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BRITONS were charged £104million to withdraw their own money from cash machines last year, research found.
That was £29million more than in 2018, according to Which?. It came as figures from UK network Link showed branch closures and a shake-up of the ATM network saved banks £120million.
There are 8,700 fewer free ATMs since changes to how Link is funded were made in January 2018, and it has been ‘highly lucrative for big banks but highly costly for consumers’, said Gareth Shaw, head of money at Which?.
Calling for laws to protect free access to cash, he added: ‘Entire communities have been forced to pay hefty fees to access their own money. Banks must take greater responsibility to ensure customers are not left behind by changes to the banking landscape.’
Over the last two years, the number of fee-charging ATMs rose 37 per cent from 11,120 to 15,277. A quarter of the network now charges customers up to £2 to make a withdrawal.
Natalie Ceeney, who carried out a recent Access To Cash review, said: ‘It’s a tax on the most vulnerable in society.’
John Howells, chief executive of Link network, said: ‘People don’t like paying to access their money and Link agrees. It’s important we continue to have an extensive, UK-wide free-to-use network.’
‘Emoji’ jacket blazes a trail for cyclists
A CYCLING jacket featuring an LED panel that lets cyclists communicate their mood by displaying emojis has been unveiled by Ford.
The ‘emoji jacket’, which is controlled by a wireless remote attached to the handlebars, can also display hazard warnings and indicators for when the cyclist needs to make a turn.
Created with industrial design firm Designworks, it has been unveiled as part of Ford’s Share The Road campaign that promotes safe cycling. The scheme also encourages more people to use cycling for short journeys as a means to protect the environment.
Language expert Dr Neil Cohn said: ‘Emojis have become a fundamental part of how we use language. Whether used to convey facial expressions, humour or sarcasm, they have become integral to our ability to express ourselves and quickly.’ He added the jacket ‘allows riders to express their feelings and creates an important emotional link between them and other road users’.
Boom as jobs market in ‘very good health’
THE new year has brought a jobs boom, with more roles on offer and a rise in applications, figures show.
The number of positions on jobs site CV-Library was almost 201,000 last month, up from 195,432 in January 2019.
Vacancies increased by a quarter in social care, by a fifth in IT and legal and around 13 per cent in design and telecoms.
CV-Library chief executive Lee Biggins said the significant year-on-year growth in vacancies and applications showed ‘the job market is in a very healthy position’.
Business bites
■ POUNDLAND plans to sell more children’s clothes as it extends a trial with Pep&Co. The budget retailer is piloting a wider range of clothing in 50 concessions. More than 300 stores currently stock Pep&Co.
■ ROYAL Mail will push ahead with a £1.8billion overhaul but warned that looming strike action by the Communications Workers Union and Brexit uncertainty could lead to losses in its letters and parcels arm.
■ DEBIT card spending at Lloyds Bank was up £100million in the first two weeks of January compared with a year earlier. Customers spent a total of £4.3billion — with around £325million going on meals out.
■ TATE & LYLE has kept its guidance unchanged for the year ending March 31. The food ingredients maker expects ‘flat or low single digit’ profit growth and said sales in all regions topped the comparative period in the last quarter.
■ TWITTER’S net earnings fell from £197million in the fourth quarter in 2018 to £92million last year. Revenue rose 11 per cent to just over $1billion (£780million) while daily users were up to 152million, from 145million.
