Following the announcement in July of the closure of five Crédit Agricole agencies in Aveyron, elected officials and local residents demonstrated recently in Firmi and Lanuéjouls. The group's management returns to “this reorganization, to adapt to customer demand”.
In recent weeks, several elected officials have stepped up to the plate in West Aveyron, in Firmi and Lanuéjouls, against the announced closure of Crédit Agricole bank branches. Despite these mobilizations, the agencies, like three others in Aveyron, in Salles-Curan, Villefranche-de-Panat and Saint-Sernin-sur-Rance, will close at the end of December.
“A mandatory reorganization”
“It’s a mandatory reorganization to adapt to new customer expectations”underlines Pascal Duprat, deputy director of the Nord Midi-Pyrénées regional fund. “Customer relations have transformed in recent years, with increasing use of digital tools, accelerated since Covid. Customers are increasingly autonomous.”
According to Crédit Agricole, the agencies concerned welcome one to two people per day. “There is and will not be any job cuts in our teams”supports Pascal Duprat. “This is absolutely not a cowering of Crédit Agricole, but a desire to be dynamic to support the development of the territory. There are much fewer customer trips to branches, but they require more interactions and support. support, particularly farmers and professionals.”
“We continue to crisscross rural areas”
According to management, these branch closures will allow “more personalized follow-up”. “Our presence in the field will be strengthened with advisors who will go to customers' homes, so that they can show us their needs and problems directly on site. We will continue to cover rural areas and we will continue to be even more present on the ground.”
Closing at the end of December
The closure of the five agencies must be effective at the end of the year. For the moment, no new demonstrations have been announced. “These demonstrations are an expression of legitimate concern”adds Pascal Duprat. “We will not leave any customer behind. We will be very attentive to the most vulnerable customers and those who do not master digital tools. This is not the end but the continuation of this story.”
As a reminder, ticket machines will still be available in closed agencies. The empty premises should eventually be transformed into a business or service house. “We will analyze case by case, but we want to create living spaces”continues the deputy director. “We are not going to leave and leave ghost premises.”
