Gateway Bank reveal what really annoys Aussies about their banks
What ticks you off when it comes dealing with your bank? That’s the question from the latest survey, commissioned by Gateway Bank.
Over 1,000 respondents were asked what they felt to be the most frustrating aspect when it comes to their bank’s customer service.
‘Hidden fees and charges’ took out the top spot, with 84% of Aussies believing it to be incredibly frustrating. This was followed by ‘long phone wait times’ (79%) and ‘speaking to numerous departments to resolve an issue’ (77%).
“There’s a strange culture around banking where people are willing to tolerate bad service standards, when we wouldn’t think of coming back to the same café twice if they hit us with hidden fees and charges,” said CEO of Gateway Bank, Paul Thomas.
“Australians need to know that there are alternatives to the big players out there who will put them first.”
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Millennials not sold on new technology
Surprisingly, the research also revealed that millennials aren’t really fond of new technology, like banking chatbots.
Nearly half of millennials (46%) felt that ‘having to deal with technology/robots rather than a real person’ was very or extremely frustrating.
So with the mounting frustration felt by a nation, what would prompt an Aussie to switch banks?
Funnily enough, at 70%, hidden bank fees and charges was also the number one reason to switch.
Other sore points were having to deal with offshore call centres (48%), speaking to numerous departments (45%) and long phone wait times (44%).
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Are smaller players the way to go?
Earlier this year, Mozo announced the winners of the 2018 People’s Choice Awards where everyday Aussies were asked to tell us what they really thought about their banks.
In total, we received 5,166 ratings for banking providers, with smaller players taking out the top spots in many categories.
“What we found is that Aussies are more comfortable to go with smaller banks, which goes to show that these providers are really taking the time to understand the needs of their customers, and that customers are noticing the difference,” said Mozo Product Data Manager, Peter Marshall.
So if you’re over fees and other hidden charges and are ready to switch, it all starts a fee-free bank account. So make your next stop our bank account comparison tool!