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lovemoney.com readers pick the best personal finance products in our 2011 awards
23 May 2011
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Following the highly successful launch of the lovemoney.com awards in 2010, we are delighted to announce the winners for our second year.
For immediate release
First Direct is the most popular brand in the second lovemoney.com personal finance awards.
Our awards stand out from the crowd because they’re chosen by ordinary readers of the lovemoney.com site. Readers give their verdicts on the financial products they use, so these awards are a reflection of real-life experiences. Awards are given for best credit cards, mortgages, savings accounts, current accounts and insurance policies.
First Direct has performed very strongly this year and is the “most loved” brand for savings, current accounts and mortgages. In credit cards, American Express stays at the top as the “most loved” credit card brand for two years running.
In insurance, Elephant came top for car insurance; Aviva for life insurance; Saga for home insurance while Direct Travel was the “most loved” brand for travel insurance.
Commenting on the awards, lovemoney.com head of consumer finance, Ed Bowsher, says:
“I’m not surprised that First Direct has performed so strongly. This year’s results confirm that First Direct offers an attractive combination of well-designed products and excellent customer service.
“I’m also pleased to see that American Express has retained its position as the most loved credit card brand for the second year of our awards. Amex must be in poll position to win this award for a third time in next year’s awards.”
Aside from the winners we’ve also given two ‘cheer’ awards in each category for providers that were rated in the top three.
Here are the results in full:
CREDIT CARDS
Interest rate
WINNER – Virgin
CHEER - Tesco
CHEER - Natwest
Cashback
WINNER – American Express
CHEER – Capital One
CHEER - Egg
Customer service
WINNER - Nationwide
CHEER – American Express
CHEER – Virgin Money
Rewards
WINNER - Tesco
CHEER – M&S Money
CHEER – American Express
Most loved
WINNER – American Express
CHEER - Tesco
CHEER – M&S Money
SAVINGS
Interest rate
WINNER – AA
CHEER – Post Office
CHEER - Tesco
Consistency
WINNER - ING
CHEER – First Direct
CHEER - Tesco
Customer service
WINNER - Barclays
CHEER - AA
CHEER - ING
Accessibility
WINNER – First Direct
CHEER - RBS
CHEER - Natwest
Most loved
WINNER – First Direct
CHEER – ING Direct
CHEER – AA
CURRENT ACCOUNTS
Interest rate
WINNER – Clydesdale Bank
CHEER - Santander
CHEER - Halifax
Overdraft rate
WINNER – First Direct
CHEER – Clydesdale Bank
CHEER - Smile
Customer service
WINNER – First Direct
CHEER – Smile
CHEER – Co-op
Charges & fees
WINNER - Smile
CHEER – Co-op
CHEER – First Direct
Most loved
WINNER – First Direct
CHEER - Smile
CHEER – Co-op
MORTGAGES
Value for money
WINNER – First Direct
CHEER – Co-op
CHEER - HSBC
Customer service
WINNER – First Direct
CHEER - Woolwich
CHEER - HSBC
Charges & fees
WINNER – Co-op
CHEER – First Direct
CHEER - Woolwich
Speed of processing
WINNER – First Direct
CHEER – Co-op
CHEER - Nationwide
Most loved
WINNER – First Direct
CHEER – Co-op
CHEER – HSBC
CAR INSURANCE
Claims handling
WINNER – LV=
CHEER - Tesco
CHEER - Elephant
Value for money
WINNER – Swift Cover
CHEER - Elephant
CHEER - Saga
Customer service
WINNER - Elephant
CHEER - Saga
CHEER – Tesco
Most loved
WINNER - Elephant
CHEER – LV=
CHEER - Tesco
LIFE INSURANCE
Value for money
WINNER - Aviva
CHEER - AXA
CHEER - Zurich
Customer service
WINNER - Aviva
CHEER – Standard Life
CHEER – Scottish Widows
Most loved
WINNER - Aviva
CHEER - AXA
CHEER – Standard Life
HOME INSURANCE
Customer service
WINNER - Saga
CHEER - RIAS
CHEER - AA
Value for money
WINNER – LV=
CHEER - AA
CHEER - Saga
Claims handling
WINNER - Saga
CHEER - AA
CHEER – Co-op
Most loved
WINNER - Saga
CHEER - AA
CHEER – Lloyds TSB
TRAVEL INSURANCE
Value for money
WINNER – Direct Travel
CHEER - Columbus
CHEER - Santander
Straightforwardness
WINNER – Direct Travel
CHEER - Columbus
CHEER – American Express
Good service
WINNER – Direct Travel
CHEER - Halifax
CHEER - Columbus
Friend & Family
WINNER – Direct Travel
CHEER - Columbus
CHEER - HSBC
Most loved
WINNER – Direct Travel
CHEER - Columbus
CHEER – HSBC
Notes to editors
These awards are based on the results of an online survey of 1,528 lovemoney.com readers conducted in December 2010.
You can get more information on the awards including the 2010 winners at the lovemoney.com awards website. Alternatively, please contact Ed Bowsher on 020 7297 8141 or ed@lovemoney.com
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Ed Bowsher | Head of Consumer Finance
Ed was the Editor of lovemoney.com when the site launched in 2009. This
followed a two-year stint as Editor of The Motley Fool in the UK.
In his current role Ed is available for broadcast media appearances and is a
well-informed commentator on most financial issues. He has appeared on BBC 1,
BBC News, Sky News, Radio 4, 5 Live, ITV Central, LBC, BBC World Service and
many BBC local radio stations.
Ed’s career as a financial journalist started in 2000 at Citywire. Since then
he has worked for breakingviews as well as The Motley Fool and lovemoney.com.
He read Philosophy, Politics and Economics at Oxford University.