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Survey: 6 Reasons Why Consumers Switch Banks. What You Need To Know When Switching

A reader shared the link to a good article at Kiplinger about switching banks. The article lists six reasons why consumers switch banks, based upon a survey by Harris Polls for Kasasa, a service that offers free checking accounts.

As you probably guessed, the number one reason why consumers switch banks is the monthly service fee. And, the cost of banks seems to be going up. Recently, Bank of America announced a new $25 monthly service for its checking accounts. The new fee was announced in New England with plans to go nationwide later this year.

The fifth reason why consumers switch banks are low rates in interest bearing accounts. I thought that this would have rated higher on the list. Read the Kiplinger article to browse the full list of ranked six reasons why consumers switch banks.

If you are thinking about switching banks, Kiplinger offered this advice:

"If you don't like the service you're getting [at your current bank], vote with your feet and take your business elsewhere... It's not as hard as you might think. Of those polled on behalf of Kasasa who switched financial institutions, 81 percent said it wasn't difficult..."

You can move your money from a big bank to a smaller, regional bank or to a credit union. If you are thinking about switching to a credit union:

"... you're twice as likely to find free checking at a credit union than at a commercial bank, according to a study by Bankrate... 72 percent of credit union checking accounts don't have balance requirements. Unlike commercial banks, which are usually for-profit institutions, credit unions are membership-based nonprofit organizations. Member are eligible to join because of a common bond, such as a place of employment, place of worship, school, geographic location... You can find and research credit unions at CUlookup.com and ASmarterChoice.org."

There are more resources. You might try Find A Better Bank (FBB), MyCreditUnion.gov, the Credit Union Locator tool at the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) site, and the Move Your Money Project website. I switched banks recently. if you switched banks or plan to, share below your reasons for switching. Did you find the switching process easy? I did.

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