Just two days out from the planned closure of its Dungog branch, NAB has announced it will “back the community” and keep the branch open – for now.
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“Since we made the decision to close the NAB Dungog branch back in June, we have been listening to feedback from our customers and the community,” said Krissie Jones, NAB Executive General Manager, Retail.
“Today, as a result of this feedback, we have confirmed we will keep the branch open for the time being so we can support Dungog and the surrounding areas.
“We know to be a better bank in regional and rural Australia we need to listen and respond; we have listened to Dungog and will keep the NAB branch open during this time.”
The bank announced earlier this year it would close the branch in Dowling Street on September 27 due to dwindling customer levels. At the time the bank said increasing numbers of customers were using online or phone banking and 68% of the branch’s customers were also using other branches such as Maitland or Raymond Terrace.
Opposition Leader Luke Foley added his voice to the issue recently during a visit to Dungog.
He called for a moratorium on all bank closures in drought-affected areas.
Ms Jones said it was “the right thing to do” to keep the branch open for the time being to support Dungog and the surrounding community.
“We are committed to staying in Dungog for another year, and will be reassessing based on the conditions,” she said.
The proposal to close the NAB branch followed the closure of Westpac’s Dungog branch last year.
Letter to the community from NAB, September 25, 2019
To the Dungog community, thank you for your feedback about the NAB Dungog branch.
Today, as a result of what we have heard, we have decided to keep the NAB Dungog branch open for the time being so we can continue to back the community.
To be a better bank, we are listening to our customers and communities across Australia, and most importantly, responding to what we’re hearing. Listening to customers and communities enables us to make better decisions.
We know from your feedback and our local team, who live in and around Dungog, that closing the NAB branch this week would only make it harder on a farming community that is in a government declared drought region.
We are committed to staying in Dungog for another year, and will be reassessing based on the conditions.
If you have any further feedback or need help with your banking, please reach out to our local NAB leaders, Greg on 0414 495 215 or Maree on 0428 638 691 or call or visit us at the NAB Dungog branch (02) 4995 7100.
