The UK Regulators Network (UKRN) have worked with the FCA, the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem), the Office of Communications (Ofcom), the Water Services Regulation Authority (Ofwat), and the Consumer Council for Water to produce scorecards on the performance of regulated sectors.
This performance scorecard highlights some of the information available on personal current accounts (PCAs), and can help customers choose their provider by highlighting:
- good and poor performers
- how easily they can carry out day-to-day banking activities
- the reliability of the service they receive
These metrics should also increase the incentive for firms to offer better service, helping customers to get the most out of their personal current accounts.
Detailed below are three sources of data consumers can use to compare personal current account providers. These metrics only relate to service, not to the quality or price of products.
CMA personal current account service quality metrics
These independent league tables show customers how the 16 largest personal current account providers rank on quality of service, making it easier to compare providers. This is information required by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).
Quality of service is determined by how likely customers would be to recommend their provider to friends and family.
The survey results are published twice a year, in February and August on a rolling 12-month basis (for the preceding January to December and July to June periods respectively). The results are based on responses from 860 customers of each of the 16 largest personal account providers in Great Britain. Regional results for Northern Ireland[1] are also available.
In August 2019, the survey showed Metro Bank and First Direct (82% score) as the top ranked banks for overall service quality, and Royal Bank of Scotland as lowest ranked (46%). The results from all 16 banks are in the chart below.
Chart
Data table
As well as overall service quality, this survey also covers:
- online and mobile banking services
- overdraft services
- services in branches
View the CMA's personal banking service quality survey results[2]
FCA mandated and voluntary information on current account services
Current account providers publish information that shows how quickly current accounts are opened and debit cards are replaced, as well as information about personal current account operational and security incidents. This is to encourage competition by enabling customers, commentators and comparison sites to compare services provided by firms. We collate this information and present this in a searchable table for stakeholders to form their own analysis. The data are updated quarterly.
View the latest current account services data[3]
FCA Firm specific complaints data
We publish firm specific complaints data by different product categories twice a year, April and October. This includes firms who report 500 or more complaints within a six-month period, or 1,000 or more for an annual reporting period.
The number of complaints is shown as a proportion of the total number of accounts. This shows the number of complaints in relation to the size of each firm. We record complaints per 1,000 accounts. This improves our comparison and benchmarking of complaints across different firms.
The chart below shows the 10 banking and credit card firms which received the most complaints between January and June 2019. It also shows the average number of complaints for all firms. This includes complaints on credit cards, current accounts, packaged accounts, savings, unregulated loans and overdrafts and other banking. As this scorecard focuses on personal current accounts, the firms who do not provide this service have been excluded.
The data show Barclays Bank PLC as having the most complaints per 1,000 accounts in H1 2019 for banking and credit cards. Barclays Bank PLC only offers PCAs to high net worth individuals as part of a private banking service, therefore the complaints (as with the other firms) may be from credit cards, packaged accounts, savings, unregulated loans and overdrafts and other banking. Barclays Bank UK PLC is the ringfenced entity in the Barclays group that offers mainstream consumer PCAs, and therefore is the best for comparison when looking at PCA complaints. Of firms dealing with mainstream consumers, HSBC UK Bank Plc is the firm with the most complaints per 1,000 accounts.
Chart
Data table
View our latest complaints data[4]
UKRN performance scorecards
As part of the collaboration with the performance scorecards work, view the work other regulators are doing in their areas:
UKRN performance scorecard homepage[5] for an overview of all the work in this area
Ofgem: Performance scorecard[6]
Ofcom: Performance scorecard[7]