Consumers in the United Kingdom generally believe their credit card companies treat them fairly and are unlikely to change their card use based on the recently introduced consumer card rights and regulations, new research suggests.
UK-based management-consulting firm Auriemma Consulting Group conducted the research through an online survey of 508 UK credit card users in June. Complete results will be available in September.
Early results suggest 94% of UK credit cardholders believe their credit card company treats them fairly, while 84% of respondents said they had not changed their mind regarding their company’s treatment within the last year. Additionally, 82% of cardholders believe their card company values them as a customer.
Issuers have increased transparency by making statement information accessible and available to consumers. Statement information may include showing when payment is due, the interest rate charged, how the interest rate has been calculated and how rewards work, Megan Bramlette, a director at Auriemma Consulting Group, tells PaymentsSource.
Industry regulations and new cardholder rights introduced by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the UK Card Association require card companies to release such information.
Earlier this year, the UK Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the UK Card Association announced new “rights” for UK credit cardholders, including a requirement that the highest-cost debt on a credit card account is paid off first and that cardholders facing financial difficulties do not receive unsolicited credit-increase offers (
The high percentage of consumers noting they are treated fairly by their card company is a “pretty incredible statistic,” Bramlette says. “We were not surprised by the results. However, it may be news to the regulatory authorities and consumer-advocacy groups that believe card companies are evil,” she adds.
The results of this survey actually show the UK government and consumer associations that the card industry is doing well–that consumers do not see card companies as the enemy, Bramlette says.
“I don’t think, however, that these results will change the way these groups operate because regulating customer treatment isn’t a bad idea,” she says. “Overall, consumers have the right and expectation to be treated fairly.”
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