Mozo’s People’s Choice Awards found overall banking satisfaction increased to 7.73 out of 10, based on 28,000 customer reviews over the past 12 months.
The home loan category saw the greatest increase with satisfaction rising by 11 per cent since 2012, from 6.78 to 7.93 in 2013.
Mozo director Kirsty Lamont said record-low interest rates drove the increased customer sentiment.
“It appears record-low interest rates are ushering in a new golden era for banking satisfaction. Just one in ten banking customers say they are unhappy with their current provider, rating them four or less out of ten,” said Ms Lamont.
The only category to decline in terms of customer happiness was term deposits, due the difficulty of saving with low interest rates. Satisfaction dropped from 8.11 in 2012 to 7.93 in 2013.
Ms Lamont said the banks will have to work harder at attracting switching customers in a low interest rate environment, meaning an increased focus on customer service, convenience, brand trust and pricing.
ING Direct was voted Australia’s Best Bank, the major award title, but also won awards for Best Savings Accounts and Best Bank Accounts. ME Bank also performed well, receiving Best Home Loans, Best Credit Cards and Best Debit Cards.
While the major four banks benefited from the improvement in customer satisfaction over the 12-month period, they still fell behind the challenger banks and mutuals in terms of customer happiness, according to award results.
National Australia Bank received Best Big Four Bank with an overall rating of 7.76, up 0.39 from last year, and Best Term Deposits. Commonwealth Bank had the most satisfied home loans customers of the four major banks. The average customer satisfaction for the top four banks rose from 0.42 to 7.55 and the overall trust rating increased to a new record of 7.75.
Customer happiness varied across gender, location and age, with women generally more pleased with their bank compared to men - although men were happier with their mortgage provider on average (8.15) compared to women (7.54).
Satisfaction was lowest amongst the 35-44 and 45-54 age brackets and highest amongst the younger and over-55 age bracket. Ms Lamont said this difference across age groups could reflect the level of debt and financial responsibility faced by Australians.
“The uptick in over-55s may also reflect the fact older Australians have had time to amass greater wealth and the benefit of time and experience to get their finances under control," said Ms Lamont. South Australians were happiest with their banks, including the top four banks, while those living in the ACT were least satisfied.
