Current account holders continue to switch to N&P from big banks

Customers of the big high street banks are continuing to switch their current accounts to Norwich & Peterborough Building Society (N&P) - with more set to follow thanks to a new, personalised switching service.

N&P has seen a significant rise in interest in its award-winning Gold Classic Current Account, which offers free debit card use abroad, since June and the number of inquiries continues to be well above usual levels.

Gold Current Account inquiries, both online and in branches, doubled at the start of July and each week since have remained at least 40% above normal as many customers of the big banks seek out an alternative home for their current accounts with a trusted, mutual building society.

Now the Society, part of Yorkshire Building Society Group, is improving its switching service to make the move even easier, including offering customers a direct personal contact from N&P's dedicated switching team, and regular updates on how the switch is progressing.

"The recent banking scandals have prompted many customers of the big high street names to review their current account arrangements," said Ewan Edwards, head of current accounts at N&P.

"N&P has offered a current account since 1989 and since we re-launched the Gold Current Account at the start of 2011 we've seen customer numbers steadily climb.

"We were already planning refinements to our switching service but this is timely as July has been our busiest month so far this year for new current accounts opened.

"We're hoping the ongoing debate in the media about the ethics of banking are helping customers to recognise the benefits of mutuality and how, as part of the Yorkshire, we can be a credible and trustworthy alternative to the high street banks."

Customer satisfaction levels among N&P's Gold current account holders are above average at 89.5%.

This compares with current account customers' satisfaction with other providers at 64%.