Safe custody?

sir – Henry Mooney (Letters, February 23) asks what arrangements have been made by closing bank branches for the contents of customers’ safety deposit boxes.

In November 2022 Natwest Bank sent me a letter saying it was ending its safe custody services from the end of March 2023. The letter instructed me to call an 0800 number and specifically said I could not just go into the Maidstone Sutton Road branch without booking an appointment at least 24 hours ahead.

I left the matter until January, by which time I had another letter saying the branch would close in May. I called the 0800 number and spent about 30 minutes on the phone. I was told that I would receive a call in two to three days to book an appointment. After a week with no such call, I decided to go to the branch. I was welcomed by a member of staff who recovered the box from the store, gave me a simple receipt to sign and took the box out to my car. I have paid a substantial annual fee for my box to be kept safe.

Although I do not use the branch often, the bank’s own statistics show that hundreds of people do, and I know this includes many local businesses paying in and taking out cash. While most of us use the bank’s online services, some struggle with these. I also wondered how people who have difficulty reading letters or who cannot readily go to the branch to collect important items would have coped. Simon Barcham Green

Maidstone, Kent