CASE STUDY: COVENTRY BUILDING SOCIETY
The Issue
As with all financial institutions, Coventry Building Society has faced the real threat of theft and robbery from organised criminal gangs at branch level across the UK. These threats range from physical attacks on employees within the branch, external damage to property via ATM machines or whilst cash and valuables are still within transit. In recent years, Coventry Building Society has undertaken a branch transformation programme to lean the banking operations to a more customer self-service model. The newly designed open plan approach exposes employees to more face-to-face interactions with customers, which does increase the potential threat levels for branch employees and customers alike. This change in management has certainly come with its issues as employees have witnessed an increased growth in physical and verbal threats from irate customers who fail to adapt to the new processes and restrictions in place e.g. using automated systems, wearing masks, increased wait times etc. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Coventry Building Society had to adapt its service provision to comply with government’s restrictions around social distancing which had a detrimental impact upon the customer experience.
The Solution
For many years, PWG has worked in partnership with Coventry Building Society on a variety of security solutions which includes professional front of house security teams to act as a visible deterrent for criminal activity. The security officers also provide valuable reassurance and support to the branch employees and customers. During the COVID-19 pandemic we provided Coventry Building Society with additional marshalling and signposting services to help deliver a satisfactory customer experience and enable business continuity for the branch. In emergency situations when speed of response is crucial, PWG has briefed and mobilised a rapid deployment of security teams to offer the necessary security support. PWG has also been commissioned by CBS Security to conduct covert surveillance operations on their behalf to help provide valuable intelligence in their fight against criminal activity. We’ve also delivered security support services to help protect cash and valuables in transit (CVIT) and technical security solutions to help protect the property, estate and assets.
The Result
The visible layered security systems and deterrents provided by PWG has protected Coventry Building Society from costly attacks to branch and head office, which has ensured the business benefits from operational resilience and continuity. Our friendly and effective security officers over the years have provided reassurance for CBS customers, employees and logistical partners. The covert surveillance operation undertaken successfully resulted in the conviction of a perpetrator of criminal damage who was successfully sentenced.
