Sales culture pushes banks to sell unnecessary products: watchdog
Posted March 25, 2018 12:25 pm.
Last Updated March 25, 2018 12:36 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – Have you ever gone in for some routine banking only to be pushed an extended line of credit or another product you felt was unsuitable?
The sales culture at banks increases the risk that their employees could try to sell you products that are not in your best interest, according to our country’s financial watchdog.
The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada looked at this sort of behaviour in our country’s banks and over a nine-month period and has found it’s a real problem.
“We found that certain products, sales practices and distribution channels present greater risks to consumers, and banks are expected to comply with the laws and regulations designed to protect consumers,” says Lucie Tedesco, the agency’s commissioner.
Tedesco says you also have a role to play.
“I would tell them to keep their antennas up,” says Tedesco. “What I mean by that, is, if they’re going to their bank or the store with a specific purpose in mind, then they should take care that when they leave the bank or the store they’re not leaving with a product or service they hadn’t intended on purchasing.”
This review examined practices at Bank of Nova Scotia, Bank of Montreal, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, National Bank of Canada,Royal Bank of Canada and Toronto-Dominion Bank.
