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Santander is lopping an hour off the opening time of hundreds of its branches, admitting customers only for pre-booked appointments in the late afternoon.
From 18 July, branches will shut for general inquiries at 15:00 instead of the current closing time of 16:30. Hundreds will also only have half-day opening on a Saturday.
Staff will be in branches for face-to-face appointments between 15:00 and 17:00 if customers need support that cannot be provided online, on the phone, or earlier in the day.
The bank says the move is in response to changing customer behaviour and would ensure that none of its 450 branches would close.
Santander announced plans to close 111 branches in May last year.
Richard Owen, head of branches at Santander, says the number of customers using its branches had fallen by 33% over the two years before the coronavirus pandemic, and a further 50% in 2020, and 12% in 2021.
“These changes will enable us to maintain our existing branch network while providing significant additional capacity to help customers who want to talk to us by phone,” he says. “We want to make sure we have the right mix of channels to help our customers however they choose to bank with us.”
Financial Services
