Which areas in Britain are taking in the most money? ATM usage figures for 2023 revealed

Britain will withdraw £81 billion from ATMs in 2023, according to new data from ATM operator Link.

It marks a decline in total annual cash withdrawals compared to 2022, when UK bank customers withdrew £83 billion from ATMs.

Adults over 16 made 975 million ATM visits last year, making an average of 15 trips per person, withdrawing a total of £1,484 – down from the 2022 average of £1,564.

The figures show differences in consumers’ cash use depending on where they are based in Britain.

Cash is still king in Northern Ireland, with bank customers withdrawing an average of £2,340. This was the only part of Britain to see an increase in cash withdrawals per person in 2023.

The second and third regions with the most cash are the North East, where people withdraw an average of £1,718 per person, and London, where the average withdrawals per person were £1,684.

ATM use was lowest in the South West, where the average customer withdrawal was £1,064, closely followed by the South East, with an average customer withdrawal of £1,145.

London is the region with the highest average withdrawal value of £93, and the second highest part of Britain was Northern Ireland at £91, compared to a UK average of £81.

Graham Mott, strategy director at Link, said: ‘This is likely because Northern Ireland remains a cash-heavy area and was the only part of Britain to see an increase in cash withdrawals per person last year. .

‘This shows that while some people may use cash less often, most of us still use it occasionally, or save some for emergencies or special occasions.

‘It’s important to remember that while card and phone payments are convenient for some, there are still around five million people who rely on cash, many of whom will be on low incomes.’

Cashing out: Some people use cash less often, but many still withdraw it occasionally or keep some on hand for emergencies

The number of free ATMs is decreasing

As the use of cash continues to decline, the number of ATMs has declined. At the end of 2023 there were five percent fewer ATMs than at the end of 2022 and Link expects this number to decrease even further.

There are currently 38,480 free-to-use machines, up from 40,869 at the end of 2022. There are also 9,921 fee-based ATMs, up from 10,384 the year before.

In an average week in 2023, £1.5 billion was withdrawn from UK ATMs. This is a sharp decline from pre-pandemic figures, which saw £2.2 billion taken in 2019, and LINK does not expect a return to these levels.

But there is a growing trend towards increased use of cash in Britain.

Data from industry body UK Finance shows that the use of cash increased last year for the first time in a decade, with Nationwide Building Society recording a second annual spike in cash withdrawals from its ATMs.

One reason for the resurgence of cash is that many have returned to budgeting with physical money during the cost of living crisis, says the British Retail Consortium.

Despite debit cards being the most popular payment method, 70 percent of British adults say they regularly use cash.

However, in the long term, the trend away from cash will continue.

Mott adds: We are seeing a steady shift away from cash. In 2012, more than half of all payments were made in cash, but ten years later that is still only about 15 percent.

‘That’s a big change in consumer behavior and as a result we’re seeing ATMs starting to close in areas where there’s a surplus.

‘We expect this trend to continue. However, Link’s job is to ensure we protect overall ATM coverage.

‘Shopping streets that may have had twenty ATMs may now only have five to ten. Similarly, you may notice that at supermarkets three machines have been reduced to one or two.

‘What is more important is that we protect the last ATM in the smallest town and village. We are protecting more than 2,500 ATMs in some of the most deprived and rural areas in the UK.”

The Financial Conduct Authority recently proposed new rules to protect access to cash in Britain.

Under the proposals, designated banks and building societies will have to assess gaps in access to cash.

Where the assessments indicate that a significant shortage exists in a city or that this could occur in the future, banks and building societies will be required to provide additional money services to fill the gaps.

Banks and building societies will need to ensure that they do not close cash facilities, including bank branches, until any additional cash services are available.