Pilot for local bank walk-in consultation hours

Since 11 October, people with questions about banking or payments have been able to seek advice from retired bank staff during walk-in consultation hours at libraries in three cities.

The pilot is aimed primarily at people in the Netherlands in vulnerable situations, including older people, those with low literacy levels and people with physical or intellectual disabilities. The volunteers are retired staff from ABN AMRO, ING and Rabobank. They are available for two hours a week at the libraries listed below.

Where possible, the volunteers provide information themselves. For complex or substantive questions, however, they always refer visitors to certified financial experts and help them formulate their request for support clearly. They also provide impartial information, regardless of which bank a visitor uses.

A recognisable help desk on a fixed day each week

How can I request a copy of my account statement? How do I arrange an authorisation, and what should I do if my partner dies? Managing banking matters is difficult for many people in vulnerable situations in the Netherlands. “These people often lack digital skills and do not always have access to a computer, tablet or smartphone. There will also always be a group who prefer not to use the internet and would rather manage their financial affairs in the traditional way,” says Cees van Tiggelen. Van Tiggelen represents Koepel Gepensioneerden, KBO-PCOB, KBO-Brabant and NOOM in the National Forum on the Payment System (MOB), where he chairs the Accessibility and Reachability Working Group.

Action plan and priority

Digital banking also offers many advantages, allowing people to manage their banking independently from home whenever it suits them. To support this group, the Dutch Payments Association and the Accessibility and Reachability Working Group (WTB), together with ABN AMRO, ING, Rabobank, Triodos and de Volksbank, drew up an Action Plan in 2021. The pilot forms part of that Action Plan. “We are interested to see whether people attend the consultation hours. We are also looking at what questions they ask and whether those questions can indeed be answered by someone acting on behalf of all banks. The MOB has called for more local service points to be established more quickly . The experience gained from the pilots will help us consider together what else is possible. Accessibility is in any case a priority in the 2023 annual plan for our Management Board,” says Gijs Boudewijn, Director of the Dutch Payments Association.

Accessible walk-in consultation hours

The pilot builds on the Digital Government Information Points launched two years ago at locations across the Netherlands, including libraries. Members of the public can visit these points for help with a range of government matters, such as taxes and benefits. “The aim is to lower the threshold for people in vulnerable situations. Libraries are usually close to home and familiar to many people,” says Merit van Breukelen of Rotterdam Central Library.

Times and locations of the walk-in consultation hours

• Rotterdam – From Tuesday 11 October 2022: during the pilot period, walk-in consultation hours are held every Tuesday from 10 am to noon at Rotterdam Central Library, Hoogstraat 110 , 3011 PV Rotterdam.
• Utrecht – From Wednesday 12 October 2022: during the pilot period, walk-in consultation hours are held every Wednesday from 10 am to noon at Overvecht Library, Gloriantdreef 1 , 3562 KW Utrecht.
• Deventer – From Friday 14 October 2022: during the pilot period, walk-in consultation hours are held every Friday from 10 am to noon at Colmschate Library, Flora 259 , 7422 LP Deventer.