Surcharging ATMs to outnumber free to use machines

According to new findings from Sainsbury's Bank, by October 2007 there could be more fee-charging cash machines in the UK than free-to-use ones. Indeed, between June 2004 and June 2005, around 286 surcharging ATMs were installed every month as opposed to 53 free-to-use ones. And given this rate the bank estimates that by October 2007 the number of surcharging ATMs could increase to 33,821 compared to just 33,718 free ones.

There are currently around 23,931 ATMs in the UK that apply surcharges for withdrawing money, compared to 32,355 that are free to use. A typical charge is £1.25 but some machines charge as much as £5.00 per withdrawal.

With the dramatic increase in the number of surcharging ATMs, the bank is warning that during 2006, consumers could make around 110 million withdrawals from these machines and pay well over £140 million in charges for doing so.

From July last year, any ATMs that apply a charge must clearly display this on the screen and consumers must confirm that they accept this before completing their transaction. The new rules have been introduced by Link who are using NOP, the market research group, to conduct regular spot checks to ensure providers are complying with these rules.

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