Financial watchdog tells banks to sort out current accounts as complaints soar
The financial watchdog has called on banks to take action as the number of people complaining about their current accounts to banks soared 31.2 per cent over the past six months.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) released figures showing there has also been an 11.1 per cent increase in the number of customers complaining about credit cards.
Although the total amount paid in compensation paid fell 18.9 per cent to £1.98bn in the first six months of 2015, from £2.44bn in the last six months of 2014, largely due to a 16.6 per cent drop in PPI.
The FCA’s director of strategy and competition, Christopher Woolard, said yesterday: “While the ongoing fall in PPI complaints is welcome, this is the second half-year running that we have seen complaints about banking products rise.
“It is clear that firms need to look at the causes for this rise and where necessary take action to address the causes of the trend,” he added.
PPI accounted for less than half (41.3 per cent) of complaints, but remains the main source of gripes. If PPI complaints are excluded, the number of complaints actually increased by 11.6 per cent, over the period.