Adrian Sleeman said, when contacting the Otago Daily Times, he was stunned when the bank announced it was closing the branch due to seismic issues in the building in Windsor.
That left just two Westpac branches in Southland — the Invercargill city centre and Gore — which was disgraceful, Mr Sleeman said.
The bank though said there was an accessible parking space right outside the Invercargill city branch and it was investigating free and accessible parking options for customers in the Invercargill Central mall.
But Mr Sleeman was having none of it and said he doubted if the car-parking plans Westpac talked about would happen.
"I used to like going to Windsor as it has a carpark right there and it is wheelchair accessible. The people were very nice and friendly. I fell at the door once and they helped me out," he said.
"Now they want me to go into Invercargill. They are talking about shuttles. It is bloody ridiculous. I have been with them for ages and this is how they treat me. They cut out everything."
He had initially dealt with the Bank of New South Wales — which later morphed into Westpac — when running an electrical business. He had a stint banking with Bank of New Zealand before coming back to Westpac.
A Westpac spokesman said yesterday Westpac NZ made the decision to close the Windsor branch as the building did not meet the bank’s seismic criteria. The last trading day would be June 21.
The new city branch was modern and was less than 3km away from the Windsor branch, the spokesman said. It had a regular bus service from the Windsor branch to the city centre.
"There is a mobility parking space across the street from the branch and we are also exploring free and accessible parking options for customers in the Invercargill Central mall."
The bank was committed to contacting regular customers to ensure a smooth transition to the Invercargill city branch.
Invercargill MP Penny Simmonds said the closure was a bitter blow for the suburb’s elderly and disabled residents.
“I wrote to Westpac last week expressing my deep concern at its proposal to shut this branch on June 21," she said.
“The closure will be a major disruption to the Windsor community’s elderly and disabled residents, many of whom walk or use scooters for transport, and simply don’t travel into the city centre.
“The bank’s suggestion that the ‘closeness’ of its Invercargill branch will mean ‘minimal disruption’ for their Windsor customers shows just how out of touch they are."
In a letter to Westpac she said giving Westpac customers just four weeks’ notice before closing was not long enough and it would be devastating for so many people.
