RBS has admitted it can do better after coming bottom of an official league table ranking the best UK high street banks for customer service.
The independent survey of 16 banks by Ipsos Mori, which has become a regulatory requirement found that Scottish-based banks were all ranked in the bottom half for customer satisfaction.
Taxpayer-backed RBS, which launched a Making Banking Easier advertisement campaign earlier this year, were rock bottom for overall service quality in the twice-year rankings. It lagged behind the rest across banking services, covering current accounts, overdrafts, branches and online and mobile banking.
The Edinburgh-based bank was the personal current account customers were least likely to recommend with just 46% saying they would - a drop from the 49% overall satisfaction rating it had this time last year when it again finished last.
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Metro Bank and First Direct finished top for overall service quality with 82% saying they would recommend their accounts.
RBS launched a Making Banking Easier advertisement campaign earlier this year
Glasgow-based Clydesdale were equal 12th for overall service quality while the Edinburgh-based Bank of Scotland was equal ninth.
It comes as customers are being encouraged to vote with their feet and switch if they are not satisfied with the services they are getting in the wake of raft of bank branch closures, the loss of free-to-use cash machines and IT failures.
The survey was the result of demands from the UK's competition authority to encourage switching and competition on customer service.
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Banks are required to publish the league tables introduced by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) prominently in branch and on websites and apps.
Jenny Ross, money editor with the consumer organisation Which? said: "RBS also finished near the bottom of our satisfaction rankings, with customers unimpressed with the bank's customer service, complaints handling and the transparency of charges. The message that improvements are urgently needed really couldn't be clearer.
"Our research has shown that bigger is not necessarily better when it comes to choosing a bank - innovation and outstanding customer service from some challenger banks have shaken up the market and placed them well ahead of household names.
"Anyone unhappy with the level of service they are getting from their bank should consider switching providers - it has never been easier and takes just seven days.”
An RBS spokesman said: “We know we can do more to improve the experience for customers in certain aspects of our service.
"We’re investing in dedicated teams focussed on making targeted improvements for customers and rolling out continuous changes to make banking easier, such as our software to help reduce queuing times in branches and expanding our AI technology, Cora, through the introduction of voice banking.”
The service quality league tables, which were first brought in by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) in August, last year also found customers were the least likely to recommend RBS's branch services out of the banks examined with 53% saying they would, a drop from 59% the previous year. First Direct came top with 77% saying they would.
And RBS finished second bottom in the CMA report card for its overdraft services with 49% recommending them, with Glasgow-based Bank of Scotland (47%) rated worst.
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The taxpayer-backed bank rated better with its online and mobile banking services but still finished equal 12th out of 16 banks with Glasgow-based Clydesdale with a 56% satisfaction rating. Barclays topped the ratings with 86% saying they would recommend the services.
The Service Quality Survey was introduced by the CMA after it conducted a market investigation into the retail banking sector in 2016.
The survey of 13,760 customers was carried out between July 2018 and June 2019 by Ipsos MORI, and the CMA say the rankings make it easier for people to compare offers and also drive up competition between banks resulting in a "better overall experience for the account holder".
Adam Land, senior director at the CMA, said: "Current account holders and small businesses should consider voting with their feet and switching their bank or building society if they aren’t getting a good service. These league tables help show what’s out there for customers and hold the providers to account. There’s nowhere for the worst performers to hide now."
The survey is more bad news for RBS which is among five banks being sued in the UK over allegations of rigging the foreign exchange market.
It emerged two weeks ago that the banks are facing a class action claim by investors understood to be in excess of £1bn, alongside Barclays, US giants JP Morgan and Citigroup and the Swiss Bank UBS.
The government still owns a 62.4% stake in the bank, as a result of its £45.5bn bailout of RBS during the financial crisis in 2008.
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