Bank perks going away? Not everywhere

If you go to your local Chase branch, you may be blocked from going through the drive-up windows.

Chase said it is "rethinking" the traditional drive-up concept at some branches and is depending more on mobile banking and other new technology.

Besides the drive-ups, other changes include Chase's decision to stop counting customer's loose change as of July 1. Other banks, including Fifth Third, have also removed change-counting machines, citing costs to maintain them.

Eliminating coin handling, cutting back on drive-up windows and using more multifunction ATMs with video are among the growing trends among banks, said Bob Meara, senior analyst in the Banking Group for Atlanta, Georgia-based Celent.

"Banks are now at a crossroads on how they deliver services," he said.

As Chase and other banks continue to evolve their services, due in part to advancing technology, consumers are in the middle of what was once a haven for convenient perks, such as picking up light bulbs, buying postage stamps or paying the utility bill.

Banks often served as a place to stop for a cup of coffee and socialize while depositing a paycheck on a Saturday morning.

While the major banks eliminate services, other competitors are hanging onto them to help attract more customers. First Community Financial Bank of Naperville and Rosemont-based Wintrust boast that they continue to count your loose change. Wintrust, parent of about 60 local community banks, started an advertising campaign this week in the Daily Herald Business Ledger and elsewhere that says "Change is good. And, you can count on us to count it, for free."

There are pros and cons. "Coin (counting) is expensive, however, and may not make sense to offer at no cost if demand for those services is declining," Meara said. "Some banks are investing in coin accepting/counting machines and merchandising those services as a free alternative to what many grocery stores offer for a sizable fee. This is one way several banks have distinguished themselves."

In Naperville, First Community Financial Bank will continue to count coins from your jar or piggy bank as well, said market President Louis Petritz. "We can provide these services largely because we have local decision-making abilities, while many other banks can't do that," Petritz said.

Meanwhile, with self service usage growing, which includes Internet, mobile and ATMs, foot traffic has been declining at the branches of most banks, Meara said.

"Banks are compelled to invest in digital channels to remain competitive," he said. "To do so, they must take cost out of the branch network. The challenge is how to do so, while still delivering good customer service. We see banks, particularly the larger banks, paying close attention to the customer experience. What is interesting is that banks don't serve homogeneous markets, so individual banks may act very differently in response to very local changes to customer needs and preferences."

Customers get the services they ask for and that's why you'll see some services disappearing, said Debbie Jemison, a spokeswoman for the Illinois Bankers Association.

But offering different services via new technology doesn't necessarily translate to fewer employees, just a shift in where they work.

Chase historically had 60 percent tellers and 40 percent bankers, but that has now changed to 40 percent tellers and 60 percent bankers, said Chase spokeswoman Christine Holevas.

The Chase workforce is down from last year, mostly because it had a large number of employees focused on mortgage default servicing, which is no longer needed because defaults have dropped significantly. Parent J.P. Morgan Chase has about 13,500 workers in the Chicago region, including 3,500 at bank branches this year, Holevas said.

She said local employment has dropped a couple of percentage points each year over the last 3 or so years for the entire bank. Branch employment has remained pretty flat, except for last year when we were forced to close more than 40 in-store branches when Dominick's closed, Holevas said.

People are using technology more. In June, for example, Chase customers did 22.7 million deposits at the ATM, compared to 20.7 million deposits at the teller, making it the second consecutive month that ATM deposit transactions surpassed teller deposits, Holevas said.

And a Chase survey this past spring found that 33 percent more consumers use their mobile app and 35 percent more bank online compared to last year.

"And, the Millennials are all about digital - especially the mobile app - signaling the future of banking," Holevas said.

As for the drive-ups, Chase has been "testing changes to drive-ups to enhance customer convenience," Holevas said. She declined to say where the tests are being done or what the tests involve.

But calls to about a dozen Chase banks around the suburbs found that they will shorten their drive-up hours by 30 minutes to an hour six days a week starting around Sept. 28. The Chase at 1600 Larkin Ave. in Elgin closed its drive-up in April.