BANK BRANCHES NOSEDIVE
The number of banks in the UK has nearly halved in the past eight years
THE number of banks in the UK has plunged to its lowest level on record.
Figures from the labour market statistics-site Nomis show that there were a total of 9,090 banks across the country in 2018.
That’s down from the 14,855 branches in 2010, when modern records began - a reduction of 39%.
The number of branches fell by 600 in the past year alone - a rate of nearly 12 a week.
Despite the rapid reduction in the number of bank branches, there’s still a huge demand from the public to save them.
A recent YouGov poll found that 92% of people want to see a bank on their high street - the same proportion that also wants to see a Post Office, too.
The falling number of bank branches can be partly explained by the rise of online banking.
The 2018 annual report from UK Finance, the trade association for the UK banking and financial services sector, found that nearly 22 million people in the UK regularly used banking apps in 2017 - a 12 per cent rise from the previous year.
A UK Finance spokesperson said: “Bank branches play an important role in local communities which is why decisions to close them are only ever taken after all other options, like reducing opening hours and staff numbers, have been exhausted.
“Bank branch visits have fallen by a quarter since 2012, with the development of new technology meaning it’s now easier for people to do their banking at a time and place that is convenient to them.”
An Age UK spokesperson said: “Closing bank branches is at best an inconvenience and at worst a serious blow for the millions of older people who are not online or confident with mobile banking.
“Older people have the right to make and receive payments in a way that is safe, convenient and affordable, and banks need to live up to their responsibilities to them.
“As it is, banks are often closing their branches with no workable alternatives in place to help older people continue to carry out routine but essential banking activities in their local community. People in rural or isolated areas are in the worst cases stranded with no access to a local bank branch at all.
“While many older people are online and some use online banking and appreciate its convenience, many have a strong preference for in-branch banking “Online banking can be difficult for many older people, for example those with visual impairments or dexterity problems.”