For Australian Banks, Effective and Empathetic Fraud Resolution Processes Drive Customer Advocacy

In the Australian banking industry, how well an institution handles suspected fraud and disputed charges is crucial not only to protecting the trust of existing customers, but also to acquiring new ones. 

NPS Prism data indicates that when customers strongly agree that their banks helps them worry less and feel more secure, they deliver a Net Promoter Score (NPS) 59 points higher on average than when they report a lower feeling of security, demonstrating that protection from banking threats is a crucial factor in their likelihood to recommend their bank to friends and family. 

Furthermore, the presence of strong security and fraud protection measures, and the recommendation of friends and family, are both among the top five factors influencing a customer’s decision to open a new transaction or savings account. Customers want to know they’ll be protected when potential fraud arises, and since they often turn to peers for recommendations when it comes to considering a new bank, customer advocacy around fraud measures can be a key lever for new customer acquisition.  

By focusing CX strategies around the aspects of the fraud resolution process that matter most to customers, Australian banks can gain an important advantage in the market. 

Customers are more concerned with resolution measures and communication, rather than how fraud is detected. 

Banks are improving at being the first to detect potential fraud, with rates increasing by around 7 percentage points year-over-year. However, whether fraud is detected by the bank or the customer themselves has minimal impact on NPS, with an uplift of only 10 points when a bank detects the fraud vs. a customer.  

The strongest drivers of episode, or journey-level, NPS in fraud experiences revolve around what happens after fraud is detected. The bank’s ability to resolve the issue and the final outcome of the process, as well as the ease of the resolution process and whether support was provided during the journey, offer the biggest uplifts in episode NPS when done correctly, ranging from 78 points to 84 points. 

Care, empathy, and sensitivity offered during the process also emerged as stronger drivers of episode NPS than some efficiency measures, such as the time a card was unusable or the time it took to receive a new card, suggesting customers are more tolerating of inconveniences when caring and supportive communication is offered. 

Contact centres are a critical channel during the fraud resolution process 

The importance of empathy is also demonstrated by the emphasis customers place on call centres. Almost 50% of customers see the contact centre as the most relevant channel for resolving fraud and disputes, suggesting that in a high-stakes situation like a fraud incident, customers want the reassurance offered by a fellow human. 

Factors that measure the call centre agent’s perceived expertise and the quality of their recommendations have the greatest impact on episode NPS, with potential uplifts of around 70 points when customers are satisfied in these areas. The perceived empathy and friendliness of the agent, and the ease of understanding the IVR menu to reach an agent, follow closely behind with potential uplifts of 65-69 points, demonstrating that competence, empathy, and clear processes are key factors to call centre NPS performance. 

By designing effective and efficient fraud resolution journeys, and empowering contact centre agents with strong expertise and communication skills, Australian banks can leverage incidents of fraud to demonstrate the protection and care they offer customers, winning brand Promoters and new customers in the process. 

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