Twelfth opening for Ulster Bank

Both the Magherafelt and Cookstown branches will open until 7pm on Friday (July 13) and from 10am until 3pm on Saturday (July 14) to assist customers affected by the recent crisis. The Cookstown branch will open on Sunday (July 15) from 10am to 1pm.

The decision was made following criticism of the bank’s handling of the frozen cash crisis which has entered a fourth week.

Account holders were the victims after a computer software upgrade went wrong on June 19 at parent company RBS.

Following the technical glitch, over half a million Ulster Bank clients were unable to access their accounts.

However, while problems at RBS and Nat West were rectified quickly, customers in Mid-Ulster and across Northern Ireland are still experiencing difficulties, with many unable to obtain accurate and up-to-date statements of their accounts.

A spokesperson for the Ulster Bank said the weekend had brought steady progress in the processing of automated payments and as a result, the majority of morning account balances for customers are now showing as they should.

“However, some items - such as cheques and manual lodgements have yet to be processed and therefore will not be reflected in account balances as yet. We expect that this week will be the last week of significant disruption for customers and that services should begin to return to normal from Monday, July 16,” added the spokesperson.

The Ulster Bank has promised that no customer will be out of pocket as a result of the crisis.

Customers can contact the Ulster Bank from 8am to 10pm on 0800 231232. Further details on the opening hours and regular updates can be found on the website: www.ulsterbank.co.uk/ni/personal/service-update/customer-update.ashx.