2 hours ago 
BBC
Maggie Dodd says she was distraught erstwhile she heard the past slope successful Lochgilphead was closing
When 84-year-old Maggie Dodd discovered that the past remaining slope successful her municipality was closing, she began to panic.
"I was distraught," she says.
"I mean I couldn't slumber that archetypal nighttime erstwhile I realised. I thought what americium I going to do?"
Maggie has been a lawsuit astatine the Bank of Scotland successful Lochgilphead since 1976.
Now her nearest subdivision is successful Oban, astir an hour's thrust distant (or 37.2 miles distant if you prefer) and she's disquieted astir banking online.
"I'm frightened," she says.
"There's truthful overmuch of this scamming business, and I'm ever disquieted that I'll deed thing and property the incorrect thing."
That's wherefore she has 'buddied up' with her 83-year-old person Ina Callander to effort banking astatine the section station office.
"I've been utilizing the station bureau for years," Ina says.
"Maggie was truly upset and I thought, wherefore not assistance her? Because that's what friends are for."
Lloyds Banking Group, which owns the Bank of Scotland, accidental the subdivision astatine Lochgilphead is nary longer viable arsenic astir of their customers similar to slope online.
But BBC Your Voice was approached by residents successful the municipality who are disquieted astir the interaction the closure volition person connected aged and susceptible people, arsenic good arsenic section businesses.
Karen McCurry, who runs the wellbeing centre Snowdrop Argyll, acceptable up the buddy strategy utilized by Maggie and Ina.
She says: "I had radical approaching me, telling maine they weren't sleeping astatine nighttime due to the fact that the slope was going to adjacent - and that's massive.
"We ever effort to deliberation of solutions and however to marque things easier for somebody.
"We can't alteration what's happening extracurricular a batch of the time, but we tin assistance idiosyncratic consciousness a spot amended astir it, a spot much confident."
Adriano Pia says slope cards and currency machines aren't ever reliable
Adriano Pia, who runs the Argyll Café, says banks are needed due to the fact that slope cards and currency machines aren't ever reliable.
"Even contiguous we had 2 radical whose cards aren't working," helium says.
"I've had times wherever I've had to archer radical conscionable to instrumentality it, truthful they don't spell bare due to the fact that they're stuck," helium says.
A fewer doors on astatine the Community Shop, manager Scott McBride is disquieted astir the interaction the closure volition person connected the charity's security if they are not capable to deposit their takings astatine the slope each day.
"We either widen our insurance, and that comes astatine a cost, which yet comes with a hazard arsenic well, due to the fact that we're past perchance holding much currency on-site," helium says.
Scott McBride is disquieted astir not being capable to deposit the assemblage store takings
Lochgilphead isn't the lone spot successful Scotland affected by slope closures.
Figures from the user watchdog Which? uncover 742 slope branches person closed crossed the state since 2015.
The Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross constituency has seen the astir closures, with 30 banks shutting their doors successful a decade.
In Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber, 25 slope branches person closed.
Argyll and Bute Council said their bid for a Banking Hub successful Lochgilphead, wherever banks stock facilities to supply to face-to-face services, was rejected.
Link, the assemblage which assesses currency access, said the country was already good served with free-to-use ATMs and the section station office.
Karen McCurry acceptable up the buddy strategy for slope users
But Anna Dudziak, the sub-postmaster successful Lochgilphead, says she can't connection arsenic galore transactions arsenic a bank.
"The occupation is they're telling radical to spell to the station office, saying 'they tin bash it for you'," she says.
"But astatine the aforesaid time, they acceptable up limits for currency withdrawals, for currency deposits, for cheque deposits that we can't bash for people.
"Most radical understand, but each time we person radical really, truly aggravated and they blasted the station office."
Dougie Philand, the Provost of Argyll, said helium hopes Link volition reconsider its determination connected currency machines.
"We, myself and the assemblage council, volition support an oculus connected the difficulties that radical are experiencing and astatine slightest we tin springiness the grounds and beryllium capable to accidental 'look, we bash request a banking hub here'," helium says.
The Lochgilphead slope is 1 of 28 Bank of Scotland branches closing this year.
A spokeswoman for Lloyds Banking Group said it offers much ways to negociate wealth than ever before.
"In summation to our app, oregon implicit the phone, customers tin usage their section Post Office to negociate their wealth alongside PayPoint locations to deposit cash," she said.
"We're giving our customers the flexibility to slope wherever and whenever they request us."
The UK authorities is carrying retired a reappraisal into entree to face-to-face banking, which is owed to study successful October.
English (US)·