23 January 2024 , 15:42
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Over half a million members of the Yorkshire Building Society used traditional passbooks in branches last year, despite the rise of apps and digital banking.
The society reported that 550,000 members used passbooks, a physical record of transactions, between January and September. The society, which has nearly three million customers, said these members used their passbooks at least once during this period for various transactions.
A survey by Opinium found that while 57% prefer online banking and 47% enjoy using apps, 22% still prefer visiting their local branch. This preference rises to almost a third (31%) among people aged over 55. Over a quarter (27%) of those surveyed said they visit their local branch at least once a month. Interestingly, one in six (16%) people surveyed said they still hold a passbook.
When it comes to dealing with complex financial needs, 27% of people prefer face-to-face information in a branch. However, 36% would use websites and 27% would seek information through a firm's app. When choosing a savings provider, over a quarter (26%) of people said having the ability to visit a local branch was the most important factor.
Chris Irwin, director of savings at Yorkshire Building Society, said: "Helping people to save and to build up financial resilience is a key part of our purpose at Yorkshire Building Society. As this research shows, offering customers a choice of access is vitally important. Digital adoption has understandably sped up as a quick and easy alternative to face-to-face contact, especially during recent years, but we know a large amount of people still value in-branch banking and physical records."
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He added: "Making savings accessible for our customers in a way that best suits them, be that in one of our branches, online or via our app, supports our aim to continue to provide real help to our customers and members." Yorkshire Building Society, which includes Chelsea Building Society and Norwich & Peterborough Building Society, has assets of £62.2 billion.
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