With traditional high street banks losing public confidence in the wake of the financial crisis, online provider first direct and P2P lender Zopa have taken advantage to emerge as the industry's most trusted players, according to research from Moneywise magazine.
The research, based on responses from over 10,000 people for the magazine's customer service awards, shows first direct is the most trusted overall service provider. It also comes out on top as a provider of travel insurance, credit cards and mortgages.
However, the surprise winner is Zopa, the social lending platform set up in 2005 to challenge the traditional banking model. It has been named the most trusted personal loan provider, beating off competition in the category from Alliance & Leicester, First Direct, Halifax, Lloyds TSB and Northern Rock.
Zopa's win was part of a wider trend that also saw other non-traditional financial service product providers such as John Lewis, Tesco and Marks & Spencer gaining recognition in a sign that trust is as much about brand as it is about product.