Scottish bank customers are being left increasingly in the lurch as branches close and people are urged to “go online”. Around 460 branches have either shut or will shut across the UK this year.
That figure includes 19 in Scotland, with dozens having already closed over the last few years. In some cases, communities are being left with no alternative options for banking in person nearby and are facing either lengthy journeys or trying to carry out their business on apps or websites.
There have been warnings that the move away from branches will have a massive impact on the older population. According to the UK Government, the number of bank branches in the UK roughly halved from 1986 to 2014.
READ MORE: Is your HSBC bank closing? Full list of branches to go including those in Scotland
It is said banks take the decision to “increase their profitability and to redirect investment as customers increasingly shun physical branches and move to online banking” although some towns are getting so-called ‘banking hubs’ which allow some in-person transactions to take place on a limited basis. Scotland has been particularly hard hit by bank closures.
According to Which?, it was the first part of the UK to close half of its branches. Despite being bailed out by the taxpayer, Royal Bank of Scotland has closed 160 branches in Scotland since 2015. Bank of Scotland has shut 128 in that time. Glasgow North East – which includes areas with Dennistoun, Possilpark and Sighthill – is the worst impacted part of Scotland, having lost 100 per cent of its physical banking infrastructure
The banks closing in Scotland during 2023
- Ayr – Natwest, Miller Road, closed on January 12
- Johnstone – RBS, Church Street, closing on August 15
- Glasgow Pollok – TSB, Braidcraft Place, closed May 17
- Glasgow Pollokshields – Bank of Scotland, Albert Drive, closing July 27
- Glasgow City Centre – Virgin Money, St Vincent Place, closed February 6
- Glasgow City Centre – NatWest, Blythswood Square, closed January 26
- Bearsden – Bank of Scotland, Roman Road, closing July 25
- Kirkintilloch – Barclays, Cowgate, closing June 9
- Tranet – RBS, High Street, closing July 27
- Edinburgh – Bank of Scotland, Lawnmarket, closing July 26
- Edinburgh – NatWest, George Street, closed January 24
- Dunfermline – Barclays, High Street, closing on August 18
- Stirling – Barclays, Murray Place, closing on August 11
- Dundee – NatWest, Courthouse Square, closed on January 10
- Dundee – HSBC, Murraygate, closing May 30
- Aberfeldy – TSB, Bank Street, closed on May 16
- Aberdeen – Bank of Scotland, North Deeside Road, closing on August 14
- Aberdeen – NatWest, Union Street, closed on January 18
- Orkney Kirkwall – TSB, Broad Street, closing on May 24
The Mirror has compiled a list of banks that have either closed or are due to shut down in the UK this year. You can see the Scottish branches on our list with Ayr, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Orkney among the place impacted.
On the impact of the move away from branch banking, Caroline Abrahams, charity director at Age UK, said: “We need to face up to the fact that huge numbers of older people, the oldest old, especially, are not banking online. Even older people who do bank online often want the ability to talk to a bank employee in the flesh about some kind of transaction.
“A lack of face-to-face banking will only serve to further exclude the millions of people on a low income who have no or limited access to the internet.”
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