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phone banking

Bank of Ireland says 'vulnerable and elderly customers' won't be affected by latest changes

Customers will be told to use online banking or a self-service option when accessing certain services.

BANK OF IRELAND (BoI) has said older customers will not be affected by the bank’s latest move to automate more services.

From Monday, customers will no longer be able to make inquiries over the phone to a member of the bank’s staff about their recent transactions or to check their bank balance.

Queries about foreign currency will also be affected.

Instead, customers will be told to use online banking or a self-service option.

“Vulnerable and elderly customers will still be facilitated for all of the above through the call centre as normal,” the bank said in a statement, meaning they will still be able to speak with a member of staff.

More complex account-related queries will still be facilitated through the call-centre. Customers can still drop into a branch for transaction information, and foreign currency, where this service is in place.

“Book an appointment’ is not impacted by this migration of service and will continue to be serviced over the phone.”

File Photo BANK OF IRELAND looking into complaints that its debit cards are not working in some stores. A number of BOI customers have contacted the bank on Twitter to ask why money is unable to come out of their accounts. The bank said in the last few mi Leah Farrell Leah Farrell

BoI has not informed all customers directly of this change, instead opting to inform those who call their local branches and were then provided with information about the upcoming changes.

The bank has kept a focus on digitising its services in recent years. Just last month it was announced that a new paperless mortgage protection service is now available.

Previous attempts to modernise traditional banking in-store haven’t been met well. An attempt in late 2015 to restrict the amount of cash handled in branches was rowed back after criticism from the likes of the Minister for Finance and Age Action.

Read: These are the reasons why KBC has decided not to leave Ireland >

More: Maintenance fees, contactless and ATM charges – here’s how much you’re paying your bank >

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