Powys is “sleepwalking into an access to cash crisis”, a new study has claimed.

A study by The Grade has looked at the number of cash points that have closed since 2018 and Brecon and Radnorshire has seen one of the biggest declines in the UK.

In that time 41 percent of cash points in the area have closed leaving residents with only just over five free cash points per 10,000 people and only 0.01 free cash points per square km.

Montgomeryshire has also seen a large decline its access to cash as well, with 15 per cent of cash points closing in that time and only 5 cash points per 10,000 people and like Brecon and Radnorshire only 0.01 per square km.

Authors of the study there is a brewing crisis in access to cash, as people return to traditional payment methods amid the cost of living crisis.

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The Post Office, for example, reported that it handled £3.45 billion in cash across its counters in August – the highest since its records began.

They also say many older and vulnerable people rely on cash which makes the problem especially severe in Brecon and Radnorshire – which has a pensioner rate 56.8 per cent above the national average.

A recent Bank of England’s report said: “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” and that “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.

A spokesperson from the Grade said: "As cash deserts spring up across Powys and Shropshire we are sleepwalking into an access to cash crisis.

“The elderly and vulnerable are often reliant on cash while the cost-of-living crisis means many are finding it simpler to monitor and control their budgets by dealing in notes and coins. Increasingly, these people are left without easy cash options."