INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF £5 NOTE ATMS APPLAUDED BY LINK CONSUMER COMMITTEE

The LINK Consumer Committee welcomes the progress made in increasing the number of ATMs which dispense £5 notes as part of its annual report. The £5 note programme, which is supported by the Bank of England, has seen a huge and continuing improvement in the number of £5 note ATMs. There are now 3,954 ATMs dispensing “fivers” compared to just 670 in 2009. In addition, the LINK Consumer Committee welcomes the further progress across a range of areas, in particular the following;

• The spreading of the free-to-use ATM network into the UK’s most deprived areas, and LINK Members’ continuing commitment to this programme.
• The positive news regarding the drop in ATM fraud and the success of ongoing fraud prevention measures. However, the Committee would like to continue to reinforce the message that customers should protect their PIN at all times as this is by far the most effective anti-fraud measure available.

Dr Ken Andrew, LINK Chairman, commented: “The LINK Consumer Committee continues to make a significant contribution to ensuring that consumers’ interests are considered across the whole LINK Scheme. The Committee’s strong support for the expansion of the number of £5 note dispensing cash machines has helped to deliver an excellent result and help make cash even more convenient to consumers as part of their day-to-day lives.”

The Committee noted the general absence of consumer complaints about the functioning of the LINK Scheme – encouraging evidence that programmes to ensure the transparency of signage at pay-to-use cash machines and appropriate access to cash machines are achieving their intended aims.