Finance expert calls for "eBay" company ratings

The UK finance industry should adopt an eBay-style system of customer rating to improve services, a leading finance expert has claimed.

Simon Culhane, chief executive of the securities industry professional body, the Securities & Investment Institute (SII) made the claim in the body's internal magazine.

He suggests that the feedback provided by the eBay system is a key component of the website's success, providing customers with a guide to others' experiences of a company.

"An individual's rating is dynamic and changes according to the simple feedback received from the customer on completion of each transaction," wrote Mr Culhane.

This has a direct parallel in the world of finance, where trust and reputation can be crucial to success.

"What is needed is a measure of proportionality that discriminates between firms with systemic problems and those with occasional blips.

"[Customers] would have a more informed opinion gathered from tens of thousands of transactions," he added.

Analysts have pointed out that complaints made to the banking watchdog have reached a record high and that better customer relations, rather than best rate promotions and inducements, could be the key to continued success.

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