Barclays publishes FSA Complaints Data H2 2011

Banking complaints down over 30 per cent year-on-year as Barclays targets further significant reductions in 2012

Barclays Bank PLC*¹ today publishes customer complaint numbers for the second half of 2011 (1 July to 31 December) which show the bank has substantially driven down volumes by addressing the root causes of complaints.

In the Banking category there has been a 31 per cent reduction in complaint volumes for the full year 2011 compared to 2010. Figures for the second half of the year at 146,316 are also down 10 per cent versus the first half figure of 162,611 recognising continued momentum in reducing complaints.

The figures demonstrate that Barclays focus on putting the customer at the heart of our business is gaining traction with significant and sustainable reductions in complaint volumes. Barclays acknowledges that complaint volumes are still too high and we will continue to address complaints at root cause. Barclays is aiming to deliver further significant reductions in the first half of 2012 (excluding PPI).

The most significant exception to the overall progress we are making to reduce complaints is in the General Insurance and Pure Protection category, of which the majority of complaints are related to Payment Protection Insurance (PPI). Excluding these complaints overall volumes of complaints are down 29 per cent in 2011 compared to 2010. Complaints for the second half of 2011 at 158,492 are also down 11 per cent compared to the first half figure of 177,871 (up 12 per cent half on half including PPI).

Antony Jenkins, Chief Executive of Barclays Retail and Business Banking said:

“We made a commitment to put customers at the heart of our business and improve customer service. Tackling complaints is our top priority and today’s figures show real sustained progress on delivering on our commitments, with a reduction of over 30 per cent in Banking complaints.

“We can and will do more to improve service and go further and faster to drive down complaints. We are aiming for further significant reductions in underlying complaints in the first half of 2012 as we continue on our journey to get it right first time, every time, for our customers.”

Examples of steps Barclays has taken in 2011 to reduce complaints, improve service and build stronger relationships with customers include:

Faster and simpler services

• 99.5 per cent of customers who need a replacement debit card now receive it in two days when it used to take a week, leading to a 59 per cent reduction in related complaints.
• 95 per cent of our personal and business customer accounts are now opened within 24 hours, leading to a 41 per cent reduction in Barclays Business account opening complaints.
• All standing order and direct debit change requests are now processed on the day they are received, resulting in a 29 per cent reduction in related complaints.
• Significantly speeding up the release of funds to the next of kin in cases of bereavement, leading to a 72 per cent reduction in related complaints.

Solving issues at first point of contact

• An enhanced Barclaycard Helpdesk has been introduced to provide our front line agents with access to expert knowledge, help and advice, enabling us to address 86 per cent of customer issues within two days.

Complaint volumes are just one measure of customer service and satisfaction. Looking at other measures other than FSA Reportable Complaints also show positive improvements in customer service. Barclays UK customer satisfaction ranking has risen from eleventh in 2007, to fourth. Internal surveys also show branch and telephony satisfaction scores hit their highest levels ever in 2011 at 92 per cent and 82 per cent respectively.

A full breakdown of FSA reportable complaints is available on our website.

*¹Barclays is required to publish FSA reportable complaints for all of its legal entities that received more than 500 complaints in the six month period, which were not resolved by close of business on the next business day. Barclays has five publishable legal entities to include Barclays Bank PLC, Firstplus Financial Group PLC, Clydesdale Financial Services Limited, Barclays Stockbrokers Limited and Woolwich Plan Managers Limited.

Barclays Bank PLC accounts for 96 per cent of all UK FSA reportable complaints and includes the following; UK Retail and Business Banking, Barclaycard (to include Egg credit card assets and MBNA Small Business Credit Card Portfolio), Barclays Wealth, Barclays Corporate, The Woolwich, Solution Personal Finance Ltd, Standard Life Cash Savings & Mortgages, Standard Life Cash Savings and Standard Life Mortgages.

The narrative we provide relates to Barclays Bank PLC which accounts for 96 per cent of all Barclays UK FSA Reportable Complaints and is consistent with how the FSA publishes firm complaints data on its website.

Barclays provides a full breakdown of all FSA reportable complaints data for all of its publishable legal entities on its website. On an aggregated basis the Barclays Group had 293,853 FSA Reportable Complaints in H2 2011.

Complaint definition:

For the purposes of the complaints detailed in this report, a complaint is defined as being an expression of dissatisfaction which has not been resolved by close of business on the business day following its receipt.

Barclays Bank PLC complaints of 281,484 for six months should be viewed within the context that it undertakes over 1,500,000 transactions per day, one of the highest volumes of transactions in the UK banking industry.

Payment Protection Insurance (PPI)

On 20 April 2011, the judicial review proceedings brought by the British Bankers’ Association in October 2010 against the FSA and the Financial Ombudsman Service regarding the assessment and redress of PPI complaints were dismissed. On 9 May 2011, Barclays announced that it would not be participating in any application for permission to appeal against the High Court judgment and that Barclays had agreed with the FSA that it would process all on-hold and any new complaints from customers about PPI policies that they hold. Barclays also announced that, as a goodwill gesture, it would pay out compensation to customers who had PPI complaints put on hold during the judicial review. Barclays has taken a provision of £1bn to cover the cost of future redress and administration.