Yahoo Finance This is the big bank Australians complain about the most
Commonwealth Bank customers have by far the most complaints about their bank than any other bank, new figures have revealed.
According to new data released by consumer disputes body Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA), three of the big four banks – CBA, ANZ and NAB – were at the top of the list of financial firms that received the most complaints between 1 November last year and the end of June this year, with nearly 9,000 complaints between the three bank giants.
Commonwealth Bank topped (or bottomed) the list with 3,890 complaints received in the span of eight months, with ANZ and NAB receiving 2,746 and 2,330 respectively in the same period.
Related story: The $150,346 rort your big bank doesn’t want you to know
Related story: Why the ‘big four’ banks are falling behind global peers
Related story: Long-term customers pay more, but 'loyalty tax' isn't real says CBA boss
Insurance giants AAI and Insurance Australia came in fourth and fifth place with slightly over 2,000 complaints.
Westpac customers had the least complaints of all the big banks, but still amassed 1,927 complaints in an eight-month period.
Of all the different types of complaints made, banks were complained about the most.
In total, AFCA received 44,988 complaints across eight months. More than a third of these (36 per cent) was about a bank.
All up, $112.1 million has already been paid to Aussies who flagged a complaint with AFCA.
Some areas had more bones to pick than others: NSW had more complaints than any other state at 7,554, with Victoria at a close second at 7,109.
The postcode that issued the most complaints was NSW’s Liverpool (300), followed by Victoria’s Werribee (300). Sydney had 249 complaints.
Speaking to ABC’s PM, AFCA chief ombudsman David Locke indicated that the complaints were legitimate.
"Seventy-four per cent are actually being resolved by agreement of in favour of complainants.
"Just in our first 12 months of operations, $185 million has been awarded to consumers who otherwise would not have had redress,” he said.
Under AFCA, the number of financial difficulty cases has risen from 3,000 to over 7,000 in this period, Locke added.
“So that to me indicates that there's much more that needs to be done, and it also indicates there are a lot of people out there who are struggling.”
Make your money work with Yahoo Finance’s daily newsletter. Sign up here and stay on top of the latest money, news and tech news.
