Banking complaints soar in Portugal during first quarter 2024

During the first quarter of the year, the Portal da Queixa received more than 1,800 complaints related to the banking sector, an increase of almost 20 percent compared to 2023.

Unknown debt, fraud, and undue charging of fees are the main reasons for complaints from consumers. CGD, Universo card, and MB WAY are among the most targeted.

However, it is Banco de Portugal that records the biggest increase in the number of complaints, up 80 percent compared to the previous year, with allegations of fraud motivating 47.4 percent of complaints.

Portuguese consumers registered 1,805 complaints to the bank on the Portal da Queixa during the first quarter of the year, an increase of almost 20 percent, compared to the same period in 2023, where 1,519 complaints were observed.

Among the main reasons for complaints, unknown debt stands out, accounting for 32.6 percent of incidents. Consumers refer to amounts that were debited incorrectly, without the user's knowledge. The second most reported reason is fraud (13.4 percent), where consumers report having been victims of credit card or account fraud.

The origin of 10.9 percent of complaints is the undue charging of fees or tariffs. Already causing 5 percent of complaints are problems with reimbursement, that is, the return of amounts debited.

With a weight of 4.5 percent in the total volume of the first quarter, there is the reason: cancelling a card or service, where consumers point out the difficulty in cancelling a card or services linked to the account, such as insurance and loans.

According to the data analysed, it was found that in the Banks category, Caixa Geral de Depósitos was the banking entity that registered the most complaints in the first quarter: 27.8 percent. Banco de Portugal and ActivoBank follow, with 10.9 percent and 10.6 percent, respectively.

In the Credit Cards category, the podium belongs to the Universo card, absorbing 78.3 percent of participation. The WiZink card was the target of 21.5 percent of complaints and the El Corte Inglés card collected 0.2 percent.

As for the Fintechs, Electronic Payment Solutions + Digital Banks and Financial Apps category, the analysis reveals that the Top 3 are the most complained about entities: MB WAY (30.8 percent), Hipay (22.3 percent) and Moey (11.5 percent).

According to the analysis by Portal da Queixa, the entity that saw the greatest increase in the number of complaints was Banco de Portugal, which saw an increase in the number of complaints of around 80 percent. It was also found that allegations of fraud were the most cited reason this year, generating 47.4 percent of complaints related to the regulator.