Virgin Money in Whitby to close
Whitby is one of nine branches across Yorkshire to shut early next year
Virgin Money in Whitby is going to close as the bank adapts to changing customer demand.
The bank says it regularly reviews the ways customers use its stores, as well as its online, mobile and telephone channels, so that it can adapt its services to meet changing customer demand.
It adds that the number of customers using bank branches for day-to-day transactions has been on a downward trajectory across the UK banking industry for a number of years, and this has been further accelerated by the pandemic.
Virgin Money says the decision to close a store is based on a number of factors, including location, usage, proximity to alternative stores and lease arrangements. Each store was assessed on an individual basis, with careful consideration of the impact on the local area, as well as the needs of vulnerable customers and the accessibility of alternative services such as free-to-use ATMs and the Post Office.
Customers can use Post Offices for day‐to-day banking, including cash deposits and withdrawals, cheque deposits and balance enquiries, as well as coin exchange.
The Virgin Money closure in Whitby affects the branch on Baxtergate which will close on 6th January 2022. It means if people need to use Virgin Money, they will have to travel to Scarborough's Huntriss Row instead.
Fergus Murphy, Group Customer Experience Director at Virgin Money said:
“As our customers change the way they want to bank with us and conduct fewer transactions in-store, we must continue to evolve the role of our stores into places where we showcase our products and bring our digital services to life.”
Virgin Money says it is their intention to find alternative roles wherever possible, either within other stores locally or elsewhere in the group. It also says some staff will be at risk of redundancy.