Thousands of Scots living in ‘cash desert’
● One the of country’s wealthiest areas has no post office or cash machine
Thousands of Scots in one of the country’s wealthiest areas are among those living in a “cash desert” with no way of withdrawing money, according to a new study by a leading consumer group.
Two postcode areas in Scotland are home to the highest populations with no local post office or cash machine, the research by Which? shows.
They include the AB13 district, which takes in Milltimber, a prosperous suburb of
Aberdeen with a population of 2,725.
It is closely followed by EH18, which covers the Lasswade and Polton areas of Midlothian, south-west of Edinburgh. That region is home to 2,233 people.
The Federation of Small Businesses in Scotland (FSB) said the analysis showed Scotland was losing its “local financial infrastructure” – a trend that made it increasingly difficult for people to run a business.
The findings have also sparked calls from Which? for the next UK government to introduce legislation that guarantees consumers’ ability to access and pay with cash for as long as it is needed.
Its research, based on data from the ATM network Link, found that across the UK, 259 communities have either poor cashpoint provision or no cashpoints at all, fuelling fears that many people are unable to access money.
It found 130 postcode districts with a combined population of more than 115,000 do not have a single cashpoint.
Of those, some 36 areas with a combined population of more than 19,000 do not have a post office.
While the AB13 and EH18 fared the worst for having no cashpoint or post office, Peterborough – home to 15,294 people – is the most populated area without a single cashpoint. The consumer group also found cashpoints closed at a rate of 578 machines a month in the first half of this year.
Gareth Shaw, head of money at Which?, said: “The countless communities across the UK with shockingly low cash machine provision show that measures intended to guarantee access to cash simply don’t work – and point to mismanagement of the broken cash landscape that is leaving many people struggling.
“These communities have found themselves presented with a confusing array of schemes from regulators and the industry claiming to fix the problem. Only intervention from the next government to properly protect cash for as long as it is needed can help the many people struggling for vital cash access.”
Andrew Mcrae, the FSB’S Scotland policy chair, said: “FSB research shows that bank branches are closing faster in Scotland than elsewhere in the UK. Now this new analysis shows that parts of Scotland have the most populated postcode areas without either a cash machine or post office.
“This means that in many parts of Scotland it is becoming harder to run a business. We know that when a local ATM goes, the surrounding firms report a drop in footfall. And every second a business spends travelling to deposit cash or get change is time that can’t be spent elsewhere.”
John Howells, the chief executive of Link, said the firm was “concerned” by the fact many communities were struggling to access cash, adding the company was “determined to protect” the national ATM network.
He explained: “We want to hear from communities that think they have an issue.”