Table of Contents
Executive Summary
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- The market
- Number of current accounts remains relatively stable
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- Figure 1: Estimated number of current accounts and current account holders – UK, 2014
- Market factors
- Current Account Switch Service gets off to a good start
- In-depth current account comparison service to launch in 2015
- Complaints about packaged current account surge in 2013/14
- Overdraft market under further investigation by the FCA
- Companies, brands and innovations
- Several firms vying for the top spot in the current account market
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- Figure 2: Top 10 current account providers, by share of main current account market, May 2014
- Co-op Bank’s image suffers due to high-profile issues
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- Figure 3: Attitudes towards and usage of brands in the packaged and current accounts sector, April 2014
- Who’s innovating?
- The consumer
- Ownership by type of current account
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- Figure 4: Type of current account held, May 2014
- Attitudes towards paid-for current accounts
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- Figure 5: Attitudes towards premium and packaged accounts, May 2014
- Most popular features and benefits of paid-for accounts
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- Figure 6: Desirable features of paid-for current accounts, May 2014
- Current account switching activity
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- Figure 7: Main current account switching activity, May 2014
- Motivation for current account switching activity
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- Figure 8: Reasons why consumers have moved their current account in the last five years, May 2014
- What we think
Issues and Insights
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- Tesco Bank finally enters the market
- The facts
- The implications
- Offering customers the chance to choose the perks on their account
- The facts
- The implications
- Impact of branch closures on consumers and switching behaviour
- The facts
- The implications
Trend Application
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- A la carte current accounts
- The human touch
- Mintel Futures: Brand Intervention
Market Drivers
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- Key points
- Current Account Switch Service launched in September 2013
- Comparing current accounts will become easier in 2015
- Complaints about packaged accounts up significantly
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- Figure 9: Number of new complaints about current accounts to the FOS, 2012/13-2013/14
- Banks making changes to their packaged account offerings
- Tesco Bank finally launches current account offering…
- …with others also set to enter the market
- FCA examines the overdraft market with potential measures to be unveiled in late 2014
- Overdraft rates remain high despite low BoE base rate
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- Figure 10: Average monthly overdraft interest rate, three-month LIBOR and official bank rate, January 2009 – March 2014
- Retail deposit balances up slightly in 2013
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- Figure 11: Retail savings balances from households, by sector, 2004-13
Who’s Innovating?
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- Key points
- Club Lloyds part of Lloyds Bank’s new current account offerings
- M&S Bank launches its first fee-free current account
- Tesco Bank finally enters the fray and will offer Clubcard points on spending
- TSB wants customers to try out the re-launched bank
- Cashback and rewards launched by several firms
Market Size
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- Key points
- Number of current accounts remains relatively stable
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- Figure 12: Estimated number of current accounts and current account holders – UK, 2013 and 2014
- Only a minority have paid-for packaged/premium accounts
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- Figure 13: Type of current account held, May 2014
Market Share
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- Key points
- Several brands jostling for top position in the current account market
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- Figure 14: Current account provider rankings, by share of main current account market, May 2014
Companies and Products
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- Lloyds Banking Group
- Company description
- Distribution mix
- Recent financial performance
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- Figure 15: Key annual financial data for Lloyds Banking Group, 2012 and 2013
- Recent and marketing activity
- Barclays
- Company description
- Distribution mix
- Recent financial performance
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- Figure 16: Key annual financial data for Barclays Plc, 2012 and 2013
- Recent and marketing activity
- Nationwide
- Company description
- Distribution mix
- Recent financial performance
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- Figure 17: Key interim financial data for Nationwide Building Society, 2012/13-2013/14
- Recent and marketing activity
- HSBC
- Company description
- Distribution mix
- Recent financial performance
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- Figure 18: Key annual financial data for HSBC Bank Plc, 2012 and 2013
- Recent and marketing activity
- Santander
- Company description
- Distribution mix
- Recent financial performance
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- Figure 19: Key annual financial data for Santander UK, 2012 and 2013
- Recent and marketing activity
- RBS Group
- Company description
- Distribution mix
- Recent financial performance
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- Figure 20: Key annual financial data for RBS Group, 2012-2013
- Recent and marketing activity
Brand Communication and Promotion
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- Key points
- Advertising on current account and associated services up by 20% in 2013/14
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- Figure 21: Overview of expenditure on current accounts and other money-transmission services, 2011/12-2013/14*
- Over 40% of advertising expenditure is focused on brand building
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- Figure 22: Advertising expenditure on personal current accounts and related money-transmission services, by product sub-category, 2011-12 and 2013-14
- Top ten advertisers account for majority of adspend
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- Figure 23: Top ten advertisers of current accounts and related money-transmission services, 2011/12-2013/14*
- Television and press dominate advertising expenditure
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- Figure 24: Share of advertising expenditure on current accounts and related money-transmission services, by media type, 2011/12-2013/14
- A note about adspend
Brand Perceptions and Social Media
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- Brand perceptions
- Key brand metrics
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- Figure 25: Key packaged and current account brand metrics, April 2014
- Brand map
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- Figure 26: Attitudes towards and usage of brands in the packaged and current accounts sector, April 2014
- Correspondence analysis
- Brand attitudes
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- Figure 27: Attitudes, by packaged and current accounts brand, April 2014
- Brand personality
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- Figure 28: Packaged and current accounts brand personality – macro image, April 2014
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- Figure 29: Packaged and current accounts brand personality – micro image, April 2014
- Brand experience
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- Figure 30: Packaged and current accounts brand experience, April 2014
- Social media and online buzz
- Social media metrics
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- Figure 31: Social media metrics of selected packaged and current accounts brands, July 2014
- Twitter leads social media engagement
- Banks with high satisfaction earn fewer mentions
- Online mentions
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- Figure 32: Share of conversation of selected packaged and current accounts brands, 30 June 2013 – 28 June 2014
- Co-op Bank’s annus horribilis reflected in online conversation
- Barclays leads in share of conversation
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- Figure 33: Share of conversation of the top four brands by share of conversation, excluding Barclays conversation around football, 30th June 2013 – 28th June 2014
- NatWest outage causes biggest spike
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- Figure 34: Share of conversation of selected packaged and current accounts brands, 30 June 2013 – 28 June 2014
- TSB’s initial spin off from Lloyds creates conversation in two stages
- Banking issues cause conversations for smaller brands too
- Sponsorship helps Santander increase share of conversation
- Topics of discussion
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- Figure 35: Topics of discussion around selected packaged and current accounts brands, April 2014
- Consumers preoccupied with accounts
- Scandals driven to forefront by The Co-operative Bank
- PPI chatter on the wane
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- Figure 36: Proportion of all banking conversation related to PPI, 27 December 2009 – 28 June 2014
- Mobile and apps generate more conversation than branches
- Where are people talking
- Difference in where the majority of people talk about different brands
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- Figure 37: Type of site that brands have been mentioned on, 30 June 2013 – 28 June 2014
- Brand Twitter activity will become more crucial
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- Figure 38: Mentions of brands’ Twitter handles, by week, 30 June 2013 – 28 June 2014
- Analysis by brand
- Barclays
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- Figure 39: Topic cloud around mentions of Barclays, 30 June 2013 – 28 June 2014
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- Figure 40: Topic cloud around mentions of Barclays, excluding football-related mentions, 30 June 2013 – 28 June 2014
- What we think
- Co-operative Bank
- Co-operative Bank has seen fall in trust
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- Figure 41: Shift in perceptions of The Co-operative Bank’s trust and differentiation, July 2012, December 2012, June 2013, January 2014, April 2014*
- The Co-operative Bank still has an element of social responsibility and ethicality
- What we think
- Lloyds Bank
- Lloyds has second highest proportion of mentions around scandals
- What we think
- NatWest
- NatWest systems go down on 2 December 2013
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- Figure 42: Topics of discussion around NatWest systems failure, 1 – 8 December 2013
- @NatWest_Help drives customer service
- Social media furore dies down after a week
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- Figure 43: Share of bank brand conversation earned by NatWest, 3 November 2013 – 4 January 2014
- What we think
- Santander
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- Figure 44: Topic cloud around mentions of Santander, 30 June 2013 – 28 June 2014
- What we think
- Halifax and Nationwide
- Both Halifax and Nationwide boast long running house price indices
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- Figure 45: Topic cloud around mentions of Halifax, 30 June 2013 – 28 June 2014
- Figure 46: Topic cloud around mentions of Nationwide, 30 June 2013 – 28 June 2014
- What we think
- TSB
- TSB conversation focused around Lloyds and share offer
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- Figure 47: Topic cloud around mentions of TSB, 30 June 2013 – 28 June 2014
- What we think
- First Direct
- First Direct Arena creates everyday mentions
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- Figure 48: Topic cloud around mentions of First Direct, 30 June 2013 – 28 June 2014
- Other conversation is limited due to lack of scandal and lack of customer complaints
- What we think
Channels to Market
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- Key points
- Branch networks continue to decline
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- Figure 49: UK bank and building society branch networks, 2002-12
- Almost 60% of adults use online banking at least once a week
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- Figure 50: Channels used to access banking service provided by current account providers, May 2014
- Mobile banking much more pronounced among 16-34-year-olds
Current Account Ownership
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- Key points
- Current account ownership is almost universal
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- Figure 51: Current account ownership, May 2014
- Affluent people more likely to have several accounts
- Joint account ownership is higher among the over-55s
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- Figure 52: Joint account ownership, May 2014
- Adults with multiple accounts more likely to have a joint account
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- Figure 53: Joint account ownership, by current account ownership, May 2014
Ownership by Type of Current Account
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- Key points
- Some 70% of current account holders have a standard account
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- Figure 54: Type of current account held, May 2014
- Affluent consumers significantly more likely to own a packaged/premium account
- Packaged/premium account holders more likely to cite Santander as their main current account provider
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- Figure 55: Main current account provider, by type of current account held, May 2014
Attitudes towards Paid-for Current Accounts
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- Key points
- Two fifths of adults are not prepared to pay for a current account…
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- Figure 56: Attitudes towards premium and packaged accounts, May 2014
- …with older adults even more against paying for additional features
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- Figure 57: Attitudes towards premium and packaged accounts, by age, May 2014
- Affluent clients are more likely to be considering premium/packaged accounts
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- : Figure 58: Agreement with the statement ‘I am considering taking out a packaged/premium account in the next 12 months^^^’, by gross annual household income, May 2014
- Allowing people to pick their own benefits could help attract customers and increase fees
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- Figure 59: Agreement with the statement ‘I would be willing to pay/pay more for a packaged/premium account if I could select the benefits that are included’, by type of current account held, May 2014
- Reduced hassle in arranging products appeals to premium/packaged account customers
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- Figure 60: Select attitudes towards premium and packaged accounts, by type of current account held, May 2014
Most Popular Features and Benefits of Paid-for Accounts
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- Key points
- Market developments reflect consumers’ preferences
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- Figure 61: Desirable features of paid-for current accounts, May 2014
- Over-65s more likely to want higher interest rates on their current account holdings
- Household income influences desirable features
- Better savings rates appeal to those who feel paid-for accounts are a waste of money
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- Figure 62: Agreement with the statement ‘Current accounts where you pay a monthly fee for additional benefits are a waste of money, by desire for a higher interest on savings products in paid-for accounts, May 2014
- Branch access and counter services relatively low on list of priorities
Current Account Switching Activity
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- Key points
- One in two adults have never switched their main current account provider
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- Figure 63: Main current account switching activity, May 2014
- Santander is benefiting from its 1|2|3 account
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- Figure 64: Main account provider, by main current account switching activity, May 2014
- Difficult to find an angle to convince non-switchers
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- Figure 65: Desirable features of paid-for accounts, by main current account switching behaviour, May 2014
Motivation for Current Account Switching
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- Key points
- Switching activity more likely to be driven by pull factors
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- Figure 66: Reasons why consumers have moved their current account in the last five years, May 2014
- Local branch closures pushing away a minority
- Higher interest on in-credit balances a big reason why consumers move to Santander
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- Figure 67: Main current account provider, by select reasons why consumers have moved their current account in the last 5 years, May 2014
- Packaged/premium account holders are much more likely to have moved for cashback and interest on balances
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- Figure 68: Consumers who have moved their current account in the last five years to get higher interest on balances or cashback on spending, by standard and packaged/premium account ownership, May 2014
Appendix – Market Share
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- Figure 69: Main current account market share (top seven providers), by demographics, May 2014
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- Figure 70: Main current account market share (top seven providers), by demographics, May 2014 (continued)
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Appendix – Brand Research
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- Figure 71: Brand usage, April 2014
- Figure 72: Brand usage, April 2014 (continued)
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- Figure 73: Brand commitment, April 2014
- Figure 74: Brand commitment, April 2014 (continued)
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- Figure 75: Brand diversity, April 2014
- Figure 76: Brand diversity, April 2014 (continued)
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- Figure 77: Brand satisfaction, April 2014
- Figure 78: Brand satisfaction, April 2014 (continued)
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- Figure 79: Brand recommendation, April 2014
- Figure 80: Brand recommendation, April 2014 (continued)
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- Figure 81: Brand attitude, April 2014
- Figure 82: Brand attitude, April 2014 (continued)
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- Figure 83: Brand image – macro image, April 2014
- Figure 84: Brand image – macro image, April 2014 (continued)
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- Figure 85: Brand image – micro image, April 2014
- Figure 86: Brand image – micro image, April 2014 (continued)
- Figure 87: Share of conversation of selected packaged and current accounts brands, by week, 30 June 2013 – 28 June 2014
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- Figure 88: Share of conversation of selected packaged and current accounts brands, by week, 30 June 2013 – 28 June 2014 (continued)
- Figure 89: Topics of discussion around selected packaged and current account brands, 30 June 2013 – 28 June 2014
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Appendix – Channels to Market
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- Figure 90: Usage of online banking, by demographics, May 2014
- Figure 91: Usage of online banking, by demographics, May 2014 (continued)
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- Figure 92: Usage of mobile banking, by demographics, May 2014
- Figure 93: Usage of mobile banking, by demographics, May 2014 (continued)
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- Figure 94: Usage of in-branch counter services, by demographics, May 2014
- Figure 95: Usage of in-branch counter services, by demographics, May 2014
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- Figure 96: Usage of telephone banking, by demographics, May 2014
- Figure 97: Usage of telephone banking, by demographics, May 2014 (continued)
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- Figure 98: Usage of in-branch advice services, by demographics, May 2014
- Figure 99: Usage of in-branch advice services, by demographics, May 2014 (continued)
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Appendix – Current Account Ownership
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- Figure 100: Current account ownership, by demographics, May 2014
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- Figure 101: Joint account ownership, by demographics, May 2014
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Appendix – Ownership by Type of Current Account
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- Figure 102: Type of current held, May 2014
- Figure 103: Type of current held continued, May 2014
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Appendix – Attitudes towards Paid-for Current Accounts
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- Figure 104: Most popular attitudes towards premium and packaged accounts, by demographics, May 2014
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- Figure 105: Most popular attitudes towards premium and packaged accounts, by demographics, May 2014 (continued)
- Figure 106: Less popular attitudes towards premium and packaged accounts, by demographics, May 2014
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- Figure 107: Attitudes towards premium and packaged accounts, by demographics, May 2014
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Appendix – Most Popular Features and Benefits of Paid-for Accounts
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- Figure 108: Most desirable features of paid-for current accounts, by demographics, May 2014
- Figure 109: Desirable features of paid-for current accounts, by demographics, May 2014
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- Figure 110: Least desirable features of paid-for current accounts, by demographics, May 2014
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Appendix – Current Account Switching Activity
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- Figure 111: Main current account switching behaviour, by demographics, May 2014
- Figure 112: Main current account switching behaviour continued, by demographics, May 2014
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Appendix – Motivation for Current Account Switching
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- Figure 113: New providers’ offerings (pull factors) which motivated consumers to switch accounts, by demographics, May 2014
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- Figure 114: New providers’ offerings (pull factors) which motivated consumers to switch accounts, by demographics, May 2014 (continued)
- Figure 115: Old providers’ failings (push factors) which motivated consumers to switch accounts, by demographics, May 2014
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- Figure 116: Old providers’ failings (push factors) which motivated consumers to switch accounts, by demographics, May 2014 (continued)
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