Campaign News on Vision magazine: Talking ATMs
Audio Transcript
Now then here's a quick quiz question for you about those hole in the wall cash machines, or ATMs, as they're called: How many do you think are there talking ATMs in Britain? Well, out of a total of 63,000 ATMs there are only 69 which currently talk. And that's why our Campaigns team are meeting banks and requesting improvements to the service.
Here with me is Hugh Huddy (HH) from our Campaigns team to tell us more. Welcome Hugh, let's just start at the beginning - an ATM cash machine, you go and put your card in the wall at the bank to get your money out: What's a talking ATM then?
HH: A talking machine just adds one extra step - you plug your earphones into the cash machine just right next to the card slot and then put an earpiece in your ear and you can hear the computer speech telling you what's on the screen and what buttons to press. And it just means that you can use the machine, for the first time as I experienced, when I was in New York I tried a talking cash machine out, I was worried that it would be, as many people say, it would be broadcast on the street, people would hear what we were doing…
Presenter: That's what I thought the first time actually, that everybody would know my pin number.
HH: That could be a serious problem wouldn't it.
Presenter: Yes wouldn't it just?
HH: But there is no problem because it's a headphone connection.
Presenter: So you bring your own headphones, presumably one of these small little jack things that you just put in your ear?
HH: Exactly, standard thing that you would get with a portable radio or an MP3 player. Everyone, these days, who has an MP3 player knows exactly what they…
Presenter: But they're very cheap aren't they, even if you haven't got them?
HH: You can get them for about a fiver.
Presenter: So, which banks are actually doing them?
HH: At the moment the first was Northern Bank and they launched a machine in 2005. And they have said that it has been a successful experience and their customers like them. They're being used and they're rolling them out across many more of their cash machines.
Presenter: It does seem extraordinary though that the major, as we call them, high street banks, the Nat West, the Barclays, the Lloyds, are going to be losing customers almost by not having this.
HH: It's only in very tiny parts of Scotland and the North of England and a few in Northern Ireland, where you can get these talking cash machines. I think from a bank's point of view perhaps they don't see us blind folks as needing to use them. They often feel, the ones we've spoken to, feel that maybe you can just go into your own branch and get your money out.
The reason behind our campaign is because access is not only a legal right, you know we all have a legal right to use a cash machine, in the wall, that place you go to get your cash when the bank is closed and you can't get in. It gives you the financial independence to get your money out when you want, from a machine that 80% of the general public are using.
Presenter: That's quite extraordinary. So, what percentage of blind and partially-sighted people are actually using ATMs at the moment? Do we know?
HH: Our research says it's about 11%, and out of that eleven percent that say they use cash machines over half of them say they find it difficult or virtually impossible to use them: Because they can't see to read the screen; so talking cash machines are the only way for these sorts of users to get access to their cash.
Presenter: And do other countries have them?
HH: Yes, they do. They're available in the USA, in Australia, in Pakistan.
Presenter: So what can be done to help improve the situation here in the UK?
HH: Well banks have the answer. The technology is there. It's already installed in other countries. So the hardware is there. They just need to install the software and enable it. So the answer is with the banks.
Presenter: So presumably the answer, also anybody listening to this, could just go into their bank also and embarrass them and say 'When are you going to install a talking ATM?', and get the message out there.
HH: Sure, but what we're asking people to do is get in touch with us if they think this is a good idea and they want to use cash machines; or, if they have used them and they've got their own experiences they want to share, it's vital that banks hear from blind and partially-sighted people.
Presenter: Thanks to Hugh Huddy for that. Contact the Campaigns team if you'd like to join the Campaigners & Supporters Network to receive regular updates about this and other campaigns that RNIB is involved in.
You can also check out the campaigns section of the RNIB's website.