The Post Office has called on the Government to speed up the implementation of safeguards to ensure everyone continues to have free access to cash, after a survey found more than 8 million people would struggle to survive without it.

A YouGov poll for the Post Office found 72% of British consumers believe cash is an important consumer right, while 52% said cash provides a sense of safety and security, and 38% said they would feel excluded without cash.

Some 57% of respondents said they were concerned about bank branch closures, with 33% reporting having been personally affected.

Launching its Save Our Cash campaign, the Post Office warned accessing free cash is becoming "increasingly difficult", with Which? research suggesting 4,188 bank branches have closed since the start of 2015, a rate of about 50 per month, and more than 500 are set for closure this year.

Meanwhile, a Post Office poll of more than 500 British small and medium-sized businesses found two thirds (66%) feel cash use is important to the recovery of the retail industry from the Covid-19 pandemic, while 31% report their business has been hit by bank branch closures.

Almost a quarter (24%) of SMEs warned their business would struggle without the ability to use cash, while another 24% said customers would be unable to access their services if they did not accept cash.

Post Office chief executive Nick Read said: "Ensuring everyone in every community continues to have free access to cash is fundamental to the nation’s economic and social wellbeing.

"We cannot forget those across the country who continue to rely on it – from the millions of small businesses to ordinary people who use cash to budget, save and survive.

"With ‘Save Our Cash Day’, the Post Office is calling on Government to speed up the delivery of the necessary legislative and regulatory frameworks which must underpin the long-term future of the cash system.

"Banks should be required, by law, to provide their customers free access to cash and cash services irrespective of where they happen to live or work. Anything short of legislation will fail the millions who continue to depend on it day-to-day.”

For more stories from where you live, visit InYourArea.