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British banks are ‘letting consumers down’

A lack of information and complicated bank charges are preventing people from switching current accounts, according to a new report.

European bank charges are “opaque” and account information available is often “incomprehensible”, according to a new report by the European Commission.

It found that the price structures of current accounts are so opaque that it makes it almost impossible for consumers to know how much they are paying and to compare different offers.

Only 9% of bank customers in Europe switched current accounts in the past two years, according to the report.

EU Consumer Commissioner Meglena Kuneva said that banks are letting consumers down. She said: “There is widespread evidence that basic consumer principles are being violated with problems from complex pricing to hidden charges, and information that is unclear and incomplete.”

Doug Taylor, personal finance campaigner at consumer champion Which? said: “The lack of transparency around financial products has been evident in the UK for a long time. It’s no wonder customers can’t compare accounts, and end up staying with the devil they know.”

He added that British banks need to stop taking their customers for granted and “put their house in order – starting with settling the court case on overdraft charges.”

The European Commission is introducing new voluntary ‘principles’ to facilitate switching this November and said it will monitor implementation carefully.