The survey of 1024 customers conducted by Ciao found just a third had visted their bank manager in the last two years, despite the fact that over half have experienced a change in their financial situation in that time.

Lloyds TSB says the survey findings show that one in ten customers are "too embarrassed" to discuss their money matters, while a further 10% cite a fear of "financial jargon" for avoiding the bank manager.

Over a third of respondents didn't think they had enough disposable income to benefit from a financial review, with one in ten fearing that their financial aspirations would not be taken seriously.

As a result customers are switching to alternative sources of financial advice. Young people are embracing technology, with 10% of under 25s saying they use social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace for financial guidance.

Overall, bank managers are the third most popular financial confidante (42%), behind friends (68%) and parents (45%), with hairdressers (seven per cent), bar staff (six per cent) and taxi drivers (six per cent) also listed in the top ten.

Liz Hogbin, director, savings and investments, Lloyds TSB, says: "We service our cars, have regular hair cuts and visit the doctor if we have any health concerns but many of us admit that we don't take such good care of our finances."

However banks are offered a solution to the problem - employ Simon Cowell. When asked to name the celebrity that would make the best bank manager, Cowell came top with 17%, followed by TV presenters Phil and Fern from This Morning (15%), Sharon Osborne (13%), GMTV's Lorraine Kelly (11%) and Elton John (eight per cent).