Dumfries & Galloway businesses and their customers will be the losers under a new timetable for the Royal Bank of Scotland’s mobile branch service, the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has warned.
The new service, to start from 21 May, shows a reduction in visiting times across the area. RBS’s mobile vans currently visit 15 places and stop for 720 minutes a week in Dumfries & Galloway, but under the new timetable the service will reduce to 700 minutes.
Thornhill, Sanquhar and Moffat will lose their service altogether. The time RBS vans spends in Kirkcudbright and Lochmaben will also be cut in half.
Brian Sherman, leader of FSB in Dumfries & Galloway, said: “RBS’s new mobile branch timetable shows that our rural and remote communities will see less of their mobile van services from next month, despite the fact that up to four branches in Dumfries & Galloway will be closed by June.
“This means that these mobile van services will be spread even more thinly – making it harder for local businesses and consumers to access banking services.”
FSB points out that, in evidence to Westminster’s Scottish Affairs Committee in January 2018, RBS said it was increasing the number of mobile banking vans and investing in the fleet.
The small business campaign group says that questions must be asked about whether this promise is going to be kept when RBS chief Ross McEwan gives evidence to MPs on the Scottish Affairs Committee next month.
Brian Sherman added: “RBS made the argument that the impact of Scottish branch closures would be mitigated by smart ATMs and mobile van services. However, it looks again like it is trying to cut services that customers find valuable.
“This move also seems to clash with evidence RBS gave to MPs in January, where they talked up investment in their mobile bank fleet.
“It wouldn’t be surprising if MPs on the Scottish Affairs Committee will be keen to get to the bottom of this when they take evidence from RBS Chief, Ross McEwan, next month.”
RBS’s new timetable for their mobile branch service can be viewed HERE
Image copyright RBS
