Customers
We recognise that it is our corporate responsibility to ensure that we continue to deliver products which are well suited to the needs of our customers by offering high levels of customer service in a personal, friendly and flexible manner.
Corporate profile
Provident Financial is a financial services group specialising in the provision of personal credit products for consumers in the UK non-standard lending market.
Why our customers are important to us
With over 2.6 million customers, we have more customers in the non-standard credit market than any other lender. Our customers are not only central to the success of our business but are also central to our CR agenda. We are committed to delivering high-quality products and services which meet the needs of our customers and are delivered with high levels of customer service.
Understanding our customers
As specialists in the non-standard sector we have a good understanding of our diverse customers, many of whom are living on a modest income. This enables us to offer a range of products tailored to their specific needs with a service that is in line with their lifestyles. It also means we can provide the high degree of simplicity and certainty our customers prefer.
Although our customers come from a range of socio-economic backgrounds, within the home credit division most come from the C, D and E groups. Around 63% are women and most have access to other financial products such as bank accounts and credit cards. Our Vanquis Bank customers are on average to below average incomes; typically between £10,000 and £30,000 per year.
Customer service
By developing and delivering products and services which are tailored to meet the needs of our customers, we are able to achieve customer satisfaction rates that are consistently high.
Measuring satisfaction
We periodically undertake customer satisfaction surveys to ensure we maintain high levels of customer satisfaction.
Responsible lending
The concept of responsible lending is built into the products and services we offer our customers. To make sure we are lending responsibly, it is imperative that we support our employees and agents in their lending decisions.
We have continued to refine and use our credit scoring systems to help decide whether to accept new customers or extend further credit to existing ones. There are two programmes we use to do this:
- The System enhanced lending programme is used to assess the loan applications made by existing customers on the basis of their previous payment history.
- The Single view of customer system is applied to new customers and is used to create a risk profile using a bespoke risk index scorecard.
Money advice and financial education
We believe that people who have difficulty managing their personal finances should have access to free, independent and quality-assured financial advice to help them make educated choices and improve their circumstances. As such, we continue to support, through financial contributions and other means, a programme of financial advice and education across the UK and Ireland.
We provide support to a number of money advice organisations in the UK and Ireland. For example, our funding has enabled AdviceUK, the UK’s largest network for free, independent advice centres, to support two related strategic objectives: workforce development and extending the geographic coverage of the services provided to members.
The relationships we develop with our customers, and the outstanding service we provide, are central to our success and help make our business sustainable.