UK ATM Industry Association Says Funding Issues Must Be Solved

There are currently around 16,000 ATM’s in the UK that charge customers for using their services and more than 54,000 ATM’s that offer their services free of charge. The ATM Industry Association in the United Kingdom is trying to secure sufficient funding so that these 54,000 ATM’s can continue to offer their services to customers in the UK free of charge.

The Association recently announced that if the funding issues surrounding its Link cash-points which are free to use does not get solved in the near future, it could result in a shortage of cash supply and create a number of concerns.

It is estimated that it takes close to £1 billion each year to fund these free ATMs. Members of the association met last week to discuss the issue and have decided to set up a committee who would focus on finding a way of how these free Link cash-points can be sustained.

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The association has warned that nearly 8,000 of these free to use ATMs will have to start charging for their service, if a solution is not found quickly. This would account for nearly 35 percent of the total free to use ATMs in the country. Should this occur, the areas that are most likely to be impacted are London, Cardiff, Birmingham, Sheffield, Glasgow and Belfast.

The Association stated that its number one priority right now was to address the issue and secure a means for getting sufficient funds to continue to offer these free to use ATMs. The chairman of the Treasury Committee Andrew Tyrie stated that members of parliament could get involved if the association did not fix the problem quickly.

In a statement, Tyrie said

Widespread charging would be of considerable concern, particularly in rural areas and poorer urban neighbourhoods. Link now have an opportunity to sort it out. If they don't, the Treasury Committee will almost certainly need to investigate.

The chief executive of Link, John Howells said that as of now there are no concerns with the Link network as it continues to function as usual and consumers using its 70,000 ATMs in the country will face no problem. Howell went on to say that the association will be in touch with all 39 members and ensure that all consumer groups, government and regulators are kept abreast of the situation.

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