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Notes from an exiled Franglais: Local still means local...

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26/03/2010Notes from an exiled Franglais: Local still means local in rural France

As big French cities adapt slowly to globalisation, banks and businesses in rural France continue to retain their local flavour of opening at odd hours and somewhat lax security rules.

Notes from an exiled Franglais: Why the French are healthier and fitter

The global trend of centralisation is creeping very slowly across rural France, but unlike in other parts of the world, local actually still means local in much of this country. Sure, there is evidence of banks, insurance companies and other large businesses starting to use centralised foreign call centres but the push of large organisations to centralise almost every single aspect of their operations is still, thankfully, in its infancy.

Never ones to buck a trend, French finance companies are investing heavily in foreign call centres especially in Africa. Soon many customers of French banks, insurance and other organisations will speak to customer service advisors in French speaking countries like Morocco, Algeria and Senegal.

But for now, in France you can still see your local bank manager. You can speak face to face with real people. Even the mega huge France Telecom -- with over 180 million global customers -- has offices in most French cities where you can speak to local French people. They might not always be very helpful, but they are real humans!

But is finance and business in France really very different from the rest of the world?

Granted, the French do hold a better perception of their bankers. For example; over 89 percent of Brits blamed their bankers for the financial circumstances their countries find themselves in as opposed to just 64 percent of French people.

However the French financial system has not been immune to the recession and their banks in particular have had to be bailed out just like in Britain, the USA, Germany and other countries. Société Générale got a massive EUR 1.7 billion cash injection in December 2008. Likewise Credit Agricole received EUR 3 billion and BNP Paribas EUR 2.55 billion.

So, nationally, the finance sector in France is not too different to other westernised nations. They are introducing foreign call centres and have been heavily bailed out, but has anyone told individual banks, employees and customers way out in the sticks that they are living in the cash strapped twenty-first century?

Restricted hours of banks and business
However, if you look at banking hours in France, one could be forgiven for deducing that the rural French domestic banking system is perhaps a few decades behind Britain. This is especially true of the hours in the day when they’re actually open, which isn’t on the face of it that often!

Bank opening hours in France are still much lower than in other countries and although they do open on Saturday mornings, they make up for this by being closed all day on Mondays. In France, Monday is often a day when many businesses, especially in rural areas, are closed, allowing the French to maintain a four and a half day work week!

These opening hours aren’t just restricted to the banks. Many businesses in France also close at lunchtime – a time when lots of customers actually want to use their services -- and they don’t just close for an hour.

In our local market town in southern Deux Sevres where I used to live, one bank closed for two hours, another for one and a half, the final one for two hours fifteen minutes! The national savings bank actually only bothered to open for a couple of days a week! If you peered through the window you could see the clerks at their desks. Maybe this was how a town with a population of just 2,311 people could justify having four banks, five insurance brokers, and four Agences Immobiliere! A similarly sized town in northern England would be struggling to have one bank, no insurance brokers and absolutely zero estate agents.

But the easy come/easy go attitude to rural banking and business can have many advantages. There are no barbed wire fences or bullet proof glass windows to get through before you can deposit a cheque. Security at my local Credit Mutuel was a locked glass door, which when you wanted to get in, you peered through before pressing a button. You will be let in as long as you are not wearing a black mask and wielding a sawn off shot gun. But most of the time the lady at the Guichet never even bothered to look up before buzzing you in!

Having said that, rural French banks and businesses actually serve their customers! Treasure them while you can for centralisation is on its way soon.

Robert Bullock / Expatica

Robert Bullock is a British children's writer. He lived in the Poitou Charente area of South West France for seven years. His first book is Noah Ramsbottom and the Cave Elves. His second book Sam Marsh the Viking King was released at the end of 2009. His website is www.ninnylizard.com . Rob is currently touring Britain giving readings of his first book, and is available to visit schools, libraries or youth groups in France.