The Post Office banking gap

Barclays has been criticised over its cash ban but others are just as bad, finds Sam Barker

Many banks allow people to manage their money at the Post Office, but savers are being let down by patchy and limited services. Customers of 28 banks have been able to use their services at any of Britain’s 11,500 Post Offices since 2015 in an attempt to offset the impact of thousands of branch closures across the country. Those living in rural areas have been affected the most.

But banks offer a maximum of four basic services at these outposts: paying cash in, taking money out, depositing cheques and checking balances.

Users cannot access other services such as transferring money, printing out their statements, moving cash into a savings account or taking out new deals such as credit cards and mortgages.

Customers may be unaware that most banks do not even offer all four basic services. Nationwide does not allow cash or cheques to be paid in, while Virgin Money, Starling Bank, Handelsbanken and Cashplus do not allow cheques.

Last week, Barclays, which has offered all four core services, said it would stop letting savers withdraw cash at the Post Office from January, and instead invest in free cash machines and cashback services.

Other well-known banks, including Metro Bank, M&S Bank and Citibank, do not offer Post Office banking at all.

Martyn James of Resolver, a complaints service, said: “People who live in areas with many bank closures are fully aware and use the Post Office as much as they can. However, the wider public seem to have an altogether more sketchy idea of the service and its limitations.”

A survey by consumer champions Which? last year found that 55pc of people knew about Post Office banking and 47pc did not want to use it.

A spokesman for the Post Office said the network was not trying to compete with banks but instead offer an alternative if customers had no other options. He said: “We are there to provide a vital service. It’s for the things that people need day in, day out.”

Barclays’ decision to axe cash withdrawals at Post Office branches has triggered a wave of anger from customers.

Dr Christopher Roberts, 73, has been a customer of the bank for more than 50 years but said he could move his current account away from Barclays over the issue.

He had become increasingly reliant on using the Post Office for cash withdrawals as Barclays had shut two of its branches in his area.

Dr Roberts said: “My concern is that where Barclays goes today, others will follow tomorrow, and changing banks will merely delay my not being able to use the Post Office for banking transactions. I know the banks would rather stop me using cash altogether and their strategy is clearly to deny my accessing it at all.”