Bushmills Northern Bank to shut
Thursday, 11 September 2008
The Northern Bank branch in Bushmills is closing from December.
A lack of competition is being blamed for the imminent closure of the Northern Bank in Bushmills, which has left customers angry and disappointed.
The bank will close its doors for the last time in early December, and customer accounts will be automatically transferred to the Coleraine branch on November 21.
Local stakeholders have reacted angrily to the news. There will be no job losses and the ATM machine will be retained, but this is proving to be little comfort to the effected customers.
Chairperson of Moyle District Council, UUP councillor William Graham, said Bushmills residents were devastated at the news of the closure.
He said: "This news has left Bushmills and the rural area devastated as so many people use the bank. We have hundreds of thousands of visitors to the Causeway area every year, and they travel through the village and use the bank.
“Older people who receive their pensions through the bank will see this as a big shock. I hope some other bank will think of taking over in the village, and the Northern Bank customers could go there instead.
“The first I heard about the closure was when I received a phone call from the bank's headquarters. We had heard nothing before that, so it was a big shock."
Northern Bank's Regional General Manager for the area, Stephen Bloomfield, said the decision to close the Bushmills branch was not taken lightly, and customers would be treated with priority during the changeover period.
He said: "I realise that the news will be disappointing for our customers and assure them that we made the decision to close after careful consideration.
“The reality is that we have six branches in the North Coast area alone and in an intensely competitive market this number of branches in such close proximity is no longer viable.
“We have therefore decided to streamline our resources by merging the Bushmills branch with Coleraine, where we have a team of personal advisors, dedicated business managers and agribusiness managers.
Priority
Mr Bloomfield said that customers are not required to take any action and they can ask for their account to be transferred to a branch other than Coleraine.
Customers with card based accounts will be able use any Post Office to withdraw cash and obtain account balances at no extra cost.
“We are making it a priority to support our Bushmills customers in this transition. I or any of my colleagues will be happy to discuss how we can best meet their everyday banking requirements and we look forward to continuing to provide a high level of customer service," he said.
Portballintrae resident Ken Blair described the forthcoming closure as an 'utter scandal'.
He said: "The first we heard about it was when we received a letter in the post this morning (Friday, September 5). There was no rumours before this so it came as a big shock.
“Alot of people have accounts in the Bushmills branch and now the nearest bank to us is in Portrush or Coleraine. We have half a million visitors to the area every year and they always use the bank, and they come all year round, not just in the summer months.
“How they can close it I don't know. There has been no consultation process and there was always a queue in the bank. I don't know how they worked out that it is worthwhile to keep both Portstewart and Portrush open."
Competition
At a meeting of Moyle District Council on Monday, September 8, news of the closure was met with cross party condemnation.
Bushmills DUP councillor, Robert McIlroy, said he blamed a lack of banking competition in the village for the decision.
