FOR some time, I have been under the impression that the Halifax Building Society has surreptitiously introduced an 'inconvenience to customer' policy.

Ever since the ground-floor counter service was withdrawn from the main office in Grosvenor Way, Blackburn, I have lost count of the number of occasions that the sign 'Lift Temporarily Unavailable' has greeted me, with the resultant time-wasting, irritating trek up that stupid ramp on the side of the building.

Last time I walked up to the King William Street branch, where I stood for 15 minutes in a queue which stretched outside the office, there were just two counter clerks on duty at 11.15am.

If the Halifax wants us all on direct debit and card cash or to take our custom elsewhere - then they should say so.

I strongly object to being made a fool of by this inconvenience.

P WOODS, Knowsley Road, Wilpshire, Blackburn.

FOOTNOTE: Chris Greenwood, district manager, said: "We are sorry this customer experienced difficulty with the lift being out of order. We have had a lot of problems with it.

"If a decision has been made to close the lift, we would ask people to walk round and use the ramp, or they can use our other office, which is central to town in King William Street.

"However, if customers would like to use the main office in Grosvenor Way we can arrange to meet them and let them in on the ground floor so they don't have to use the ramp.

"Our queue system has a turnover time of no more than four minutes, and queues are constantly monitored."

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.