ACCESS to cashpoint facilities in Newton Abbot has fallen by 26 per cent in the last four years, new figures have shown.

Data from the House of Commons on the location of ATMs with population and demographic figures from the Office for National Statistics has highlighted the lack of access to cash faced across the country.

Parts of Devon are particularly badly affected.

The figures state the Newton Abbot area now has just 58 cash facilities which equates to 4.9 free to use ATMs per 10,000 people.

In comparison, Torbay has 119 cash facilities which is down only 16 per cent in the last four years and is the equivalent of 8.9 free machines per 10,000 people.

Experts say there is a ‘brewing crisis’ in access to cash.

There are two reasons, firstly as the cost of living crisis worsens, cash use is on the increase.

People are finding it simpler to monitor and control their budgets by dealing in notes and coins.

The Post Office has reported handling £3.45 billion in cash across its counters in August, the highest since records began.

Figures also show that many older and vulnerable people rely on cash.

The Bank of England’s recent report ‘Knocked down during lockdown: the return of cash’. highlighted that cash use remains essential for many groups.

The report said: ‘Cash continues to be an important form of money for many, one in five people consider it to be their preferred payment method and 1.1 million people rely on it for their everyday spending.

‘Even for those who may not use it day-to-day, cash remains an important back-up option.’

The report also says cash remains a ‘valued form of money’ for the elderly and those on lower incomes with many using it to budget and manage their household finances’.