripped away.

The money woes came as hundreds travelled through Pitlochry to attend the nearby Soldiers of Killiecrankie event, which saw the annual Jacobite battle re-enactment only a few miles north of the town.

Jim Laurenson, chair of Pitlochry and Moulin Community Council, said he is “disappointed” it has come to this.

He said: “This is further problems in regard to the bank closure.

“It is bad enough the bank has closed and lost its ATM, then this happens.

“It leaves more people vulnerable when getting cash out. It is a disgrace the bank was closed in the first place, and this has made it worse.

“Pitlochry has been busy with tourists for quite some time now and they are being disadvantaged by the lack of cash. It is not good enough.

“We only lost one ATM with the bank closure, but it was a big loss when you consider the amount of people in the town needing money.

“The town should be able to cope, and if it can’t something needs to be done.

“It was a busy ATM in continuous use so a lot of people in the area will be struggling.

“It can’t get much worse as we can see the effect losing only one machine has had. I am disappointed this has happened.”

Cllr Mike Williamson, who represents the Highland ward at Perth and Kinross Council, said: “I don’t think this is an isolated incident, it is happening more often.

“It is not the first time it has happened. It is a total disregard by RBS for removing their bank in Pitlochry, they are just shrugging their shoulders and saying ‘nothing to do with us’.

“RBS need to acknowledge the service they are providing in Highland Perthshire is not good enough. I would hope this doesn’t happen again but there is the potential for it to happen again because we are not set up for a cashless society right now.

“It is appalling what RBS has done to Highland Perthshire and it is having an impact on the rural economy, because if people can’t get cash to go to an event, they just won’t go.”