Yorkshire Bank Scores Big Among Small Business Customers
Most highly-rated English bank, according to Forum of Private Business survey.
Business customers of Yorkshire Bank are the most satisfied of any bank based in England, according to a study by the Forum of Private Business (FPB).
Yorkshire was ranked 2nd overall and only beaten by Irish-based AIB. Yorkshire, which has its headquarters in Leeds, was also runner-up the last time the survey was carried out in 2002.
Yorkshire's sister bank in Scotland, Clydesdale*, was the most improved bank - rising from 8th in 2002 to 3rd place.
Nick Goulding, chief executive of the Forum of Private Business, said: "Yorkshire and Clydesdale have clearly outperformed the 'big 4' in demonstrating high levels of performance in a wide range of key areas as judged by their SME customers. They have demonstrated tremendous drive in developing stronger customer relationships and improving their offerings, a move which has clearly been reflected in today's announcement."
Firms were asked to rate their bank across 18 factors - ranging from charges and convenience of location to friendliness and quality of advice.
Chris Bayliss, Chief Operating Officer at Yorkshire Bank, said: "This is a very comprehensive survey and so we are obviously delighted to have again been rated so highly by our customers. It is a real testament to the enthusiasm, expertise and commitment shown by our staff in delivering high quality services and products to our customers.
"However, the survey also found that far too many businesses seem willing to settle for a poor deal on their banking, even though there are evidently much better providers - such as Yorkshire - around."
According to the FPB study, one in three (33.7%) of SMEs had considered switching bank but had not done so. Less than one in 20 (4.6%) had switched and almost two-thirds (61.7%) admitted they had not even thought about transferring their account.
* Both Yorkshire and Clydesdale are part of NAB Europe.
For further information:
Peter Brown Yorkshire Bank 0113 247 2510
Notes to Editors:
Forum of Private Business report
The biennial "FPB Bank Report 2004: Private Business and their Banks" was conducted among 5,000 small firms. They were asked to rate their bank across 18 factors - whether knows business, knows industry, knows market, offers advice, range of services, availability of credit, competitiveness of interest rates, competitive charges, realistic collateral, tailors finance, deal with one person, access to loan officer, speed of decision, efficiency, reliability, friendly staff, convenient location and convenient hours.
Bank performance table:
1. AIB
2. Yorkshire
3. Clydesdale
4. HSBC
5. RBS
6. Bank of Scotland
7. NatWest
8. Lloyds TSB
9. Barclay
Yorkshire Bank
Yorkshire Bank was founded in 1859 in Halifax, West Yorkshire, and today maintains a strong regional focus in the north of England and the Midlands. Yorkshire Bank has a strong personal customer base and a growing business capability. Yorkshire Bank has 220 branches, and became a part of the National Australia Bank Group in 1990.
National Australia Bank Limited is an international financial services group. As at 30 September 2003, the National had total assets of £168 billion (AUD 397 billion), assets under management and administration of over £31 billion (AUD 73 billion), assets under custody and investment administration of £131 billion (AUD 311 billion), almost eight million banking and more than 2.8 million wealth management customers globally.
Financial Services Europe is the retail banking arm of the National for Great Britain and Ireland. FSE includes all European based consumer, business and agribusiness banking, together with cards, payments, leasing and shared services. Members of Financial Services Europe include Clydesdale Bank in Glasgow, Yorkshire Bank in Leeds, Northern Bank in Belfast and National Irish Bank in Dublin.
More information on National Australia Bank Group can be found at www.national.com.au
Forum of Private Business
The Forum of Private Business (FPB) was formed in 1977 and is a pressure group fighting on behalf of private businesses. FPB represents approximately 25,000 UK-based businesses employing in excess of 600,000 people, and is a powerful lobbying voice in both the UK and the European Union.
FPB, as the only full UK member of UEAPME - the organisation that represents small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Europe - is the most prominent advocate of UK SMEs in Brussels and has a track record of positively affecting legislation prior to its introduction in the UK.
FPB also provides a range of business services aimed at increasing member efficiency and profitability. Visit www.fpb.org.
Yorkshire Bank PLC. Registered Office: 20 Merrion Way, Leeds LS2 8NZ. Registered in England No: 117413.
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