Mystery shoppers kept in the dark about personal loans

Mon, 23 May 2005

Four in ten people are unable to find the rate that would apply to them if they were granted a personal loan, it was found in a recent mystery shopping survey.

Nationwide found that when calling major financial companies, 41 per cent of consumers could not find out the rate that would apply to them if they were accepted for a personal loan.

They found that many consumers find it very difficult to get an accurate quote for a personal loan, with a number of companies either refusing to give a quote or providing excuses.

Stuart Bernau, executive director at Nationwide, said: "The findings are very disappointing - so much for transparency in financial services.

"It has been shown just how difficult it is to shop around for a good deal, but how can customers be expected to buy a product without knowing what it will cost them? There is no other product or service, that I can think of, where you agree to buy before you know the price."

Additional figures showed nearly 40 per cent were told they would need to open an account before obtaining a personal loan quote. A quarter was told they could only have a personal loan quote if they were taking out the personal loan during the call.

"My advice to those shopping for a personal loan is to look for a provider, like Nationwide, which puts consumers' interests first. With us, the rate you see is the rate you get and you can also be sure that you will know how much the product will cost before you buy it," Mr Bernau added.

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