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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
Vicky Shaw

Fifth of financial services customers ‘leave reviews after poor experiences’

On average, people expect a firm to have at least a 4.25 out of five star overall rating before they would switch to a new financial services provider, Smart Money People said (Alamy/PA) -

Only one in five (20%) people leave a review when they have had a poor experience with a financial services provider, a survey has found.

But more than half (52%) of those who do leave reviews said they have received a better outcome as a result.

One in six (16%) people who do leave feedback said they have had issues resolved, 15% received an apology, and 7% received compensation, according to the survey for website Smart Money People.

The research indicated that some people may be more inclined to share a positive experience than a bad one.

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Three-fifths (62%) of reviewers have shared a positive experience of their financial service provider and have gone on to recommend services to others.

People have also taken out their frustrations with financial services providers in other ways.

In the past year, two-fifths (42%) of people have experienced a stressful situation with a financial services provider and (one in six) 15% of these customers said they needed to go for a run or walk to cool off afterwards.

A third (32%) have vented their frustrations with family members or friends.

Many people surveyed said they do read reviews as part of their own research, with three-quarters (74%) reading reviews before considering or switching financial products such as a bank account or a credit card.

Nearly a third (31%) of people said they would only switch financial services providers if their new business had at least four stars out of five overall and one in seven (14%) would only be prompted to move by a five star overall rating.

The survey indicated that, on average, people expect a firm to have at least a 4.25 out of five star overall rating before they would switch to a new financial services provider, rising to 4.5 for savings accounts.

Jacqueline Dewey, chief executive at Smart Money People, said: “Feedback can be a powerful force for change in financial services, yet too many people continue to suffer in silence.”

Opinium surveyed 2,000 people across the UK in April for the research.

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