In 2000 I was on one of my frequent visits to my mother in Cardiff and I arrived home to find that she was upset that the only bank that was near enough for her to walk to was being shut. NatWest was about to close a small viable branch on the Lakeside estate in Roath, Cardiff. I started a correspondence that exposed the bank for what it was arrogant; careless, thoughtless and more concerned with its outlandish profits than the people who made them. I suppose you could say in hindsight the correspondence was prescient and the bank went and excelled itself in the economic debacle that has followed since. The profoundly irritating thing about this occurrence was that – as is most often the case – the people on the front line, who are invariably helpful and courteous are as troops in the First World War, “lions led by donkeys”. The full correspondence is on the file below and finally ends up with a successful complaint to the Independent Television Commission. Needless to say my mother moved her bank account elsewhere to a bank with the presence of mind to ensure that their customers could also bank at the Post Office.
“My mother,after having been through two world wars and, in the eventide of her life, is now faced with blatant age discrimination and financial fascism……………….”
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Please click on Natwest 2000 to access the correspondence