Banks should remember it is customers who have put them where they are, the least they can do is provide banking hubs - Yorkshire Post Letters

There has been much in the media recently regarding the closure of bank branches, with only Wakefield, Pontefract and Castleford left with in-person banking services across the Wakefield Metropolitan district (The YP, December 7).

I am one of many affected this way, being notified in June of this year that the branch I have used in Pontefract for the last 54 years would be closing in September. The nearest branches would then be in Wakefield or Barnsley.

Not to worry though, the bank wasn’t abandoning its customers but would be providing a service for non-cash related queries in a public building such as the town hall or library, a service which would open as soon as the branch closed.

I was reassured by this as I have mobile and internet banking and I drive, but at the age of 75 I would be unwilling to drive 15 or 20 miles, find somewhere to park and pay for the privilege before joining a queue in my ‘nearest’ branch to deal with a non-cash related query.

However, the promised local service never materialised so I phoned the bank in early October, and after navigating the usual menu of buttons to press I eventually managed to speak to an actual person.

He said there had been problems setting up the service, but said he couldn’t understand why the branch had closed in the first place as it was a very busy one. He could understand my frustration and asked if I would like to make an official complaint, and as I had nothing to lose I agreed.

I had already decided to switch my current account to First Direct, which not only has helpful real people on the end of the phone but also provides cheque books – important to those of us who still use them.

I have an ISA with my original bank so I still have the app. On November 21 I received a message to say there was a new document waiting for me with regards to the complaint. I have tried many times to open the document but I am told, ‘Something has gone wrong. Please try again.’

Something has certainly gone wrong. Banks should remember it is their customers who have put them where they are today, and they should at least combine with others to provide banking hubs in every area affected by closure for those people who find face-to face contact essential.