Access to Financial Services in Scotland

Which? welcomes the opportunity to respond to the Committee’s inquiry into the ATM network in Scotland. It is critical that all consumers can maintain easy access to free-touse ATMs and can continue to use cash, as for many, it remains their preferred and sometimes necessary payment method.

Cash remains the most widely used payment method in the UK. With 2.7 million people in the UK relying almost entirely on cash, ATMs serve a critical purpose in enabling many people to easily access their money free of charge, particularly small businesses, and those on low incomes, older people and those in rural areas. 

Despite reassurances from LINK, we remain concerned that a reduction in the interchange rate could lead to widespread closures of machines across Britain. The interchange rate is the fee paid by card issuers every time a customer uses a free ATM and which funds the entire free-to-use ATM network. This is a particularly pertinent issue given the significant numbers of bank branch closures over recent years, leaving many communities struggling to access basic banking services.