Loyal customers lose out

Consumers are continuing to miss out on hundreds on pounds in savings on their energy bills, insurance premiums or other financial products by staying loyal to their provider, according to a new survey.

Gocompare, the price comparison website, found that a quarter of Britons had never shopped around for any of the 20 most common financial products including their car and home insurance, energy provider, bank account, mortgage or credit card provider.

The survey of 2000 adults found that 31 per cent of respondents had never switched bank accounts, with 18 per cent never cutting ties with their mobile phone provider.

Even as car insurance premiums have risen by 94 per cent over the past three years, only 36 per cent of consumers have changed their car insurance provider over the past 12 months.

The survey also found that only 22 per cent switched their home insurance. The figures were even lower for other financial products: nine per cent switched energy supplier, eight per cent for credit cards, five per cent for savings accounts and three per cent for bank current accounts.

This consumer inertia comes against a backdrop of rising prices for fuel and groceries, and low interest rates on savings accounts.

“Consumers could make much needed savings by reviewing their financial products and switching to a better deal,” says John Miles, Gocompare.com’s business development director.

“But, as our survey reveals, nearly a quarter of consumers haven’t switched on to the benefits of switching.”

The website claims that the average savings to be made on shopping around for car and home insurance are £320 and £232 respectively with a potential saving of £442 on gas and electricity.

“Usually financial services providers offer the best deals to attract new customers – not to reward loyal customers. While over half of the people questioned in our survey recognised this, many are still not shopping around for best deals.”

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