Switching banks should be easier, says report

People should be able to switch their banks more quickly and easily, the Independent Banking Commission (IBC) has said.

The banking crisis of recent years has led to competition in the sector being “seriously weakened”, the Commission has concluded in its interim report, with the leading player in the sector now having about 30 per cent of all the UK’s current accounts.

“Increased willingness to switch would put greater pressure on banks to offer good products and services,” the IBC believes.

Just as is now possible with mobile phones, it says that people should be able to keep their account numbers when they transfer to another bank, thus greatly simplifying the process of transferring direct debits and standing orders.

While there should be no technical obstacles to such a step, the IBC says that it could take a couple of years to introduce.

The Commission also calls on banks to be more transparent over their charges, and show more clearly the rates of interest which are paid on in-credit balances, which would again allow customers to compare these figures more readily.