With the closure of the Waipukurau branch, Westpac customers looking to do their banking in person will have to do so in Dannevirke or Hastings. Photo / Rachel Wise
With the closure of the Waipukurau branch, Westpac customers looking to do their banking in person will have to do so in Dannevirke or Hastings. Photo / Rachel Wise
The Westpac Bank branch in Waipukurau is closing for good from December 24.
The four employees of the branch were advised of the pending closure this morning, and a Westpac NZ spokesperson said they will have the opportunity for redeployment.
They said the lease to the branch building on Ruataniwha St has expired, and is not being renewed.
"Given the continuing low numbers of people now making branch visits, we have decided not to reopen the branch in a different location in Waipukurau," the spokesperson said.
They said over-the-counter transactions have fallen by 65 per cent nationally in the past four years.
"There are now 100 log-ins to online banking for each transaction in a branch. Covid-19 has accelerated these trends. In our Waipukurau branch, over-the-counter transactions fell 31 per cent in the year to September 30, 2020.
A Westpac spokesperson said over-the-counter transactions at the Waipukurau branch fell 31 per cent in the year to September 30. Photo / Rachel Wise
"We would like to apologise to our local customers for the short notice but hope they understand why this decision was reached."
Central Hawke's Bay Mayor Alex Walker said she was devastated for both the employees and the community they will no longer serve.
She said she understood the decision the banks needed to make given declining over-the-counter transactions:
"But for this decision to be put onto their staff, and our community the week before Christmas, is unacceptable."
Mayor Walker said the people of Waipukurau are older than the national population on average, with many elderly and retirees who might struggle to navigate digital platforms.
Last month BNZ announced it was closing its Waipukurau and Dannevirke branches between April and June next year.
"Do not think that you can leave your moral obligation to your vulnerable clients for our community to pick up the pieces.
"They need to step up and have a clear system about how they are going to look after their customers, and our most needy people in our community."
She said they should be responsible for helping people transition away from over-the-counter banking.
"If the banks are willing to proactively engage with the community and help design support, then council and our community networks will assist that, but they need to be committed to putting that in place," Walker said.
The Waipukurau branch was already operating with limited hours from 10am to 2pm on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays only.
Dannevirke's Westpac is open on the same days from 10am to 1pm.
That branch and the one in Hastings are the closest Westpac branches to Waipukurau.
At the time of the BNZ announcement, Jan Pentecost, president of the Grey Power Federation, said the organisation was "disappointed" at the news.
"We have lobbied relevant agencies since 2016 to ensure, to the best of our ability, that older people are not disadvantaged by bank closures and the transfer of banking business to digital technology because numerous older people do not or cannot use the internet," she said.
"Some live in rural areas with only intermittent or no internet coverage, hearing and sight difficulties mean that telephone discussions with banking staff is challenging, access to banking facilities far removed from their home is difficult because many can no longer drive and all this requires the growing dependence of the elderly to allow others to manage their finances, potentially leading to elder abuse."
