Close to half (47 per cent) of Australians are using just one bank for all financial needs, missing out on the potential benefits of shopping around for the best deal, according to finder.com.au.
A survey of 2005 Australians found many have paid the price for customer loyalty, when their money would be better off held between two or three banks or financial institutions.
Commenting on the findings, finder.com.au money expert, Bessie Hassan said consumers should plan better and diversify away from their home bank.
“You can’t have a ‘one size fits all’ approach…staying loyal to one bank could mean you forgo savings that you’d enjoy from a product with an alternate provider,” she said.
“You could be paying too much interest or you may be paying for features you don’t use, so it’s important to ‘cherry pick’ your products to suit your needs.
“It’s unlikely that one lender will have the best products for all your banking needs.”
Hassan said customers could play on the competitiveness between banks to pick up on discounted features.
“Mix and match your financial products based on your specific needs, compare interest rates and prices – don’t pay the ‘lazy tax’,” she said.
“There’s strong competition among lenders and they’re often competing for your business by waiving annual fees or offering rate discounts, so make sure you actively look for better deals.”
Finder.com.au found West Australians were the most loyal to one bank (56 per cent) compared with 44 per cent of Victorians and Queeslanders.
