Two thirds of people in the UK now bank online, says Gomez, but the 'one strike and you're out' study shows that online customers are demanding increasingly higher standards of their virtual banks, says Gomez.

Around 60% of those surveyed in the ICM poll of 1009 adults said that one mishap "would change their attitude toward online banking", whilst 26% would stop using that particular online banking service entirely.

The research also found that bad customer experiences may hit banks more widely, with 43% of respondents saying they would inform at least five people if they had a problem with a Web banking service.

Commenting on the findings, David Flower, VP, Emea, Gomez, says: "In the highly competitive retail banking sector, online banks must ensure they deliver a positive online customer experience, otherwise they might find their customers deserting them."