Crisis shows branches are vital
LOCKDOWN has reinvigorated many bank branches, increasing usage as customers clamour for advice and help with banking issues.
Last week, outside a Barclays branch in the Hertfordshire town of Bishop’s Stortford, half a dozen customers patiently queued, waiting for it to open. Such an image was repeated across the country, from branches in London’s Kensington to Wokingham in Berkshire.
The banking industry consistently argues that people want to bank online and pay using a contactless card – but at least eight million people still rely on cash for day-to-day spending and prefer the faceto-face service they get at a bank counter.
Such customers are also concerned the internet is vulnerable to hacking and attracts fraudsters.
Standing at the front of the queue in Bishop’s Stortford was antiques shop assistant Brenda Green. The 69-year-old told The Mail on Sunday: ‘Is it wrong to want to speak to someone faceto-face when dealing with your finances? Of course not. No one is fooled by the banks who hope to cut costs by pushing all of us online.’ Computer engineer Flo Pohlmann, 49, also queuing, said: ‘Working in the industry I know all too well that computer systems can be vulnerable. That is why I want to deal directly with an individual.
‘I currently have problems with my bank account and I need to get them sorted in person at the bank. I think the current crisis has shown the importance of bank branches and personal contact.’