Banking chiefs fear that Sunday's opening of branches of NatWest, RBS and Ulster Bank may have given customers the idea that for the first time in banking history UK banks are to start offering a service.
'It's a very worrying development,' said a NatWest spokeswoman. 'Some customers may have got the wrong idea about Sunday's opening and think we are about to start responding to customer needs which, of course, is simply out of the question.'
Hilda Knight, who has banked with NatWest for thirty years, said she couldn't believe her eyes when her local NatWest branch opened on Sunday.
'You don't want to raise your hopes, do you?' she said. 'But I hope that in future they pay my bills on time and don't charge us too much for sorting out last week's balls-up.'