High street retailer retains top spot for credit card satisfaction
22 October 2008
The John Lewis/Waitrose group has retained its crown for the second year running to be named best for customer satisfaction in a credit card survey* by Which? Money.
90% of John Lewis/Waitrose customers surveyed by Which? Money said they were very satisfied with the service they receive – an increase of 6% since last year. The retailer was rated highly for accuracy and clarity of statements, customer service and for their offers and discounts. Nationwide also performed well again this year, coming second place with a customer satisfaction score of 87%, while Smile climbed the ranks from fifth to third place with 86%.
Abbey received the lowest customer satisfaction score at 52%, while many of the other well-known credit card providers also scored poorly**.
Customers rated the most important aspect of the service given by credit card providers as the accuracy of statements, with 83% of people saying this is very important. People are least satisfied with how well their provider lets them know about better deals that are available to them***.
Which? Money also found that the most common reason for people choosing their main credit card was that they already had a product with the same company, with 26% of people saying this was their main reason.
Martyn Hocking, Editor, Which? Money, says:
“You could be wasting money if you don’t shop around and just choose a card from your existing bank. Of the big four banks, only Barclays currently offers a card that makes it into the Which? Money Best Buy tables****.
“With the credit crunch making everyone tighten the purse strings, it’s more important than ever that you get the best deal on your credit card. The difference between the worst and the best credit cards can be substantial, so it’s worth doing your homework.”
- Ends –
Notes to Editor
Which? is the leading independent consumer champion in the UK, providing impartial, expert information on thousands of products and services to help make individuals as powerful as the organisations they have to deal with in their daily lives. To find out more go to www.which.co.uk.
The full article “Play your credit cards right” appears in the November 2008 issue of Which? Money magazine. For further information, the full article, a copy of the magazine or an interview, please contact Helen Lacey.
Gift subscriptions to Which? Money magazine can now be purchased from Borders, priced at £24.97 for 12 issues.
For more money-saving advice go to www.which.co.uk/money
Research Notes
* In July 2008, 4,419 members of the Which? online panel were surveyed about their credit card providers.
** The worst performers after Abbey were the following (with their customer satisfaction scores in brackets): MBNA (59%), Lloyds TSB (60%), Royal Bank of Scotland (60%), Halifax (61%), Bank of Scotland (61%), Barclaycard (61%) and Alliance and Leicester (63%).
*** 14% of people were dissatisfied with how well their provider lets them know about the better deals that are available to them.
**** Which? Money Best Buys are categorised by overseas purchases, 0% balance transfer deals, borrowing and cashback. To be included a card cannot charge an annual fee or be tied to another financial product and must be available throughout the UK. Which? is the only organisation that takes into account the different ways in which cards charge interest as well as the interest rate, to show the true cost of borrowing. All our Best Buys can be found at www.which.co.uk/money