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Misselling rife amongst British banks
19 Dec 2012
UK consumer watchdog and CI member Which? has released
results of a survey showing that misselling is still rife amongst
British banks.
As part of their
'Big Change' (pdf) dossier aimed at restoring consumer trust in
banks, Which? has surveyed more than 500 front-line bank staff and
found that pressure to sell is still very much an issue.
Sales staff from branches and call centres at HSBC, Royal Bank
of Scotland, Lloyds Banking Group, Barclays and Santander admit
that there is more pressure than (pdf) ever to meet sales
targets.
Of those surveyed, 46% admit that colleagues have missold
financial products in order to meet sales targets, and 40% feel
that they are under pressure to sell even though some products are
unsuitable for the customer.
This news comes as complaints about the payment protection
insurance (PPI) misselling scandal continue to rise. In many cases,
PPI has been wrongly sold alongside loans, mortgages and credit
cards to cover repayments if a person becomes ill or looses their
job. The total compensation bill is predicted to reach £15bn across
the industry.
In September, the Financial Services Authority gave high street
banks up to 18 months to moderate the bonus schemes they use to
encourage staff to sell insurance, loans and bank accounts, and
Which? is calling upon all banks to revise their sales tactics and
put the consumer first.
Which? Chief Executive Peter Vicary-Smith said of the survey
findings: "This proves the need for big change across the industry
and for
bankers to put customers first, not sales. We're calling on the
banks to be much more transparent about their sales targets and
incentives."
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