Banks bow to public pressure
Pensioner wins fight with financial giants
VALENCIA pensioner Carlos San Juan has triumphed with his 'I'm old but I'm not an idiot' campaign.
The 78 year old launched a petition on change.org to get 'in person' attention from banks for the elderly and vulnerable people.
He stated that not all people are able to use internet banking and slammed financial institutions for withdrawing over-the-counter services.
More than 600,000 people signed the petition that he took to Madrid earlier this month and his campaign attracted widespread media attention.
On Monday, deputy Prime Minister Nadia Calvino announced measures signed with the banking sector in an agreement named 'protocol to reinforce the social and sustainable commitment of banks'.
Sra Calvino said it was a response to her call to 'attend to the demands of associations for the elderly to guarantee that people receive personal, humane and quality treatment in their interactions with banks'.
According to a government press release, the agreement contains the vow that banks will offer a 'personalised' service for the elderly between the times of 09.00 and 14.00 during the week.
Staff will also receive specific training so they can offer better attention to elderly people.
The financial sector representatives also agreed to have 'preferential telephone assistance' available for OAPs.
Cashpoints and online banking webpages will be adapted so they have a simplified version available for users.
A type of banking ombudsman and the Bank of Spain will check to see that the agreement is being implemented.
Sra Calvino said: "If we find that the measures do not go far enough then we will have to see how they can be improved."