If you have an account with one of these banks, it is worth thinking about changing where you put your funds. The directors have just made another tough decision!
Since the start of the pandemic, the transformation of the banking market in Britain has begun. Customers have – willingly or unwillingly – changed their habits.
A lot of things started to be done online, which suited the directors of the big banking groups. Why?
This is because they have decided that the traditional physical establishment is a relic of the past. And they have started to close their branches en masse.
The owners of Lloyds Banking Group are leading the way. Its portfolio includes brands such as Lloyds, Halifax and Bank of Scotland.
We have kept you informed of their branch closure plans, but more decisions have come to light. A further 133 Lloyds outlets, 50 Halifax outlets and 13 Bank of Scotland outlets will disappear by January 2023.
On the surface, such disappearance of banks from the High Streets may seem beyond the interest of the typical customer. Indeed, nowadays we do most of our day-to-day banking online.
However, there are situations that require consultation with a member of staff, and such virtual consultation does not guarantee that every matter will be dealt with. For example, it is not possible to recover an account that has not been used for some time and we do not have, for example, a valid login or password for online banking.
In addition, free ATMs are disappearing along with outlets. Admittedly, the bank owners guarantee that every customer will have another free ATM within half a mile or access to an ATM at a post office within 1.1 miles.
However, this is just wishful thinking. In reality, the search for ATMs can be much more of a hassle. And at the post office we will only do some things, such as depositing a cheque or checking our account balance.
Is there a way out of the situation? Yes – you can look for an offer from a bank that is not planning to close branches – at least not that massively. At the moment, the best deal is Nationwide, which is giving as much as £125 for transferring your account.