NI banks 'reliant on consumer apathy'

Northern Ireland’s big four banks were tonight accused of relying on customer apathy to get away with continuing to offer poor deals.

The accusation came as the British Office of Fair Trading was poised to publish a response to a super-complaint against the local Big Four – The Northern Bank, Ulster Bank, Bank of Ireland and First Trust – levelled by Which? And the Consumer Council for Northern Ireland.

The ‘rip-off’ banking complaint alleged customers in the province were subjected to greater unfair practice than their counterparts in the rest of the UK when it came to interest rates and banking charges.

However new research showed that less one in five customers had ever looked around and switched their current account to get a better deal.

The research, carried out for Alliance & Leicester, showed that over half of consumers – 52% – had been with the same bank for more than 10 years and 44% had not switched because they thought it was too much hassle, when in fact it was a simple approach.

Simon Ripton, current accounts manager at Alliance & Leicester, said: “Northern Ireland’s Big Four banks are simply relying on customer apathy to continue getting away with offering poor deals.

“With increased competition in the current account market consumers should take this opportunity to have a second look at who they bank with and whether they really are getting the best deal available.”

He added: “The 52% of Northern Ireland’s banking customers who’ve not changed banks in the last 10 years may be surprised to discover what’s now available from banks outside the Big Four. They might also be surprised to discover that switching current accounts is a swift and painless process.”

He said a bank like Alliance & Leicester would offer customers up to 50 times more interest on a current account and many additional free benefits.

The Northern Bank has recently announced a free banking account, but Mr Ripton claimed they had only turned something “very bad into something bad”.

He said banks propensity to change for setting up direct debits was “holding back development in the market”. His bank had noticed their was greater usage of cheques in Northern Ireland to pay regular bills than in any other part of the UK.

“What is the incentive to set up a direct debit if you are going to be charged £4.50 (€6.50) to do so,” he asked.