Major UK banking prospects lose key Post Office service
Millions across the UK could be affected
Many bank branches have closed in recent years(Image: Getty)
Lloyds Banking Group has axed the ability for customers to pay in cheques at Post Office counters. Campaigners warn the move will leave elderly and rural customers stranded as high street branches continue to disappear.
The banking giant, which includes Lloyds Banking Group, Halifax and Bank of Scotland and serves 28 million customers, removed the cheque deposit option last month. Customers will still be able to withdraw and deposit cash at Post Office branches and at banking hubs. But the loss of cheque services comes as the group presses ahead with another wave of closures.
Under the latest plans, 95 more branches will shut – on top of 49 already earmarked to close this year. Over the past decade, Lloyds Banking Group has closed 1,470 sites, according to consumer champion Which?.
More than 6,300 bank branches have vanished across the UK in the last ten years. Forty of the country’s 650 constituencies now have no bank branches at all, while 88 are down to their last one, Which? data shows.
‘Very few’ use Post Office for cheques
A Lloyds spokesman said customers can use the bank’s mobile app to scan and deposit cheques, adding that “very few people choose to deposit cheques at the Post Office”.
The group renewed its commitment in December to the Banking Framework – a 30-member agreement designed to safeguard access to cash. But critics say the reality on the ground paints a different picture.
Cheryl Cottle Hunkin, a councillor in Devon, said: “People are feeling really anxious as a lot of them are not able to use technology. They’re travelling very long distances to find a branch. Decisions are often made by people living in urban areas – they don’t realise the impact on rural communities. We haven’t even got public transport in many areas. This will hit vulnerable people the hardest.”
Andrew Haggar, of comparison website MoneyComms, warned that small businesses – which still regularly receive cheques – will now face even longer journeys to pay them in. He said: “It’s a double whammy for customers, with all the [branch] closures. For a small business, this is just not practical. When closing down branches, safety nets should be in place.”
The watchdog, the Financial Conduct Authority, says banks must assess the impact on customers when shutting branches and ensure reasonable alternatives for accessing cash.
Banking hubs under pressure
Banking hubs – run by the Post Office and funded by major banks – were meant to act as a safety net for communities left without a branch. There are currently 250 hubs across the UK, with plans to expand to 350 by the end of the current parliament.
However, the national rollout has been beset by delays, and critics say the facilities are inadequate to replace full-service branches.
