Clients of wealth management firms in 2010 felt more satisfied about the service they get than at any time since 2006, according to a UK survey by MDRC, the management consultancy.

The MDRC index of client satisfaction was 61.1, a rise of 11.3 per cent from 2009, the report said. However, the satisfaction index at the top decile and quartile firms fell slightly, but there was a substantial improvement in the ratings given to firms in the second and third quartiles while the bottom quartile firms’ scores also improved significantly.

Age is an important issue:  younger clients – under the age of 55 – are less likely to be happy with the quality of service provided, the report said.

Among other findings, some 77 per cent of clients said they would recommend their wealth manager and 84 per cent of clients rated their wealth management relationship as “good” or better.

Using the MDRC model, a private bank or wealth manager with an index score of over 75 would be considered to be excellent, a score between 60 and 75 would be rated by clients as “good”, a score between 50 and 60 would be “acceptable” and an index score below 50 would be considered “poor”.

“An industry average score of 61.1 suggests that most clients consider that they receive a good level of service and that the products offered meet or exceed expectations. However, the 2010 results show that satisfaction is not uniformly high across the industry and that there are significant differences between the industry’s best and worse performers,” the report said.

“Private banks continue to outperform pure investment management in client satisfaction. Over the four years from 2006, private banks offering a full range of money transmission, credit facilities and financial advice have achieved an average rating 13 per cent higher than firms solely offering a wealth management service,” the report continued.