Following a decision taken by Bank of Ireland several weeks ago to close a considerable number of its branches throughout the country during the Covid-19 crisis, Fianna Fáil TD Mary Butler, has called on the bank to look into providing a lodgement facility for customers in Lismore.
Speaking to The Avondhu, Deputy Butler said: “This issue was raised by me, as many constituents contacted me, and they were disappointed that they couldn’t lodge cheques in Bank of Ireland, Lismore,” adding that the travel distance to Dungarvan and Fermoy is ‘a huge deterrent for a lot of people’.
Closures
Bank of Ireland temporarily closed 101 branches in towns and villages across Ireland in late March, with 161 sites remaining open.
Closures in the Avondhu region included the Bank of Ireland in Mitchelstown, Glanmire, and Lismore, with only external ATM services still being available to customers.
Deputy Butler acknowledged the scale of the current health crisis, along with the bank’s reasons for shuttering some locations, however she stressed that people in Lismore ought to be able to at least process lodgements at the Bank of Ireland in the West Waterford town.
“Customers in West Waterford will have to travel either 25km to Dungarvan or 27km to Fermoy if they want to lodge money,” the TD said.
She went on to state: “My main concern is that people may feel the need to keep their cash and cheques in their homes rather than making the journey to lodge them.”
Concluding, the West Waterford TD reaffirmed her commitment to continuing to engage with Bank of Ireland in order to see what other options could be explored to facilitate lodgement facilities in Lismore.
