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Continuing rumours that ASB is planning to permanently close its Wellsford branch have been denied by the bank this month.
ASB’s head of external communications, Brigitte Ransom, said while the branch at 139 Rodney Street was currently operating temporary reduced hours as a result of Covid-19, the bank hoped to return to normal opening hours soon.
“We have no current plans to close our Wellsford branch,” she said. “We will continue to monitor the progression and impact of Covid-19 but expect Wellsford to return to normal opening hours in the next month or so.”
And she added that the current closure of the Warkworth ASB branch was also just a temporary measure.
“Our Warkworth branch is temporarily closed and we look forward to reopening to customers in the coming weeks, as the impact of Covid in the community declines,” she said.
“In the meantime, our Warkworth team is helping to back up our phone and online teams, as we have seen a significant uptick in customers choosing to use these channels rather than coming into branches in person.”
Rumours that the Wellsford branch was set for closure originally surfaced after the first lockdown in 2020, when its opening hours were reduced from five days a week to three, and they continue to resurface on local social media pages.
Meanwhile, a new Consumer NZ survey has found that customer trust in banks is fading fast, with almost three quarters of New Zealanders thinking they charge too much and need monitoring more closely, and half thinking they can’t be trusted.
Consumer NZ chief executive Jon Duffy said the rising cost of living was the most concerning issue for the majority of those surveyed.
“While the cost of living soars, banks are reporting major profits, which is not going unnoticed by customers,” he said.
“Consumers are telling us that the bigger half of the banking industry is doing poorly on customer service … the big banks should note that consumers see a lot of room for improvement.”
Omicron hours – what’s open and when in Wellsford and Warkworth
Wellsford
ASB Tuesday and Thursday, 9am-4.30pm
Kiwibank (NZ Post) Monday to Friday, 8.30am-5pm
Warkworth
ASB closed
ANZ Monday to Friday, 9am-4.30pm
BNZ Tuesday and Thursday, 10am-4pm
Kiwibank (NZ Post) Monday to Friday, 9am-4pm
Westpac Monday to Friday, 10am-2pm
