Bank of Ireland issues apology after ad campaign errors promised higher interest rates than available

The adverts appeared in print, radio and in branches between September and November, and the mistakes related to interest rates on savings accounts. In one advertisement, customers were promised a higher rate than they were going to get.

The more serious error involved a mix-up between two Bank of Ireland accounts – the Advantage Fixed-Term Deposit Account and the Super Saver Account. With the Advantage account, customers got a 2pc rate for 12 months but then it dropped to a variable call rate of 0.1pc. Customers were told they would still get 2pc after the fixed term ended.

Bank of Ireland says this was a mix-up with the Super Saver Account, which offers a 12-month interest rate of 3pc that then rolls to 2pc.

The second error was in a radio advertisement broadcast between September 11 and October 8. It was encouraging the public to save in general, and not intended to promote a particular product. However, it referred to the terms of the Super Saver Account, which the bank admits was “not clear and potentially confusing”, as consumers were not told the interest rates mentioned were linked to just one product.

A spokesperson for Bank of Ireland said staff spotted the errors during a check of its advertising. This followed a Central Bank review of the savings sector, as it checked whether banks were doing enough to encourage the public to move money out of low-yield accounts.

“We did a trawl and found these issues, and then got in touch with the Central Bank to report them,” the spokesperson said. The bank has not been notified of any penalty.

The Central Bank confirmed it has engaged with Bank of Ireland. “Where issues that affect customers arise, the Central Bank expects that clear and timely communications are put in place by regulated entities,” it said.

Bank of Ireland has confirmed that customers with an Advantage Fixed-Term Deposit Account will not be getting the 2pc rate after 12 months. This is because all other documentation about the account was correct, including on the bank’s website and in the letters customers were sent about the product.

Bank of Ireland said it is writing to all customers who opened a lump-sum savings account between September 2023 and March of this year to apologise for the first error, and says that it is taking steps to ensure mistakes of this type do not happen again.