Customer loyalty does not automatically lead to high customer satisfaction. In addition, many consumers no longer trust just one bank. This is shown by a large customer survey conducted by the German Institute for Service Quality together with ntv.
According to a survey of 11,300 bank customers by the German Institute for Service Quality, customer satisfaction with the financial sector was mixed. 9 of the 29 banks evaluated - and thus almost a third of the companies - secure the customer rating "very good". Eight financial institutions each achieve a good or satisfactory overall result - four others, on the other hand, do not get more than an adequate result.
Customer ratings from "very good" to "sufficient"
The topic of sustainability often proves to be a success factor. The companies that are characterized by a sustainable concept have extremely satisfied customers. Five of the eight companies in the special provider category achieved the quality rating "very good".
In addition, three regional financial institutions and one direct bank received very good customer ratings. The aspect of security, which includes online security or trust in deposit insurance, for example, achieved the highest satisfaction ratings among those surveyed: a good 84 percent of those surveyed gave a positive rating. The areas of service, product range, transparency and the perceived image of the financial institutions also achieve good results on average.
The banks' greatest potential for improvement can be seen in the conditions with aspects such as fees and interest: Almost 29 percent of the survey participants did not rate these positively.
Key factor online banking
More than a third of those surveyed stated that they were annoyed at their own bank. The most common reason - for around 24 percent of those affected - are problems on the Internet or with online banking. Good online banking is actually the most frequently mentioned aspect when choosing your own bank.
In the eyes of those asked, service also plays an extremely important role here. Markus Hamer, Managing Director of the German Institute for Service Quality: "Due to major differences, customer satisfaction with the financial institutions does not currently give a uniform picture. Good news for the industry: the vast majority of those surveyed have been loyal to their own bank for many years. However, driving around 44 percent are now multi-pronged and are customers of both a branch and a direct bank."
Excellent banks
Direct banks: ING took first place (quality rating: "very good"), which impressed its customers in particular with regard to service, transparency and the range of products. The willingness to recommend is also very strong. Second place goes to Consorsbank ahead of DKB Deutsche Kreditbank in third place, both with good overall results.
National branch banks: The BBBank (quality rating: "good") secures first place and thus confirms its success in recent years. The company took first place among national branch banks in all of the evaluation areas surveyed, as well as in terms of annoyances and willingness to recommend. The Targobank follows in second place; Santander is third.
Regional branch banks: PSD Bank Munich (quality rating: "very good") repeated last year's success and secured first place among regional branch banks. There is very broad agreement among customers, especially with regard to the conditions, security and service. Sparda-Bank Hessen is in second place ahead of PSD Bank Nürnberg in third place, both with the quality rating "very good".
Special banks: GLS Bank takes first place among the specialists and in the overall result (quality rating: "very good"). The cooperative bank has thus once again secured the "Bank of the Year" award. In addition to extraordinarily high satisfaction values in the individual aspects and leading positions in the areas of conditions and product range, the customer's willingness to recommend is also the most pronounced. Among the specialist banks, second place goes to UmweltBank ahead of Triodos Bank in third place, both also with very good overall results.
