CHAOS will break out when a major bank leaves an Oxfordshire town, according to its mayor.

Chipping Norton mayor Mike Tysoe said he was ‘dumbfounded’ by the news that HSBC would close its branch in the town.

Branches of HSBC in Kidlington and Carterton will also close in May this year. The bank announced 62 closures across the country on Monday.

Mr Tysoe said: “I’m actually dumbfounded because it is a busy branch. I’m a customer myself and I’m amazed that I haven’t been told.

“I’m disgusted by it and I think people will be upset. It’s going to cause a lot of chaos and they will lose a lot of customers – and it will serve them right.”

Town councillor for Carterton John Hayes said he feared the impact the closure would have on his town’s businesses.

He said: “There are a lot of cash businesses that rely on the branch like public houses and cafes.

“A lot of people do use online banking. But there are many pensioners who don’t use the internet. Where are they going to go?

“The nearest branch is probably Witney or Burford and we’re already losing a lot of footfall to Witney.”

A Kidlington resident described the closure as a ‘minor concern’.

71-year-old Chris Robins, of Foxdown Close, said: “It’s one of the small banks in Kidlington. I think it will cause difficulty for a few people but for most residents it won’t make a difference.”

Over the past five years, the number of customers using HSBC branches has fallen by almost 40 per cent.

The closures will put up to 180 jobs with the bank under threat.

It is not yet clear how staff at the Oxfordshire branches will be affected.