Why the French are struggling to change banks – BBC

While the Senate passed an amendment to the Act to facilitate Macron banking mobility, only 3% of customers change schools every year, according to UFC-Que Choisir. This is three times less than the European average.

change bank in France is an obstacle course. “While on average nearly 25% of bank customers are dissatisfied with their bank (…), only 3% of customers change banks each year,” said the association UFC-Que Choose from a recent study . “This is three times less than the European average, and five times less than the French mobile telephony or insurance.” The Macron law may change. The senators adopted Friday a government amendment to the bill, to facilitate bank accounts in order to “increase competition in the sector and lower prices to the benefit of customers.”

Since the November 1, 2009, however, all French banks are obliged to offer their customers a support service to banking mobility. This free service supports the transfer of operations (transfers, withdrawals …) and is responsible for preventing the agencies concerned. This standard has become a legal obligation in 2014, as part of the Hamon law.

Several obstacles to mobility remain. “The multi-equipment banking products, such as credit (personal or real estate), life insurance and regulated savings accounts, promotes customer inactivity and his bank account that serves as a pivot to the operations of collection and transfer, “says a government report on the portability of bank account, submitted to Parliament in late 2014. On average residential customers of banks each hold about 7 banking products (including the main account), whose operation is often attached to the bank account.

Another obstacle pointed by UFC-Que Choisir, “the heaviness of change debits (credit transfers, direct debits) and the risk of errors in this change (with checks , in particular. The association notes in passing “the failure of the assistance service banking mobility” set up by banks, lampooning the example of “the 350,000 checks rejected each year because of closure of the account.”

The technical difficulties are added the costs of setting change. The list goes on: “it may be closing costs (in case the bank for certain savings products), transfer (ditto), repurchase agreement or early retirement (for example, in contract telephony with commitment or for certain real estate loans), forwarding (eg for “box” internet operators), tax costs (eg for tax-free financial products where all closed before the tax-term results in a greater tax profits), “explains the association. Moreover, “the more the operator change process will be complex, the more time the consumer will spend will be important, which will deter even the customer to change.”

The weight of psychological barriers is significant, also notes the UFC-Que Choisir. “For example, consumers may believe that change operator in a given area can be risky or complicated, which is not the case, but will help to weigh the balance pan on the side of non-mobility . “Finally, for a client to have the will to change banks,” it is still necessary that it is in ability to know if there is another operator more attractive financially, and he can learn so easy, fast and independent, “insists the association criticizing” the complexity of the search for information on competition “in the banking market.

The number of bank accounts amounted to 78 4 million end of 2012 in France, according to the government report. It is very slight growth annually (in the order of 1%). In 2014, he was approaching 80 million.