Less than half of Britain’s bank customers say they are satisfied after visiting their local bank branch. According to a new YouGov survey, only 48% of those asked to describe how they felt about their main bank account provider expressed satisfaction. Some 29 % said they felt helped after their visits and 13% believed they were valued.
However, the survey also revealed a spread of unhappiness among customers, with 10% saying they felt frustrated, 6% stressed, 5% discouraged and 2% angry.
The survey carried out for Glory Global Solutions, also found that the thing customers most wanted to see introduced in banks is shorter queues. Some 43% of respondents selected that option compared to 29% who wanted more expert staff available and 27% who would like to see more personalised services.
But perhaps the most striking figures in the survey related to the frequency of customer visits to their local branch. Only 1% said they visited their bank more often than once a week, 15% said they only visited once a month and 24% revealed that they only entered the bank every two to three months. Some 35% of respondents said they visited their bank branch at the very most every six months, and 7% said they never went into their bank.
Declining bank visits are an increasing industry trend.. At the end of 2014 RBS said it had seen a 32% decrease in footfall in branches.
However the survey suggested that customers still feel that there is a future for bank branches. Only 17% of those asked thought that local bank branches will have disappeared in the next decade.
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