Bank customers unhappy across the ditch
Consumer NZ's latest banking satisfaction survey has found one in five Kiwi customers are being spruiked financial products they did not request or, in many cases, want. Credit cards, credit limit increases, life insurance and personal loans were the most common offers, with 16 per cent of bank customers surveyed saying they felt pressured by bank staff into buying a product they did not need. Seven out of 10 customers offered a credit card limit increase said it was not a good choice for them. A low level of trust in banks generally is evident in the responses, with only 47 per cent of customers saying they felt banks could be trusted, and 68 per cent saying the profits made by New Zealand's banks showed they must be charging too much. Two local banks - The Co-Operative Bank and TSB rated above average with satisfaction scores of 87 per cent and 83 per cent respectively.But it was two Australian-owned banks - ASB (on 55 per cent) and ANZ (on 54 per cent) - that rated worst for customer satisfaction, product advice, fees and value for money. BNZ came in at 60 per cent, and Westpac at 60 per cent.