One in six Dutch people have great difficulty arranging banking affairs. This threatens a dichotomy, warns De Nederlandsche Bank (DNB).
DNB, the supervisory authority for banks, investigated the extent to which people can participate in the digitization of payments. Civil society organizations such as the Consumers’ Association and senior citizens’ associations are shocked by the findings. They find the size of the group particularly worrying: 2.6 million people.
“This research is a breakthrough. It makes a large group of invisible bank customers visible”, the organizations state. “It is clear that this is not a temporary group of elderly people that will disappear by itself.” In addition to the elderly, it also concerns low literate people, people with a disability and people with a migration background who do not speak the language sufficiently.
Reporting that the card has been stolen or opening a bank account via the app is beyond the reach of many people
Almost all banking matters can now be arranged on a mobile phone or via the internet. Banks are closing branches on a large scale because far fewer customers are using them. In 2011 there were 2654 bank branches, at the end of 2021 only 726, DNB reports. A decrease of more than 70 percent.
Most people are still able to do everyday tasks, such as paying with your card at the checkout of a store. But reporting that the card has been stolen or opening a bank account via the app, for example, is beyond the reach of many people.
‘If I had a question, I would walk into the bank branch. But then the office closed’
Jos Niels (72) from Gendt in Gelderland knows from experience how difficult it is to arrange banking affairs as a low-literate person. ,,I can’t read everything, they use difficult sentences, difficult words and also a lot of English terms. If they do it in easy language, anyone can read it.”
He has been illiterate almost all of his life. “When I was six years old I had an accident to my eye. Then I missed half a year of school. At the insistence of my parents, I went anyway. But I fell further and further behind.” Low literacy never seemed to be an obstacle. “I had my own company, a flower shop with 35 employees. There was always someone who could do things for me.”
Banking was also no problem for a long time. “If I had a question, I would walk into the bank branch and they would help me. But then the office closed.” A service point came back for it, but Jos only found that out much later. “Now I walk in there if I have a question.”
But now Jos can save himself quite well. He went back to school and speaks to the banks on behalf of the illiterate. ,, People used to talk about low literacy, now with. That works. It has already become a lot better.” That also applies to Jos. “I belong now. I used to be at the back and I wanted to flee. Now I am much more confident.”
Unclear instructions, inaccessible ATMs
This has several causes. For example, the instructions are not clear to some people. They don’t understand the lyrics. For people with poor eyesight, the letters on the screen are often too small. And a frequently heard complaint is that the time to perform actions, for example typing in a pin code, is too short. People are then kicked out and have to log in again.
People in wheelchairs complain that ATMs are not always accessible to them. They are sometimes so high in the wall that they cannot put their card in it. They also do not get enough time to perform actions. They then have to start over and that causes stress, especially if there is a queue behind them.
Another complaint is that ATMs often only dispense €50 notes. Low incomes do not always have 50 euros in their account. And this group pays cash more often, to keep an overview of their expenses. They would like smaller denominations, for example banknotes of 5 and 10 euros.
Powerless and at risk of abuse
It’s all too complicated for some 400,000 people. They are forced to outsource all their banking affairs. This makes them feel powerless, angry or even inferior. In addition, many people do not like having their banking done by someone else, because of the risk of abuse.
Customers indicate that they prefer to have a fixed point of contact at the bank. Someone they can call with questions. People also find the service points, where people can go for help, a good solution. The problem is that many people do not know where the service points are, or that they do not know that the bank offers a personal coach or, for example, help at home.
Banks promise improvement
The banks say in a response that they will offer extra help. In doing so, they ensure that there will always be the option of non-digital banking. They also promise to improve information for people who cannot come along.
That promise does not go far enough for civil society organisations. They want the certainty that customers who prefer to transfer money and want paper statements of their transactions will no longer pay for this. Many people in that target group don’t have it wide.
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