Advice has been given over where people will be able to get cash and pay in cheques in Helston following the closure of its last remaining bank later this month.
As previously reported by the Packet, Lloyds Bank customers were told last July that the Helston branch would be closing on January 24, 2023.
It will leave the town without a single bank, and is likely to come as a particular blow to customers who do not use internet banking, as well as for those who use the branch for business banking.
The nearest Lloyds branch will be Falmouth, a 25-minute drive away.
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Now the National Federation of SubPostmasters (NFSP) has sent out information about what transactions people will be able to carry out at Helston’s Post Office, the only other banking alternative left in town.
It said: “On January 24 Lloyds Helston is due to close. This will doubtless be disappointing to Lloyds’ customers in Helston.
“However, alternative banking provision is available to local residents at post office branches nearby.”
It said the nearest post offices to the closing branch were Helston Post Office at 28-30 Coinagehall Street, inside the Londis shop, and Breage Post Office in Higher Road, a seven-minute drive away.
“Each of these branches offers banking services – including deposits, free cash withdrawals and balance checks, as well as offering face-to-face access to government services, bill payment, foreign currency, travel insurance and, of course, postal services,” added the NFSP, which went on to say: “Post offices are proving vital to retaining individual and business access to cash as the banks continue to desert the high street in order to cut costs and increase their profits.
“Every post office plays a vital role within the heart of the local community.”
Unfortunately the ATM machine outside the post office was removed a few years ago, which means the closest places to withdraw cash for free via an ATM are Tesco and Sainsbury’s on the outskirts of the town. Spar at the top of Meneage Street also has an ATM, but it charges for withdrawals.
The closure of the Helston branch of Lloyds follows the Redruth branch being shut last October.
Speaking to the Packet last July about the reasons, a Lloyds Bank spokesperson said: “Visits to our Helston and Redruth branches have fallen over recent years, as many customers now choose to bank in different ways.”
She claimed that 77% of Helston’s personal banking customers already used other ways of banking, such as over the phone or internet banking, as well as visiting other branches, while branch transactions at the Helston branch fell more than 57% between 2017 and 2022 – the latter two years being during the Covid pandemic.
The opening hours of the Helston branch have reduced in recent years, with the bank now only open 9am to 3pm, Monday to Friday.
