• Responsible Banking Report | 2019
Our Responsible

Practices

For us, being responsible entails an all-round commitment, having a positive impact on all areas within our operations. This, of course, includes the responsible management of our day-to-day business practices.


Consumer protection

”The quality of service starts with good communication with our customers.”

In recent years, the financial system has changed, putting the customers at the center of the business. This is how the term “Financial Consumer Protection” emerged. In 2018, Compliance implemented this function in Santander Mexico taking the ten Principles of Consumer Protection as its cornerstone.

The Financial Consumer Principles are the basis of the Consumer Protection function and are as follows:

  • • Fair and Respectful Treatment.
  • • Transparency in Communication.
  • • Data Protection.
  • • Responsible Innovation.
  • • Asset Protection.
  • • Product Design.
  • • Responsible Pricing.
  • • Customers in Special Circumstances.
  • • Financial Education.
  • • Complaint Management.

“One of the main objectives of Consumer Protection is to learn from “the voice of the customer” how they think and feel about their relationship with Banco Santander Mexico, how their problems are solved through our service channels and the followup given to them during their lifetime as customers.”

Francisco Govea
Director of Consumer Protection and Product Governance.

Taking into account the importance of “the voice of the customer” and the need to find a way to supervise compliance of the ten principles, a methodology was developed for the generation of indicators that allow the measurement of these Principles of Consumer Protection. It takes “the voice of the customer” from various sources, such as quality surveys and social networks, for analysis, as well as metrics that the business generates, in order to find a balance and a predictive model of conduct risk in the treatment and commercialization of products and services.

The role of Consumer Protection, in Compliance, has many challenges ahead. The concept of viewing the customer at the center of the business and providing the best service through all the channels must be strengthened at all times.




Interaction with Our Customers

The basis for the relationship we have with our customers is responsibility, not only in terms of offering the best possible financial service, but also with regard to meeting their needs and expectations. Our goal is to go even further and safeguard their progress and well-being.


Customer Service

At Santander, we offer an outstanding service through tailormade, accessible, fair and innovative support, which is why we focus our efforts on ensuring the satisfaction of our customers.

In 2019, we continued engaging and consolidating communication with our customers through our Central Customer Service and Assistance Unit, which comprises the following areas:


Customer Satisfaction and Quality

Through the channels that allow us to interact with our customers, we can understand their needs and work to offer them the best possible experience while supporting them, in addition to providing them with high quality products and services that meet their needs.

Emotional HUB

During 2019, we implemented the Emotional HUB to offer our customers emotional and differentiated experiences. We keep track of metrics for this project through Net Promoter Score (NPS) to better understand our customers’ opinions about Banco Santander in general, as well as about each of our products and support channels, not to mention the information we compile through surveys, focus groups, interviews, etc.

We develop programs that are designed for our customers who want to make their dreams a reality through our loans. For example, those who, through our insurance products, get the peace of mind they are searching for, or those who are looking for a new home thanks to our mortgages.

For example, we have implemented the following programs with their respective major projects:



Another one of our major efforts to improve our customer service are the 386,355 satisfaction surveys we undertook in 2019, 30% more than in 2018.

We take additional steps to ensure the satisfaction of our employees, which, in turn, has a positive effect on customer service.

13 Recognition by the customer about the person they dealt with as a result of something special that improved their overall experience.
14 Net Promoter Score (NPS).
New Branch Models

In 2019, we worked on implementing measures to offer new services and simplify operations:

Agile: Operating branch that absorbs more than 65% of transactions from the micro-market, offering extended opening hours from Monday to Saturday.

We currently have 3 branches:

  • • Cancun
  • • Veracruz
  • • Ciudad Victoria

University: Model to support account holders and students from several campuses (we currently have this model at Universidad Anáhuac and Tecnológico de Monterrey). It includes a customer support area and a self-management zone. It also offers coworking spaces and a business team to support our customers.

Financial Kiosks: Multi-channel points found in malls with ATM and FF, in addition to offering customer support through a FAS representative (Fuerza Asesor Santander).

Workcafe: A disruptive model with coworking spaces and differentiated services for customers and entrepreneurs, offering five available rooms. We promote digitalization in three Digital Banking areas, one of which focuses on biometric enrolment.

Soriana Module:

This module provides support in receiving cash deposits and note and coin exchange at Soriana stores. It also offers services to employees and customers from the store 365 days a year. We currently have one of these modules in Monterrey.

Accessibility


Goal 8.10. Strengthen the capacity of domestic financial institutions to encourage and expand access to banking, insurance and financial services for all.


To offer more people the opportunity to take advantage of Santander’s financial services, in addition to driving inclusion in banking operations, we have increased accessibility through our correspondent banks.


In 2019, Woolworth and Tiendas del Sol joined our extensive correspondent banking network, which includes OXXO, 7 Eleven, Circle K, Tiendas Extra, Telecomm offices, Farmacias Guadalajara and 7/24 Mix stores. Thanks to these agreements, our customers can make deposits to debit cards and credit card payments in an easier and more flexible manner. Correspondent banks allow us to increase our coverage and promote financial inclusion.

We also have transaction channels that facilitate access to our products and services for all our customers.

Customer Protection

Personal Data Protection

A major part of ensuring the loyalty of our customers is the work we do to protect their personal data. This is why we have statutes that, through rigorous and opportune technical processes, ensure compliance with all data procurement, handling, storage and transfer requirements.

We safeguard personal data through our Data Security Incident Management Policy and our Privacy Notice.





Handling data is a huge responsibility. This is why we are promoting the construction of a culture of personal data protection, spearheaded by Human Resources and Compliance through training sessions for the entire organization.

Principles of Consumer Protection

Among the major programs that promote consumer protection, we have worked on developing, publishing and communicating the Consumer Protection Memo. The fundamental goal of this document is to set specific criteria to identify, regulate and exercise our customers’ rights in terms of their relationship with Santander Mexico, in addition to stipulating specific criteria to control and supervise compliance.



The ten Principles of Consumer Protection that govern our operations are:

  • • Fair and Respectful Treatment.
  • • Transparency
    in Communication.
  • • Data Protection.
  • • Responsible Innovation.
  • • Asset Protection.
  • • Product Design.
  • • Responsible Pricing.
  • • Customers in Special
    Circumstances.
  • • Financial Education.
  • • Complaint Management.

Cybersecurity

Both our employees’ and our customers’ personal data is entrusted to us every single day, and they expect us to handle it with care. We have a Data Security and Cybersecurity Risk Policy that guarantees a culture of data security.

Part of these prevention measures include periodic testing to identify, manage and address vulnerabilities, helping to avoid cyberattacks and incidents.

Furthermore, we implemented our 2019 Cybersecurity Awareness program to prevent risks among our stakeholders. Below are some of the activities implemented among employees in the area of cybersecurity:

Employee awareness:

  • • Employee e-mail awareness campaign for cybersecurity.
  • • Campaign to send e-mails to offenders.
  • • Employee guide.
  • • Launch of the Cyber Report app.
  • • Exploration of new channels to adapt to the way in which employees receive information.
  • • Exploration of new tools to reinforce cyber behavior.

We also have a robust Cyber Incident Management Policy to help ensure a satisfactory response to these situations. The security requirements and responsibilities for each stage of the cybersecurity incident lifecycle are outlined below:

Customer Ombudsman

We listen to our customers when they want to express any issues they have had by offering them an institutional model that has been operating for more than a decade. The Customer Ombudsman model is a transparent and specialized body that facilitates communication between the customer and the Bank through an intermediary. As it is coordinated by third parties, the Customer Ombudsman functions objectively and efficiently to mediate conflicts and provide clarification.

Business Practices

The global economy is undergoing an unprecedented process of transformation. This new and constantly evolving framework means that companies must be more committed and work in a more innovative and sustainable manner. At Santander, we develop our products and services responsibly, focusing on offering the highest levels of quality to our customers.

Some of the best practices that have enabled us to become one of the leading banks in the sector include responsible marketing, ethical sponsorship and metrics to analyze the social and environmental impact of our operations.

Responsible Marketing

As a responsible bank, we strive to ensure that the tools we use to communicate with our stakeholders are aligned with our culture of sustainability. This is why our marketing is based on the respect we have for our surroundings, both in terms of the environment and society.

Some of the major steps that we have taken include:

  • 1. Reduction in the amount of printed materials at branches. We only print materials for long-term campaigns (more than three months in duration), print runs are smaller, and we do not produce stock.
  • 2. Use of inks that are low in chemicals to help protect the environment and the health of people working with these products.
  • 3. Suppliers of outdoor advertising use biodegradable inks.
  • 4. Focus on using digital billboards rather than traditional printed ones.
  • 5. Reduction in the amount of printed advertising we send to our customers (direct mailing), increasing the use of outdoor digital billboards.

Social Networks

To ensure our actions have the greatest possible impact, it is important to foment on-going and fluid communication, in addition to publishing information that is relevant to our stakeholders, promoting constant dialog, and involving them in these actions.

We have identified social networks as being a strategic ally in communicating topics of interest to large audiences in an opportune and dynamic manner. We share a range of materials, such as news, infographics and videos on platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

At Santander, we responsibly use our social networks to promote campaigns that focus on sustainability, such as: ATM donations, education and scholarships, gender equality and diversity¬, savings tips, financial education podcasts and data protection information, among others.

AutoCompara

Thanks to our AutoCompara service, users can quote, compare and purchase online car insurance in an easy and simple manner, helping them save time and money.

The benefits that we offer include supporting and accompanying the customer in their dealings with the insurance company. During key periods, we offer discounts and the option to pay in 12 interest-free monthly installments.

In 2019, 304,900 policies were sold and there were a total of 713,131 users.

Campaigns and sponsorship

Every year, we strive to forge sponsorship agreements for cultural, sporting or entertainment events that match the interests of our customers. This has enabled us to better engage with our stakeholders, in addition to offering them a value-added experience.

We also offer our Santander cardholders a host of additional benefits, such as our partnership with Repsol (refunding MXN $200 for every MXN $2,000 spent); account portability, offering users two free withdrawals at ATM’s from any bank in Mexico and a credit card with no annual fee; Hipoteca Plus, the lowest fixed mortgage rate on the market, starting from 7.99%; and, Arma tu kit, a gift set of five glass baking dishes. All of these benefits are geared toward rewarding the loyalty of our customers.

New Product Marketing and Transparency

We strive to ensure that our operations are based on transparency, which is why we make sure our customers understand both the benefits and possible difficulties of the new products we market.

As part of our best practices, we have created a regulatory framework to prevent, mitigate and minimize risks posed by the marketing of products during the pre-sale, sale and post-sale processes. The Local Marketing Committee (CLC) coordinates all activities relating to the marketing of our products.

Ensure compliance with applicable laws.

Verify the marketing risk is in keeping with the Group’s risk appetite.

Define a feasibility study for each product and service, including the analysis of all technological advances and tools required to guarantee their development.

Ensure the product or service matches the organization’s catalog.

Ensure the financial products are accurately classified, in accordance with the corporation’s methodology.



Clearly define the target audience, highlighting its characteristics and needs.

Establish clear controls to ensure the product/service is not marketed to customers who are not part of the target audience.

Define the proper channels for marketing each product/service ensuring a transparent and ethical approach.

Ensure that all appropriate documentation (advertising, commercial, pre-contractual, contractual and post-contractual) for each product or service, customer, and marketing category is determined during the approval process, and, in each case, ensure that the information for customers is both clear and transparent.