Anti-bank sentiment rife as Sir Fred refuses to give up pension

27/02/2009

Trust in UK banks has slumped, stark new figures from ASDA show.

The supermarket's poll found that 73 per cent of customers believe that banks lend "irresponsibly" - offering people who are bad credit risks too much money.

Consumers who borrow more money than they can pay back were also given short shrift by the shoppers - four in ten said that it was "mainly" the responsibility of the individual rather than the bank to make sure they can repay.

Gev Lynott, financial services director at ASDA, said: "It's no surprise that trust in banks has fallen sharply over recent months, but there also appears to be a strong sense of personal responsibility among our consumers who feel that taking on credit isn't a decision they should take lightly.

"We are pleased to see such a high proportion accepting that it's their responsibility."

Commenting on the figures Kevin Still, EuroDebt director, said: "As a Debt Management Company, the majority of the people that we see want to pay back the money that they have borrowed, but have had one or more major change in circumstances that have impacted their ability to meet their contractual commitments to their creditors. Very few of the financial experts, including the government and the senior banking officials, were able to predict the current state of the economy."

He added: "Most of the clients who approach us for debt advice borrowed money in good faith - advanced by regulated organisations that should be committed to responsible lending. There are obviously cases that you see were there has been irresponsible borrowing and credit applications that weren’t detailed enough to properly assess the accuracy of the information supplied by the applicants. Whilst confidence in banks has been badly shaken, and issues like high bank charges and non-sympathetic collections policies have been prominent recently, I am equally concerned with the emergence of claims management companies encouraging consumers to challenge the enforceability of their credit agreements and potentially creating a 'won’t pay' society - which is not beneficial at all."

The anti-bank sentiment also comes at a time when it has been revealed that Sir Fred Goodwin, the man popularly associated with helping to cause the near-collapse of RBS, has refused to give up his gold-plated £650,000-per-year pension.

This comes despite the bank declaring a UK record £24 billion loss for 2008.

Sir Fred left his post as chief executive at RBS late last year.

Tags; Debt Management and Banking, Credit Card Lifestyle, Young Family Finances, Retirement Money Problems,

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