Uswitch comments on the CMA’s provisional decision on remedies of the retail banking market review

Commenting on the CMA’s provisional decision on remedies of the retail banking market review, Richard Neudegg, head of regulation at Uswitch.com, says: “It’s welcome that the CMA has proposed a number of remedies to help inject some much needed competition into the current accounts market.

“One of the biggest challenges – and the first step to boosting switching numbers – remains in getting people engaged with the current accounts market. More needs to be done to help consumers understand what their existing current account is truly costing, and onus should be on the banks to get the message out on the benefits and ease of switching to a better alternative.

“By helping consumers make more informed decisions about their current accounts, the proposals should help fuel more engagement, which, as we have seen time and time again across other sectors, will increase competition to the benefit of all customers.

“Encouragingly the proposals also include measures aimed at tackling the complexity of penalties and charges being applied to accounts where people have slipped into an unplanned overdraft. This should help protect those who suffer the most from a lack of competition in this market.

“Whether the remedies proposed by the CMA are enough to fuel customer engagement remains to be seen. It is an important step in easing the grip which the biggest banks have on the current account market and give the challenger banks an opportunity to compete with the big high street names.”