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Edinburgh Live

National

Vicky Shaw, PA Personal Finance Correspondent & Sophie Buchan

Edinburgh Santander branch among those to reduce opening hours in Scotland

Santander Scotland Edinburgh United Kingdom

Santander will cut its branch opening hours from in what it says is a response to long-term trends in customer behaviour.

It comes as the bank said the number of customers using its branches fell by a third (33 per cent) over the two years before the coronavirus pandemic, and a further 50 per cent in 2020 and 12 per cent in 2021.

The changes mean that from July 18, branches will operate from 9.30am to 3pm on weekdays compared to what it is now with them closing at 4.30pm.

The bank said its branch staff will still be available for pre-booked face-to-face appointments between the hours of 3pm and 5pm if customers need support that can't be provided through alternative channels or earlier in the day.

Some branches situated in shopping centres will be excluded from the changes and the bank have said that despite the reduced hours there will be no compulsory redundancies or a reduction of employee working hours.

As a result, they plan to ramp up its telephone support for customers and said branch staff will be trained to help on the phone alongside their current face-to-face roles.

The shake-up will also see 316 branches move from being open from 9.30am to 4pm on Saturdays to operating a half-day service, closing at 12.30pm however face-to-face appointments can still be made at these branches until 4pm.

Meanwhile, 76 branches will retain their current half-day opening hours on a Saturday, and 58 sites will remain closed on a Saturday.

There will be also be no change in the number of branches open on a Saturday, with 87% sites operating from 9.30am to 12.30pm.

Richard Owen, head of branches at Santander, said: “These changes will enable us to maintain our existing branch network while providing significant additional capacity to help customers who want to talk to us by phone.

“We have seen a continuing reduction in branch usage over several years, both before and since the peak of the pandemic, with many customers preferring to transact digitally or contact us by phone.

“We want to make sure we have the right mix of channels to help our customers however they choose to bank with us.”

Which? Money editor Jenny Ross added: "Santander deserves credit for taking greater account of customer needs than some of its rivals that have slashed their branch networks without putting in place reasonable alternatives. But this continues a concerning overall trend of banks chipping away at face-to-face services and opening hours.

"While proposals from individual banks and the industry to protect cash are welcome, a piecemeal approach is unlikely to be enough to safeguard access to cash for the millions of people who rely on it."