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UK to form committee on cash access amid ATM fee increases

May 3, 2019

The U.K. government has announced that it will form a committee to ensure Britons' continued free access to cash. A blog posted by the U.K. watchdog group Which said that hundreds of free cash machines have disappeared from the nation's high streets in recent months.

Further a report by The Guardian said that 1,700 ATM of the U.K.'s approximately 52,000 free-to-use ATMs have switched to fee-charging in just the first three months of this year.

According to Which, "The new Joint Authorities Cash Strategy Group will be chaired by the Treasury, and include the Payment Systems Regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority and the Bank of England. It aims to provide an oversight of the entire cash system in the U.K."

The blog post asserts that creation of a committee is a good start, but much more must be done to ensure continued convenient cash availability.

"Millions of people across the UK who rely on cash in their daily lives are currently at risk of being stripped of their ability to pay for essential goods and services," Which head of campaigns David Chaplin was quoted as saying. "This new body must act urgently to address rapid changes to the cash landscape, as its success will be judged by how it ensures people can continue to access their preferred payment method in the face of bank branch closures and cashpoint closures, intermittent broadband access and regular IT glitches affecting digital payment methods."