Barclays and Santander recorded the biggest net losses of current account switches in the second quarter, following service disruptions that affected thousands of customers’ access to online and mobile banking.

Barclays saw over 22,000 customers switch away in the three months to June 2025, with just under 4,000 joining, for a net loss of more than 18,000. Santander’s net loss totalled 23,015. The figures were reported by Pay.UK’s Current Account Switch Service and follow major outages at both banks earlier in the year, including a three-day incident at Barclays which the bank said could cost up to £7.5 million in compensation.

Barclays wrote to the Treasury Committee that it expects to pay up to £7.5 million after the outage lasting three days. The committee’s figures show UK consumers faced almost 33 days of unplanned technology and system outages over the past two years.

Santander apologised in March for a mobile and telephone service disruption that left users unable to make payments. Lloyds also recorded a net loss of over nine thousand customers and was among thousands of websites affected by an internet blackout linked to Amazon’s web hosting services earlier in the month.

Customer priorities continue to centre on digital performance. In Pay.UK’s research, online and mobile app banking was ranked the top reason for switching at 44 per cent. A previous dashboard from Pay.UK reported that online or mobile banking at 45 per cent was the leading factor people preferred about their new account, followed by interest earned at 37 per cent, with customer service rising to 34 per cent and branch location cited by 27 per cent.

John Dentry, product owner at Pay.UK, said competition is intensifying as providers roll out incentives and perks to attract customers. “Banks and building societies are actively developing, and announcing, new innovative incentives, often packaging multiple offers together to sweeten the deal,” he said. “Quick, hassle-free switching plays a crucial role in ensuring that customers can easily find a current account that works best for their individual needs.”

The UK’s largest banks have stepped up technology investments. NatWest has partnered with OpenAI to “enhance customer experience,” while Lloyds says its customer AI knowledge hub aims to save customer service “thousands of hours.”

Building society Nationwide extended its winning run, gaining a net 54,347 customers, far ahead of peers. The Co‑op Bank ranked second with just over 9,000 net gains. Nationwide reported £2.8 billion returned to customers in 2024 via reward schemes, and during the latest period made a £50 million payment to more than 12 million members following its takeover of Virgin Money.

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