Loathing All the Way to the Bank? How Complaints, Disloyalty and Dissatisfaction are Related in the New Zealand Banking Industry

Abstract

Levels of customer satisfaction vary between banks in New Zealand, but all banks have some level of dissatisfied customers. While these dissatisfied customers will voice their dissatisfaction informally, it appears that few will formally complain and/or change banks as a result. Most studies focus on customer satisfaction, but the study reported in this paper take a different approach, looking at customer dissatisfaction and seeking to better understand what drives customers to act on it. The study found that around 25% of all customers have experienced some form of unsatisfactory experience with their main bank, and that they appear willing to accept a certain level of poor service from their bank.