THE SHETLAND Islands have been identified as having the second highest proportion of fee-charging cash machines in the UK - as concerns rise about the future of free ATMs.
More than half of the ATMs on the islands charge consumers to withdraw money, according to Which? research.
The consumer group discovered the issue while identifying over 200 communities in Britain with poor ATM provision, or none at all, which might be hardest hit by new proposals that it believes could reduce the cash machine network.
Which? says it is worried that proposals to lower fees paid by banks to access the network by 20 per cent to 20p per withdrawal could lead to mass closures of free-to-use ATM machines across Britain, hitting already suffering communities even harder.
The fee, currently set at 25p, is paid by banks per withdrawal to maintain the free-to-use ATM network and ends up being paid to cash machine operators such as the biggest Cardtronics.
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Cardtronics has already said that many of their free ATMs are "already under high financial pressure" and led to a decision to "switch off" 1,500 ATMs of its 16,300 cash machines in the UK at the end of last year.
They have warned that proposals to reduce the network fee starting with a five per cent cut at the beginning of April will leave them "no choice" but to pull out a "significant number of free ATMs straight away".
It added: "Many more ATMs will follow if the full 20 per cent cut goes ahead.
“There is no doubt about who will be hit hardest by these changes: it will not be busy high streets in big cities, but remote ATMs in rural communities, many of which were placed there to soften the blow of closing bank branches. This is why we are still trying to work with Link, the banks, retailers and politicians to find a last-minute solution and make sure we preserve our world-class system of free ATM access."
Which? research of local authority areas using LINK data ranked Shetland second only to Cherwell, Oxfordshire with the highest proportions of fee-charging ATMs in the UK.
In Cherwell 57 per cent of cash machines charges a fee, with Shetland just one percentage point behind. This was followed by North Warwickshire (52 per cent), Purbeck, Dorset (47 per cent) and Great Yarmouth, Norfolk (43 per cent).
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Which? said it was concerned that the latest proposals could result in consumers "struggling to access free withdrawals with mainly fee-charging machines remaining".
The consumer organisation said it wants the Payment Systems Regulator to conduct an urgent review to fully evaluate the impact that the fee changes could have on consumers, millions of whom rely on the free-to-use network to access cash, including looking at alternative options for protecting consumers.
A spokesman said: "Which? wants the needs of consumers to be put first, rather than pressure from some banks to cut costs, and discourage use of cash, leading to a situation where accessing cash becomes a problem."
Lerwick North councillor John Fraser said that the the rise of fee-charging ATMs something he would "look closely into" and that he would raise with community councillors and other groups.
"In the centre of Lerwick there is no problem in accessing a free ATM, however in the outskirts they are not quite as accessible. I supposed it is down to the banks to place them in appropriate sites," he said.
Mike Cherry, the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) chairman said: “This new research shows that the UK’s cash machine network is already failing small businesses, particularly in rural areas and tourist hotspots where cash flow is absolutely vital to local growth. If funding for cashpoint providers is cut, things could rapidly go from bad to worse."
John Howells, chief executive at LINK said: “The UK has one of the largest free-to-use ATM networks anywhere in the world, and the number of free ATMs is at an all-time high and rising. There are 31 ATMs across Shetland and Orkney, 20 of these are free to use.
“We welcome the research produced by Which? and will review all of the areas that it has identified and take action if there is inadequate free ATM provision. LINK is always looking for ways to improve the network, and extend our Financial Inclusion Programme, which today subsidies ATMs in over 1,000 less affluent and rural communities.”
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