How to get a cash machine in your area

Britain is marching a towards cashless society – here’s how to stop it in its tracks

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Getting access to your cash for free locally is not something that everyone can take for granted, as more and more bank branches pull down the shutters and yet another ATM bites the dust.
While the UK may be marching towards a cashless society, many people – including the elderly, the disabled and those on lower incomes – aren’t willing or able to make their financial transactions digitally.
The loss of bank branches, and the non-charging ATMs that come with them, can leave individuals feeling cut off. It can also have a major impact on a local community, especially in a rural or less-affluent area. 
When branches close, those who depend on paying with notes and coins in their daily lives, and who rely heavily on face-to-face services, find themselves having to travel further, or needing to use an alternative service. 
New research by Which? found that Yorkshire and the Humber is the region with the “fewest bank branches left per person” in the country, with just 248 left to serve a population of 5.6m people. This equates to 4.4 branches per 100,000 people.
Sam Richardson, of Which? Money, said: “While Yorkshire and Humber may hold the dubious record for the ‘worst branch access’, this is a nationwide problem.”
If you are in a place which feels under-served by cash machines, you may feel both frustrated and concerned. But the good news is, there’s action you can take. 
Here, Telegraph Money explains how the rules on access to cash are changing – and the steps you need to follow if you want to take matters into your own hands, including how to lobby to have a new ATM in your local area. 
New rules, overseen by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), recently came into play, which mean that banks will now need to give greater consideration to a local community’s cash needs before deciding to close a branch. 
Firms are required to check whether additional services will be needed should a branch shut its doors – or a free ATM be switched off – and keep facilities open until additional cash services are available.
The new rules will also give local residents more say over what their community’s cash needs are. 
Sheldon Mills, executive director for consumers and competition at the FCA, said: “Far fewer of us use cash day-to-day, but we do want to ensure reasonable access for those who continue to rely on cash.”
Where significant gaps are found, providers will have to deliver reasonable additional cash services, including “shared banking hubs”. These are premises shared between several banks where you can withdraw or deposit cash. Staff from different major banks are available on different days. 
Mr Richardson said: “New rules to protect free access to cash have been hard won and should make banks think twice before shutting branches without adequate replacements.”
He says banking hubs will play a ‘key role’ in replacing shuttered branches but warns that their rollout remains “far too slow for consumers to feel their benefits”.
According to Which?, just 81 hubs are currently open out of more than 160 recommended so far by Link, the body which oversees the country’s ATM network. 
Mr Richardson added: “The Government must hold banks’ feet to the fire to ensure the commitments they’ve made to set up 350 hubs by 2029 are met.”
Link has been working hard to fill the void created by the wave of bank and ATM closures. For several years, the not-for-profit organisation has been inviting people to get in touch when their local community has been left without free access to cash.
Since 2019, Link has funded the installation of 124 ATMs across the UK. 
So, if you’re in an area severely lacking in the ATM department, how exactly do you go about requesting one?
The good news is, it’s easy to highlight issues. Each and every request is assessed by the team at Link.
Nick Quin, head of financial inclusion at Link, said: “Whenever there is a change in how people access cash locally – such as a branch closure, or when an ATM closes – we do an assessment based on process and measures agreed by the major banks. We apply those same rules when someone contacts us about their area.”
First off, it’s worth checking out the Link “cash locator” tool to see what cash access is already available locally – you may not realise, for example, that there is an ATM in a nearby shop. 
If you’re still concerned, you can then lodge what is known as a “cash access request” with Link.
Anyone can make a request, including residents, businesses, local representatives and charities – you just need to do so in writing. 
You can complete the form online on the Link website, giving details of the postcode and the “problem”. Or you can print off this form, fill it in by hand and post it.
Link has 12 weeks to carry out an assessment and take action should it be deemed necessary. 
The organisation will consider whether there are sufficient places for both consumers and businesses to pay in and withdraw cash. This will involve looking at the community as a whole, including bank branches, post offices and ATMs. If Link thinks more options are needed, it will dig a little deeper.
Mr Quin said: “We get reams of data about the area. This includes researching things such as the proximity of the nearest bank, how easy it is to get there and how much it costs.” 
The body will also look at how many older people live nearby: “The next step involves us coming to visit so we can get feet on the ground. Then we can assess things in more detail, such as bus timetables, ticket prices and how steep any hills are.”
If Link deems that action is required, this can result in one of a host of additional cash services to meet the needs of the local area. This could be a free ATM, a cash deposit service or a banking hub.
Mr Quin said: “If we decide a community needs more services, Cash Access UK will usually be asked to deliver something that meets those needs.”
According to Link, a banking hub is likely to work best if there are more than 10,000 people in the local area and at least 70 shops.
Link’s latest recommendations for banking hubs include Newquay in Cornwall and North Berwick in Scotland. The most recent banking hubs to have opened are Thorne in South Yorkshire and Stalybridge in Greater Manchester. 
As a result of requests from local communities, free ATMs have been installed in Newbridge in Wales and in Burton Upon Stather in Lincolnshire in the last month.
Be aware that Link won’t make decisions based on the number of people behind a campaign.
Mr Quin said: “It’s not a case of ‘who shouts loudest.’ We want to find out which communities need support the most based on the data we gather and our local visits.”
In some cases, cash access requests will get turned down. 
Mr Quin said: “Often this is because there are already sufficient ATMs within the right distance.”
Guidelines say that at least 95pc of people who live in rural areas should have access to cash withdrawal and deposit services within three miles, and that 95pc of those who live in urban areas should be within one mile of these services.
He added: “We won’t always recommend new services. In some places, if what is already there has good capacity and meets local needs, it may continue to be suitable.”
If you have asked Link to look at your area, but think the organisation has got it wrong, you can ask for the decision to be reviewed in 28 days.
James Daley, of consumer group Fairer Finance, said: “Anyone can request a cash machine in their local area by going to the Link website, but you’ll need to make a compelling case that there’s a real need for it.”
If you do think there’s a gap, this could provide a basis for a valid request. 
“Bear in mind that installing an ATM is not the only way to get access to cash. It may be that supporting shops or garages to offer a cashback service is deemed to be the most cost-effective solution,” Mr Daley added.
“Once Link has carried out a review, it will determine what the best solutions are. In some instances, a deposit machine may be installed in shops or community hubs. 
“If something changes in your community which affects access to cash – such as the last branch closing – then banks are obliged to trigger a review of the community’s needs before they leave. Once a review has been completed, you can’t request another for at least 12 months.”
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