CMA rebukes four banks for failing to provide correct information to customers
The competition watchdog has publicly rebuked four banks for failing to comply with rules ensuring lenders provide clear and up to date information to their customers.
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said HSBC, Lloyds, TSB and Allied Irish Bank (AIB) all “failed to make available correct data on their products or services”.
HSBC was singled out by the CMA for breaching the measures “more extensively” than the other banks.
According to the regulator, HSBC told some customers the incorrect maximum amount they would be charged for going into unarranged overdraft.
The bank also failed to keep accurate and timely information about which of its branches were still open and did not keep some of its annual rates for business loans and overdrafts up to date on its website.
The CMA has issued HSBC with “detailed directions”, including a plan to ensure full compliance in future.
“It’s disappointing that seven years on, we have to put in place formal enforcement measures to secure better compliance from a major bank like HSBC which, yet again, is in breach of the rules,” Dan Turnbull, senior director at the CMA, said.
However, the regulator noted that the breaches were self-reported by HSBC and that the lender had taken “proactive steps” to address the concerns.
While the CMA said it would not take “further formal enforcement action” against HSBC, it would continue to monitor the bank’s “future compliance closely”.
An HSBC UK spokesperson said: “We are sorry for errors on our part which caused these breaches. When we discovered them we reported these to the regulator. We have taken steps to avoid a repeat of these issues in the future.”
Turning to the other banks, the CMA said TSB had failed to disclose the maximum amount customers would be charged for going into unarranged overdraft while AIB did not publish the correct annual rates for some of its loans and overdrafts through Open Banking on its website.
Lloyds, meanwhile, failed to make available the addresses of 363 ATMs through Open Banking.
Lloyds, TSB and AIB have confirmed they are making changes to their operations to prevent further breaches.
“People deserve banks they can trust to serve them well. Having correct information is essential when making important decisions about our finances. Banks handling our hard-earned money should have adequate processes in place to ensure this happens,” Turnbull said.
A Lloyds spokesperson said the bank had “notified” the CMA over the issue and said there was “no evidence of detriment to customers at any point”.
TSB did not comment while AIB was contacted for comment.