NatWest's big idea - call your branch

FIRST they ripped out the branch phones and diverted customers to a call centre near Gateshead - or slightly farther afield in India. Then they closed branches altogether and sold off the sites to wine bars. And finally they began boarding up cash machines to make every man, woman and child open a telebanking or internet account.

But now one High Street bank has decided enough is enough. NatWest is putting phones back into its branches. Customers are receiving letters which will tell them that, after almost a decade of having to call an automated central system to get advice, they can now call their very own branch and bank manager.

A spokesman for Natwest said the company had realised its customers wanted a personal touch. 'In the last two months we have begun to reintroduce lines to local branches so customers can call their bank direct,' he said. 'During office hours they will be able to call their branch and bank manager. If the call is not picked up within a few rings, it will divert to a support team who will take a message and pass it on to the branch so they can call the customer.'

Since banks began diverting customers to call centres in the mid-Nineties, there has been a surge of complaints. Last year, a survey for Which? showed fewer than one third of customers with Lloyds TSB and NatWest were very happy with the service they received.

In contrast to Natwest's decision, Lloyds TSB will soon stop customers from writing to their bank manager. Correspondence will be routed through remote 'specialist service centres'. By the end of the year, the company will have shed 3,000 of its 81,000 staff.