Less than two-thirds of Canadians use websites to evaluate their mortgage, insurance, and credit card options
In its latest study conducted for financial products comparison portal LowestRates.ca, Ipsos found that Canadians are more likely to use websites for evaluating travel products than for researching on mortgages, credit cards, and vehicle insurance.
The results of the study also suggested that this lack of analysis is making Canadian consumers overspend on financial products.
Only 60 per cent of Canadians use the internet to evaluate mortgage options, while only 42 per cent conduct research when renewing their mortgages. Over one-fifth of tech-savvy Canadians (22 per cent) renew without doing any research at all. 45 per cent use websites to study credit cards, while 47 per cent do so for car insurance.
Meanwhile, Canadian millennials compare hotels (72 per cent) and flights (67 per cent) more frequently. Even the demographic that had the lowest rates of internet usage (baby boomers) still had a relatively high adoption rate: 56 per cent compare flights and 59 per cent compare hotels.
“The massive gulf between Canadians who compare travel options and financial products is disappointing. Because the latter is where you save real money,” LowestRates.ca CEO Justin Thouin said. “Sure, you can shave hundreds of dollars off your flight by using comparison sites, but taking the time to compare auto insurance or mortgages saves many of our users thousands of dollars a year — and those savings add up over decades.”
“A few months ago, we found that many Canadians don’t understand how common financial products work,” Thouin added. “And this survey really hammers home that a large part of that is because Canadians can’t be bothered. We need to make comparing financial products as common as comparing flights or hotels.”
The full results of the survey can be accessed here.
The results of the study also suggested that this lack of analysis is making Canadian consumers overspend on financial products.
Only 60 per cent of Canadians use the internet to evaluate mortgage options, while only 42 per cent conduct research when renewing their mortgages. Over one-fifth of tech-savvy Canadians (22 per cent) renew without doing any research at all. 45 per cent use websites to study credit cards, while 47 per cent do so for car insurance.
Meanwhile, Canadian millennials compare hotels (72 per cent) and flights (67 per cent) more frequently. Even the demographic that had the lowest rates of internet usage (baby boomers) still had a relatively high adoption rate: 56 per cent compare flights and 59 per cent compare hotels.
“The massive gulf between Canadians who compare travel options and financial products is disappointing. Because the latter is where you save real money,” LowestRates.ca CEO Justin Thouin said. “Sure, you can shave hundreds of dollars off your flight by using comparison sites, but taking the time to compare auto insurance or mortgages saves many of our users thousands of dollars a year — and those savings add up over decades.”
“A few months ago, we found that many Canadians don’t understand how common financial products work,” Thouin added. “And this survey really hammers home that a large part of that is because Canadians can’t be bothered. We need to make comparing financial products as common as comparing flights or hotels.”
The full results of the survey can be accessed here.
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