MSM Money asked its users to nominate the things about their banks that most annoy them, with the 11 that received the most nominations put to a public poll.
Overdraft charges received 20% of the vote, followed by offshore call centres (14%), new customers being given the best rates (12%) and the amount of time it takes to clear a cheque (11%). Only 9% of people said they had no complaints about their bank.
Here’s the complete list of banking complaints in order:
1. High charges for going overdrawn – 397 votes
2. Offshore call centres – 269 votes
3. Best rates going to new customers – 238 votes
4. The time it takes to clear cheques – 205 votes
5. Poor customer service – 196 votes
6. Too few staff during busy periods – 147 votes
7. Paying to speak to a bank on the phone – 126 votes
8. Spending money on advertising rather than staff or training – 63 votes
9. Repeatedly having to produce documentation – 51 votes
10. Simple requests taking too long – 39 votes
11. Cold calling – 34 votes
Simon Ward, senior editor of MSN Money, commented: “Customer satisfaction surveys consistently find that many people are not happy with their bank. And it’s easy to see why when banks continue to make large profits but charge their customers huge fees for going into the red.
“It’s also galling when banks neglect the simple things such as good customer service, rewarding loyalty, and even making sure they have enough cashiers in branches during busy periods, for example at lunchtimes.”
