Bank opening hours during this lockdown

Gsaver1

Why can banks not stagger their hours instead of just opening the same hours during the week? Those who arrived at this decision should give themselves a head wobble imo.

cricidmuslibale

I couldn't agree more with staggering opening hours and not just during periods of lockdown either! Apart from anything else, if in relatively normal times some banks were to open from 9am to 4pm say, some from 10am to 5pm and perhaps some from 11am to 6pm too, then it might help other business to adopt similar flexible working hours which could go some way to easing severe traffic congestion and the resultant significant amounts of pollution this causes during 'rush hour' periods!

[Deleted User]

They are doing what they can get away with.

e.g. Nationwide Building Society doesn't allow Post Office cash/cheque deposits, app doesn't do cheque deposits. Plus, an already very sparse branch network with very limited hours (basically an extended lunch hour) and a refusal to open on Saturdays.

born_again

Gsaver1 said:

Why can banks not stagger their hours instead of just opening the same hours during the week? Those who arrived at this decision should give themselves a head wobble imo.

Why should they? 
What benefit would it give the bank?
Same times as pre pandemic, yet people did not complain then....
Other shops/services do not.

eskbanker

I can see the argument that those banks currently operating reduced opening hours could assist customers by continuing to offer services across their normal hours, so, for example, alternating mornings and afternoons instead of all mornings, if that's what OP means by a decision being arrived at....

General_Grant

born_again said:

Gsaver1 said:

Why can banks not stagger their hours instead of just opening the same hours during the week? Those who arrived at this decision should give themselves a head wobble imo.

Why should they? 
What benefit would it give the bank?
Same times as pre pandemic, yet people did not complain then....
Other shops/services do not.

If some bank branches are opening  the same hours as before then it is also true that many are not. 
For example, if I could only get to a Halifax branch at 3 pm on a weekday afternoon or on a Saturday morning I wouldn't find them open these days.  They were certainly open at those times in 2019.

Notepad_Phil

I can see some positives for the people who use the banks, but I can only see negatives for the employees of the banks, especially those with children.

spenderdave

I am puzzled why when Post Offices and other shops (where open) can open for more or less their normal times that the banks are still having restricted hours.

jbrassy

Do people still go to bank branches? Haven't stepped foot in one for years. Internet banking is open 24/7. Failing that, open a First Direct account and you can ring them 24/7.

BrownTrout

jbrassy said:

Do people still go to bank branches? Haven't stepped foot in one for years. Internet banking is open 24/7. Failing that, open a First Direct account and you can ring them 24/7.

i went to a building society branch for the first time in years this summer to have some cheques done, but thats been in about 4 years

colsten

BrownTrout said:

jbrassy said:

Do people still go to bank branches? Haven't stepped foot in one for years. Internet banking is open 24/7. Failing that, open a First Direct account and you can ring them 24/7.

i went to a building society branch for the first time in years this summer to have some cheques done, but thats been in about 4 years

Many banks offer mobile cheque deposits for up to £500 (or even up to £1,000 during pandemic); for almost all banks, you can deposit higher value cheques at Post Offices, and where that's not an option, you can post the cheque to your Bank / Building Society. So even frequent cheque depositors can easily get by without a Bank branch. I am quite baffled by the OP's complaint, as all essential financial matters can surely be handled either without going to a Branch, or within the opening hours, even if they are now restricted to limit personal contacts and the spread of the virus.