Reluctance to switch banking products costs consumers $6.1 billion.
The reluctance of Australians to switch to more competitive bank deals is costing them $6.1 billion a year in fees and interest charges, according to InfoChoice’s banking research report.
Bank customers could save up to $5.4 billon on home loans, $257 million on credit card costs and $482 million on other financial loans if they switched to the cheapest products available, according to the report. Average annual banking costs would drop by $3,800 if customers switched to the lowest fees available.
Consumers could save 0.86 per cent if they switched to one of the lowest four home loans in the market, and up to 34 per cent for their car loans.
Low interest rates have caused the average costs of fees among the four major banks to drop by 35 per cent over the last year.
InfoChoice chief executive Shaun Cornelius said the major banks were far more expensive than the smaller lenders for service and transaction fees, ATM fees, and interest rates.
“Consumers refusing to look outside the big four are stopping themselves from getting the best possible deal, and adding unnecessary pain to their hip pocket nerve," he said.
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