Ulster Bank has warned customers they will begin to freeze account on Friday as their phased withdrawal from Ireland accelerates.
The banking giant initially planned to start account freezing in October but this was temporarily suspended so customers could receive their one-off cost of living payments. They will also briefly pause the freezing process over the Christmas period, effective from December 9 until January 6 2023.
Customers lose access to their account once it has been frozen, although the account itself is not shut down entirely by the bank for an additional 30 days. Ulster Bank say that they will begin by freezing accounts they believe are not being relied on.
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Ulster Bank officials said in a statement: “The first Ulster Bank current and deposit account customers will enter the account freezing and closure process on or after 11 November. Our focus remains to support customers to move to another financial institution. We are starting our freezing and closure process very carefully, with customers who we believe have low reliance on these accounts or may have accounts elsewhere .”
The bank also urged people who had not yet shut down their accounts to strongly consider doing so for convenience. Approximately 70% of the bank’s customer base have now closed their accounts in line with the bank’s phased withdrawal.
Several Ulster Bank branches will close in the New Year, with services being transferred to Permanent TSB until all accounts are fully wiped. Dublin branches such as Blanchardstown, Lucan, Ranelagh and Swords Pavilion will shut on January 6.
Meanwhile, Insurance Ireland has warned both Ulster Bank and KBC customers could risk losing insurance policies if they don’t update their direct debit mandates. They urged people to link direct debits to any new bank accounts, as well as contacting their brokers about any lapsed policies.
CEO of Insurance Ireland Moyagh Murdock said: “Customers who are in receipt of a regular payment from a provider, for example, a pension payment, will also need to contact their insurer or pension provider and supply updated bank account information so that the payments can continue uninterrupted.”
Ulster Bank has gradually been withdrawing its services as its parent company Nat West Group exits the Irish market. They are expected to fully cease operations by 2023. The winddown has seen seen thousands of people switch banking providers, as witnessed when 11,000 people opened AIB accounts over the course of a week in June.
The exit of KBC is an additional blow for the Irish banking market, which issued its six month notice period on June 1. Most of KBC’s banking hubs are estimated to close in March 2023.
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