ACI Worldwide, an international provider of electronic payments software and solutions, has released the findings of a global consumer fraud survey which highlights the areas that banks need to focus on following a card fraud incident. Reportedly, the ACI Worldwide research on fraud was conducted in Australia, Brazil, China, Dubai, Germany, Singapore, the UK and the USA in July 2009, surveying a total of 2,408 respondents.
According to the findings, the most important factor to ensure customers were happy with their bank after they were hit by fraud, is how quickly any stolen money was reimbursed. However, just under a third of those surveyed also judged their bank’s customer service by how quickly they identified a fraudulent transaction. For a quarter of respondents, it was most important that the financial institution identified the fraud before they did.
The best customer service is to prevent fraud from occurring in the first place. This is also the case if banks want to continue the transition from cash to cards by their customers. The survey found that fraud could influence consumers to revert back to cash, with 18% saying they would definitely use cash over cards following a fraud and a further 59% admitting that they would do so ‘in some situations.’
David Nussenbaum, vice president and product line manager at ACI Worldwide, said: When it comes to fraud, prevention is obviously better than cure. However, our survey shows that once a fraud has occurred, customers can be kept happy if they are provided with the right service. The findings indicate that customers care about how quickly their bank identifies a fraudulent transaction, and they want their bank to identify the fraud before they do. In order to meet these expectations and retain customers, banks need to evolve their fraud strategies and ensure they are implementing the latest anti-fraud tools and techniques.
The post-fraud service offered by banks is crucial to keeping customers happy and preventing attrition. Overall, 74% of respondents were happy with the treatment they received from their financial institution after becoming a victim of card fraud. However, with 26% reporting that they were somewhat unhappy or very unhappy, there is still more that banks can do to ensure customer satisfaction following a fraud incident. The survey findings suggest that it is important for banks to understand regional differences and tailor their customer service accordingly.
