Survey of satisfaction with banks

Madrid, June 25, 2014

OCU has conducted a study on member satisfaction with the financial institutions they bank with. The main conclusion of the study is that users prefer transparent products, easy to operate and with no commission or hidden costs. Banks that commercialise products which are unsuitable for their customers, were the worst rated. In contrast, the financial institutions with the happiest customers operate mainly online or incorporate ethical criteria in their management.
The full results of this study are published in the July edition of our Dinero y Derechos magazine.

For the study OCU conducted a survey of more than 8,000 members in order to find out their satisfaction with their banks and the various banking products that they use (current accounts, savings accounts, deposits, credit cards, mortgages and personal loans).
The banks with the highest rate of overall customer satisfaction are ING DIRECT, Triodos Fund and Caja de  Ingenieros (a savings bank for engineers). On the other hand, banks awarded a “fail” include Caja Murcia, Liberbank, CajaEspaña-Duero, Novagalicia Bank, Bankia and Caja Granada. The integration of Banesto into the Santander bank has impacted negatively on the latter, having now been caught up by the other main Spanish bank, BBVA, both obtaining the same rating from their customers (58 out of 100) with La Caixa further back with 53.

In customer service, ING Direct, Triodos and Caja de Ingenieros stand out equally, while at the bottom of the list, Bankia and Novagalicia obtained the worst score.
In the case of current accounts, OCU members prefer accounts without commission and without maintenance costs. The ten best rated current accounts match this profile. Users penalize the lack of transparency and one in five admit to having had unexpected expenses in their current account. Regarding deposits, customers ask for profitability without hidden costs. 14% said they obtained lower yields than expected because of hidden costs or unexpected commission charges.

The best rated credit cards are those that are free and do not have commission. The main reason for conflict is precisely this, the fees charged by institutions. 9% of users have had disagreements with their financial institution in this area.
1.5% of users fell victim to fraudulent use, which is low in relative terms, but important when you consider that almost 9 out of 10 of us have at least one credit card. The OCU study also finds problems with loans (especially mortgages) despite this being a product where there is no added value. 58% of consumers say they suffered setbacks when they applied for a loan. The obligation to purchase additional products (44%) and the existence of clauses about which the user is not informed (such as the floor clause) are two of the most common and worst valued aspects by consumers.
In the case of personal loans and car loans, users value speed in getting the money and penalise excessive bureaucracy.

45% of users request a personal loan in order to purchase a car and the financing services of the major car makes receive a good assessment (the financing services of VW, PSA and Renault) compared to that for institutions such as Banco Sabadell and Banco Santander.
Given the scenario described by our members, OCU highlights:
• Customers appreciate those products offered by their financial institution that are simple and easy to understand and with a clear structure for commission, compared to products that offer very good conditions, but that are subject to compliance with multiple conditions, limitations or hidden commissions, meaning that in the end the customer does not get what was expected.

•  Discrepancies over commission is the main problem. Almost 25% of customers have had problems over being charged for commission fees by their banks. One of the effects of the financial crisis has been the increase in numerous commissions by financial institutions in order to increase their margins. In many cases customers are not properly informed and they are surprised by unexpected commission charges.

• ING Direct continues to be the best rated financial institution, repeating the results of 2012. ING achieves this rating not only globally but also for each of the products it sells, all occupying first place, except for the savings account where it is second.
The comparison between financial institutions is essential to obtain the best and the most transparent conditions and, for this reason, OCU offers consumers a series of comparators that allow them to know the up-to-date conditions of the various products offered.

For more information (media) Eva Jimenez Tel:   917 226 061   prensa@ocu.org