Banks not doing enough to help reputation
Banks are not doing enough to improve their public image to win back consumers, according to finder.com.au.
The comparison site’s latest survey of economists and experts found that 79 per cent of the 33 panellists surveyed said banks were not doing enough to win the trust of consumers.
Laing+Simmons managing director, Leanne Pilkington, said: “The banks have themselves acknowledged that there is a trust disconnect with consumers”.
“Rate movements out of synch with the RBA [Reserve Bank of Australia] exacerbate the problem, especially when reporting season comes along and billion dollar profits are the norm,” she said.
On the cash rate movement, 80 per cent of the experts surveyed forecast the next cash rate move to be up, with 60 per cent of that group not expecting a rise until the second half of 2018.
One-in-three experts expected a potential rise earlier than this.
finder.com.au insights manager, Graham Cooke, said: “There’s been no cash rate movement over the last 12 months, however, we have seen the estimated date of the next rise push further into 2018, potentially giving some Aussie borrowers breathing space for longer”.
Cooke noted that if there were to be a rise in November it would not be in favour for homeowners.
“Some banks, including Westpac, RaboDirect, ME Bank, and ING have recently reduced their savings rate our of cycle, which may indicate they foresee an impending rise,” Cooke said.
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