Santander to slash opening hours at hundreds of branches - here's what you need to know

Thrugelmir

k_man said:

Thrugelmir said:

Slash in the title makes the changes sound very dramatic. 

Indeed.
A cynic would suggest this is almost a sensationalistic title/headline.
Reduce or cut would have been less emotive term.

Wouldn't count as a moral dilemma though if that were the case. Rational conversation is soon to be outlawed I'm led to understand. 

400ixl

As with many banks they have teamed up with the Post Office to be able to provide common services https://www.santander.co.uk/personal/support/ways-to-bank/at-the-post-office

It is going to be the people using appointment based services who will likely be the ones realistically seeing the hours of availability reduced that don't have alternative offerings like the Post Office. As these are appointments, then typically they are things that people have made special arrangements for anyway.

Not sure this is big news for the vast majority of their customers once they understand the alternatives.

gd55

I got a letter through the post today. I rarely need to go into a branch - once at Christmas when grandma sends me a cheque, and maybe one or two other times to pay in my small change.
I believe I can do things at the Post Office, but not sure if I can throw all my 1ps and 2ps at them loose or if I'd need to do in whole £ bags, and for cheques you have to pre-order your slips so not particularly practical.
I suspect in a year or two I won't be doing either of those things at all, and in the meantime I can get there on a Saturday. 

eskbanker

400ixl said:

It is going to be the people using appointment based services who will likely be the ones realistically seeing the hours of availability reduced that don't have alternative offerings like the Post Office. As these are appointments, then typically they are things that people have made special arrangements for anyway.

But Santander have specifically said that the existing hours will be retained for appointments, and the reduction only applies to walk-ins....

Rob5342

gd55 said:

I got a letter through the post today. I rarely need to go into a branch - once at Christmas when grandma sends me a cheque, and maybe one or two other times to pay in my small change.
I believe I can do things at the Post Office, but not sure if I can throw all my 1ps and 2ps at them loose or if I'd need to do in whole £ bags, and for cheques you have to pre-order your slips so not particularly practical.
I suspect in a year or two I won't be doing either of those things at all, and in the meantime I can get there on a Saturday. 

Santander are very behind the times as you can't pay in via their app, but they do have an address you can send them to (you just need to write your account details and postcode on the back)

brewerdave

Hardly matters much now round where I live -Santander have already closed the three branches that were convenient to travel to !!

Section62

born_again said:

Given 24/7 internet banking & near enough 24 hour phone banking. Do we really need branches open long hours?
 

Yes.  Whilst some banks insist on people going to a branch with ID documents to prove who they are (e.g. because they got their phone banking security details wrong three times in a row), or because the bank is unwilling/unable to use electronic ID verification, or because they say the only way to withdraw money/close an account is to attend in person with photo ID.

Once issues like that have been addressed we may be able to consign bank branches to the history books.  Until then, some people will need bank branches that are accessible (both by distance and hours of opening)

[Deleted User]

Rob5342 said:

gd55 said:

I got a letter through the post today. I rarely need to go into a branch - once at Christmas when grandma sends me a cheque, and maybe one or two other times to pay in my small change.
I believe I can do things at the Post Office, but not sure if I can throw all my 1ps and 2ps at them loose or if I'd need to do in whole £ bags, and for cheques you have to pre-order your slips so not particularly practical.
I suspect in a year or two I won't be doing either of those things at all, and in the meantime I can get there on a Saturday. 

Santander are very behind the times as you can't pay in via their app, but they do have an address you can send them to (you just need to write your account details and postcode on the back)

Trouble is they seem to try and update stuff and make it worse. They replaced the ATMs at local branch a year or two ago, previously said machines had been there almost 30 years. Old but worked fine. These new ATMs are touch screen and most of the time they don't respond or keep breaking down. I tried to do something in the app the other day for a family member and it is extremely limited compared to other banks. 

keiran

The only reason I may need to go to a bank is to deposit a cheque.  Most banks now allow this by app, but not Santander yet....