Federated Farmers Release Rural Banking Report Cards
"A farmer's relationship with their bank is one of the most important relationships within their business, and for many farmers interest payments will be their single-biggest expense," says Federated Farmers banking spokesperson Mark Hooper.
"Farmers, along with politicians and the general public, deserve full transparency of what each of the rural lenders is doing well - and just as importantly, what they're not doing so well.
"That's why, for the first time, we've asked farmers to tell us how the banks are stacking up.
"We're now releasing these report cards because we want to create more visibility of rural banking issues and competition."
Federated Farmers' May banking survey of 681 farmers found Rabobank and ANZ were the top-performing rural banks, sharing first-place on the podium.
Rabobank received the highest scores for overall satisfaction, communication quality and overdraft rate.
ANZ scored the best farmer ratings for mortgage rates, the level of undue pressure felt by farmers, and mental health scores.
Westpac came in at the middle of the pack, scoring well with their mortgage rates and communication.
BNZ and ASB were nearly tied in last place, showing they've got some work to do with farmers.
Hooper says the banks' CEOs should keep an eye out for a report card coming their way.
"The purpose of these report cards isn't to tear down the banks - it's to really help them see what they need to focus on to deliver a better service to Kiwi farmers.
"Over the coming weeks we'll be providing each of the banks with a copy of their report card, and some constructive feedback on how they could improve.
"We hope this is a helpful process and results in a benefit to both farmers and their lenders."
ANZ
Mortgage Rate: A+
Overdraft Rate: A
Undue Pressure: A+
Comm. Quality: B
Mental Health: A+
Overall Satisfaction: A
Final Grade: A-
Rabobank
Mortgage Rate: B
Overdraft Rate: A+
Undue Pressure: A
Comm. Quality: A+
Mental Health: A
Overall Satisfaction: A+
Final Grade: A-
Westpac
Mortgage Rate: A
Overdraft Rate: C
Undue Pressure: D
Comm. Quality: A
Mental Health: B
Overall Satisfaction: B
Final Grade: C+
BNZ
Mortgage Rate: D
Overdraft Rate: D
Undue Pressure: B
Comm. Quality: D
Mental Health: D
Overall Satisfaction: C
Final Grade: C-
ASB
Mortgage Rate: C
Overdraft Rate: B
Undue Pressure: C
Comm. Quality: C
Mental Health: C
Overall Satisfaction: D
Final Grade: D
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