Poorer areas are more likely to be swamped with fee-charging cash machines, research reveals.
In all but one of 20 areas in the UK with the highest proportion of pay-to-use ATMs, there are higher than average numbers of people out of work.
And 15 of those places analysed by the Mirror also had above average numbers claiming unemployment benefits.
With the elderly more likely to use cash, it means some of the most vulnerable people in society are most likely to be paying withdrawal fees of between 95p and £2.
Gareth Shaw, from consumer group Which?, said: “Free-to-use machines are being converted at an alarming rate.
“The Government must ensure this payment method is preserved and free to access for as long as it is needed.”
By the end of last year, there were just over 52,000 free ATMs and 11,120 that charged.
"But nearly 2,000 have been converted in the first four months of this year. The Mirror analysed data from Link, which connects almost all cash machines, on ATM numbers by parliamentary constituency.
In half the areas, charging machines now account for one in five of ATMs. In 42 places, the number is one in three.
The highest proportion are in Great Yarmouth, with 46.4% of the ATMs charging.
But the jobless rate in the area is 5.9% against an average of 4.2%, while the claimant rate is double the national figure at 5%.
ATM operators, led by Cardtronics and NoteMachine, say they have been forced to convert ATMs after Link cut a fee for free withdrawals by 10%.
Ron Delnevo, from trade body the ATM Association, denied there is “profiteering” but explained many ATMs being switched are in poorer areas where, until independent operators installed machines, there were none.
Link claimed it had initiatives to encourage operators to have free-to-use ATMs in more deprived areas.
Cardtronics declined to comment and NoteMachine did not respond.
