West Lancashire District Council is the latest local authority to stop accepting cash at its offices as technology offers more efficient ways for people to pay for council services

A council seeking to reduce costs has stopped accepting cash payments at its offices and offered residents the opportunity to choose other methods of payment or pay cash at a network of outlets in the community.

West Lancashire District Council is the latest local authority to close its in-house cash offices and encourage people to pay their bills by Direct Debit or on the Internet. However, cash will still be accepted through Post Offices™ and Payzone outlets in the district.

The council will make an initial saving of about £60,000 a year by closing the two cash offices in Ormskirk and Skelmersdale. However, the final financial impact will depend on the number of residents who choose new payment methods.

Cash continues

While the council prefers people to pay bills by Direct Debit or on the internet, it received cash payments totalling about £4.5 million last year for items such as council tax and rent, so a need for facilities to handle the money is expected to remain for the foreseeable future.

Most of those who choose to continue with cash payments will find that the new payment outlets are more accessible because they are spread throughout the district. The change will also give a welcome boost to local Post Offices™ and shops.

Councillor Adrian Owens, Portfolio Holder for Finance, says: “With easy options to pay bills, such as via Direct Debit or on the council’s award-winning website, we took the decision to make our services more cost-efficient and close the remaining cash office facilities.”

New payment methods have dramatically altered the way people pay for local government services in recent years. However, the amount of cash received remains substantial and processing such sums can be burdensome.

Some local authorities have therefore sought more efficient ways of handling the money. For example, Macclesfield Borough Council stopped accepting cash payments in March and instead provided more than 50 outlets within the district where bills could be paid.

Coping with change

While residents of West Lancashire can now pay cash at Post Offices™ and Payzone outlets that should be more accessible to most, the council has recognised that some people will take time to get used to the new arrangements.

Posters were put up at prime locations before the change to give people plenty of time to explore payment options, and the council has appointed an Alternative Payment Adviser to give residents advice about the best ways to pay their bills.

John Gardner, the council’s Executive Manager for Finance, says: “The way our customers can pay their bills is changing in the light of the world’s increasing movement towards technology. Therefore, in order to save the council taxpayer money, the decision was taken in December to close the cash offices.”

He adds: “We realise that some people may not be able to adapt to the changes so quickly and we are still reassuring residents that they can pay bills by cash at local Post Offices™ and Payzone outlets.”

Residents in West Lancashire now have a broad range of payment options, including Direct Debits, standing orders, cheques, Bank Giro Credit, debit cards, credit cards and by cash at Post Office™ and Payzone outlets.

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