While banks meet expectations for 93 percent of customers, they exceed them for only 36 percent of customers, according to a recent survey released by consulting firm Protiviti. Consumers reported being more charmed by their primary bank, with nearly half (47 percent) saying it exceeds their expectations and an extra 49 percent saying it meets them.
One potential factor in these figures is banks’ response to consumer complaints. Only 36 percent said that their banks respond every time with a resolution to a problem after it is reported, and only one-third of customers said their bank “absolutely” cares about customer concerns. (Twelve percent said their banks do not care.) Two-thirds of customers voice complaints to customer service, 40 percent go to a branch, and 18 percent use email.
High-income customers were substantially less likely to have their banks exceed their expectations; only 20 percent of those earning more than $200,000 annually said so. More than half of these customers said they had had a “frustrating” or “disappointing” experience with a bank. Less than a quarter in this highest income bracket said their banks “absolutely” cared about complaints; almost as many said their banks did not care.
