A CASH dispenser has been replaced at a Malvern convenience store - six months after it was damaged in a smash and grab raid.

Derek Cook, owner of the Londis store on the corner of Yates Hay Road and Upper Howsell Road, said he was glad the new machine has been installed, but the delay had caused hum thousands of pounds in lost sales.

The raid happened in the early hours of Friday, February 2, and the offenders used an angle grinder or other kind of cutting tool to break open the machine.

The sparks ignited the paper roll inside the machine, and the fire brigade had to put the blaze out.

As well as breaking into the cash machine, the thieves had made off with the shop's CCTV camera equipment.

Mr Cook said: "I'm glad it's back, but the delay lost me a lot of custom.

"People wanting to get money would have to go to the Link or Great Malvern, instead of coming here, and while they were there, they would do their shopping there instead of shopping here.

"It's cost us a huge amount of money; the amount of trade that we lost is just unbelievable."

Mr Cook said that CashZone the company that supply and maintain the machine, had to undertake a lengthy review process before the cash dispenser could be replaced.

In April 2017, thieves used a JCB to smash into the post office at Barnards Green to steal a cash machine.

In November 2014, a digger was used to attempt to break into a cash machine at Marks and Spencer on Malvern Retail Park.