ABSA named the most customer-friendly bank

By Edward West - Business Report, The Star, 13 November 2002

ABSA took the banking adjudicator's award for excellence in handling customer complaints last night, beating Standard Bank, Nedcor and First National Bank to the trophy.

The award, which is in its second year, was initiated by the Banking Adjudicator to recognise banks "that go the distance in addressing customer problems".

Banking Adjudicator Neville Melville said banks often came under fire for their handling of complaints and "we hope that as this award grows in stature, it will heighten awareness of the importance of good customer relations and will encourage banks to adopt a fair, reasonable and professional attitude to complaints.

The banks were judged on the way they handled various types of complaints, with different weightings given to categories. These categories include communication or lack thereof, staff attitude and errors, mistakes and administrative problems, charges and fees, and credit lending.

In addition, respondents rated the overall complaints-handling process, as well as its individual aspects, such as ease and speed of locating the right person to deal with the complaint, the employees' attitude, knowledge and professionalism, and understanding of the problem.

Melville said the award should not be seen as an endorsement of the winning institution by the Banking Adjudicator.

The office was founded in 1997 to assist consumers and small businesses in resolving individual service complaints. The service was free, but customers must first have tried to resolve the problem through a bank's complaints-handling procedures before using it.

The Banking Adjudicator's annual report showed that some banks had resolved 80 percent of the complaints referred to them by the office, and on average 62 percent of these issues were resolved by the banks without the need for further intervention.