Access to bank branches continues to decline - but Loomis Smart Safe and CIT services can help

Yorkshire has the dubious honour of having the worst bank branch access in the UK, with the Which? analysis showing that there are just 248 branches left in the Yorkshire and Humber region to serve a population of 5.6 million.

That equates to 4.4 branches per 100,000 people, leaving every Yorkshire resident sharing their branch with 22,600 others.

The West Midlands region does a little better, with six branches per 100,000 people. The East Midlands region, however, is almost as poorly served as Yorkshire, with the second-worst access to banks per population equating to just 4.6 branches per 100,000 people.

On the face of it, Scotland seems to have the best access to branches, at 6.9 per 100,000 people. But because the  population is spread unevenly across the country those living in more rural areas still face long journeys to use a bank.

The Which? report goes on to state that since January 2015, 6,161 branches have been shuttered across the country, which represents about 62% of the 2015 banking network. 
Further, across the UK, there are 30 parliamentary constituencies - totalling just over three million people - without a single bank branch, while another 56 are left with only one branch remaining.

What this means for many consumers and businesses is difficulty and inconvenience in accessing branch services. 
A recent study shows that many consumers have turned to the Post Office as an alternative; the Post Office reports handling a record amount of cash in July 2024 with customers either depositing or withdrawing more than £3.7bn. 

But what are the options for businesses who may have used their local branch to deposit cash takings and obtain supplies of coin and notes?

For some time now Loomis has been actively promoting the concept of ‘no more trips to the bank’ - and with it a range of services designed to support business owners and make cash management easier than it has ever been, even if there was a bank branch right on the doorstep!

The comprehensive range of Loomis Smart Safes Loomis aims to help you manage your daily cash with a comprehensive range of Smart Safes designed to protect and manage cash effectively and efficiently.
Combining secure intelligent safe technology with a top class cash collection service a Loomis Smart Safe offers: 

Automated cash collections
Counterfeit note checker
Full insurance of safe contents
Reduced shrinkage
24/7 visibility of takings across all sites
Full online reporting
Unique logon for each employee

The cost of the recently launched SafePoint Compact starts at as little as £34.00 per week.

In addition, Loomis has developed a comprehensive package of cash-in-transit services; to ensure a safe and timely service for money on the move and that cash takings are collected, transported and deposited in a secure and efficient manner. 

If your business needs a regular supply of notes, coins and floats, Loomis can ensure that you will always have the cash you need, and that all your surplus coin and notes are collected, counted and banked.

Even better, all of these services can be managed via the myLoomis Customer portal.

So, for many businesses, no more trips to the bank is definitely a positive!

Source :
https://www.which.co.uk/news/article/yorkshire-has-the-worst-bank-branch-access-in-the-country-anDj78P4KrHY