Society welcomes action on transparency and financial inclusion

Nationwide Building Society has welcomed the real progress made by the ATM taskforce in tackling the key issues of transparency over cash machine charges and financial inclusion.

Nationwide, which has long campaigned for greater transparency of cash machine charges and has highlighted the rapid growth in charging cash machines, estimates that next year consumers will pay almost £260 million to withdraw their own money from cash machines that charge.

Following the rapid growth in charging machines in recent years Nationwide particularly welcomes the fact that the task force has resulted in :

Charging cash machine operators agreeing to clearer, standard signs on all cash machines enabling consumers to see, at a glance, if they will be charged to withdraw their own money;

banks and building societies agreeing not to sell more of their ATMs to charging providers;

the industry agreeing action to tackle the impact of ATM charges on those who can least afford them.

The working group has today recommended:

The provision of clearer on-screen information, together with larger and standardised external signage;

Steps including a financial inclusion premium that will make it more viable for banks and building societies to put cash machines in low-income areas, so helping to promote financial inclusion.

Jeremy Wood, Nationwide director, said: "We have long campaigned for real action to protect the free cash machine network and today's report meets that goal. We are proud to have worked as part of the working group and are delighted that consensus has been reached.

"The provision of standardised signage is a significant step forward and means that consumers will be able to see at a glance whether or not a machine will charge them to withdraw their own money.

The announcement today is great news for consumers and it is important that providers do not renege on this agreement going forward."