News

Australian govt. to propose ATM safety measures

February 19, 2004

MELBOURNE, Australia - The Victorian government will legislate to force banks to provide better security outside ATMs, according to a report in The Age.

Police and Emergency Services Minister Andre Haermeyer said he had "lost patience" with the banks following a meeting when the banks refused to pilot ATM safety measures.

Haermeyer said the government planned to bring on legislation requiring improved safety at ATMs in the autumn session of parliament, which begins next month. Under the new rules, banks will be required to install and monitor closed-circuit security cameras in key sites, to conduct safety audits of ATM sites and improve lighting and landscaping in surrounding areas.

"We're now regulating, whether they like it or not. It will be done on our terms rather than theirs," he said.

Haermeyer accused the banks of not negotiating in good faith after repeated indications they would agree to pilot safety measures, according to the Agereport.

"We've all benefitted of course from the convenience of having access to 24-hour cash," Haermeyer said. "But at the same time the banks have made sometimes obscene profits as a result of replacing people with machines. It is not unreasonable to ask the banks to invest some of those profits in the safety of their customers."

However, David Bell, chief executive of the Australian Bankers' Association (ABA), said he was "surprised and disappointed" at the legislation plan "when the banking industry is still in good faith negotiations."

Bell said meetings with the government resulted in an agreement, "subject to some fine-tuning," to introduce ATM customer safety guidelines and do a study of monitored closed circuit TV cameras at selected ATMs.

The banking industry was still expecting more discussion on the safety measures with the state government, according to Bell.

Bell also said that Haermeyer's proposing legislation will affect banks only. "Only 55 percent of automatic teller machines are owned by banks. The rest are operated by third-party providers. The legislation should cover all ATMs," he said.

He said police figures showed 8,830 incidents of street crime in 2003 but only 40 incidents directly related to ATMs. "That relates to one incident in every 2 million transactions. It is an extremely low level," he said.

Catherine Wolthuizen, finance policy officer with the Australian Consumers Association, said improved security was welcome, but there was a risk the legislation could provoke banks to cut costs by closing ATMs.

"Requiring ATMs in high-risk locations to have cameras may provide a deterrent to robberies at ATMs," she said. "But... bear in mind that when it comes to cutting costs, banks don't have a good track record of putting consumers first."