Financial providers must enhance their digital offerings without neglecting the personal touch

As services across our lives have become increasingly instant, it is logical that these expectations now extend to services with banks, insurers and other financial providers. When they engage with their financial providers, customers quite reasonably expect these interactions to be fast and convenient, with minimal delays in both processing applications and making decisions on approvals.

The need for speed is underlined by recent changes in the EU, where the European Parliament voted to require payment providers within the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) to enable instant transactions in 10 seconds or under.

While banking providers in the UK are using the Faster Payments service, allowing customers to send money between bank accounts almost instantly, this speed has now become an expectation for UK consumers across all aspects of their interactions with banks and other financial services. This isn’t just limited to the youngest tech-savvy Brits either; it spans all age demographics, where growing numbers are showing a preference for more digital interactions. 

Demand for faster services

While this trend is happening right across Europe, our research finds that customers in the UK are the ones expecting the quickest turnaround on decisions for financial products and applications. Brits are twice as likely as those in other European countries to expect applications to be processed in minutes.

Customers in the UK have similar expectations regarding insurance, with a quarter wanting applications to be approved in minutes, compared to just one in eight Europeans.

While Brits have the highest expectations, the demand for quick decisions is growing across the globe. Three quarters of consumers across Europe and the US would like same-day processing on decisions around their savings accounts, rising to 90% who would like this to be completed within a week.

Demand for quick, seamless decisions on financial products is likely to only increase as other services in people’s lives become faster. In order to keep up, financial providers must adopt robust systems to rapidly analyse eligibility and facilitate quick, accurate decision-making.

Shifting away from human interactions

The decline in importance placed on in-person interactions with financial providers is another trend where British consumers are ahead of the rest of Europe. This is unsurprising, given digital-only banking currently tops the list for customer satisfaction in the UK.

While eight in ten consumers in Europe prefer to speak with a real person when making major decisions around loans, mortgages and insurance, the UK bucks this trend. Just two-thirds of those in the UK would now want to speak to a real person before making significant financial decisions, such as on a loan or mortgage.

This holds true for both younger and older Brits, with the proportion decreasing to six in ten of those aged 18-34 who say they value in-person interactions, and three quarters of those aged over 55 agreeing – still below the overall European average across all age groups.

For people in the UK, direct interaction with a member of staff has become so deprioritised that nearly half say they would only call their bank as a last resort.

And it’s not just financial services where we’re witnessing this shift. Looking beyond the sector, more and more consumers are becoming less comfortable with ‘live’ interactions. A Uswitch survey conducted earlier in the year found a quarter of Brits aged 18-34 say they never answer the phone and 61% would prefer a text to a phone call.

For many, in-person interactions are less of a priority compared to the speed and convenience that can often be better achieved through digital-first services or human touch points fully embedded into a smooth digital journey.

A need for speed, ease and personalisation  

Although in some markets, such as the UK, preferences have clearly shifted towards more digital services, banks, insurers and financial providers must remember that one size does not fit all. Offering a single line of communication, no matter how effective it is, is unlikely to cut it.

Instead, these providers must look towards more flexible strategies that can enhance their digital offering, enabling quicker decision-making without neglecting personal interactions to successfully match the varied needs of different demographics and markets. Those that succeed will not just retain their current customer base but will be best placed to attract new ones within an increasingly demanding landscape.