Mortgage lenders are ignoring the age old business adage that it's five times more expensive to win a new customer than to keep an existing one, according to comparison site Moneysupermarket.
By charging customers who want to renew their fixed-rate mortgage with the same lender, providers are leaving customers wondering why they have to pay a price for their loyalty.
Consumers coming to the end of a two-year fixed-rate mortgage looking to renew with the same lender will face costs ranging from around ?500 to ?2,900.
Louise Cuming, head of mortgages at the price comparison site, said: "With mortgage applications on the decrease, lenders should be concentrating on retaining existing customers now more than ever.
"It's disappointing seeing lenders treating their existing customers this way. Loyalty should be rewarded, not punished. Instead these costs reflect pretty poor business practice. These charges come with many different names, but ultimately they all mean the same thing; a cost for remaining loyal.
"Providers seem to be taking loyal people for granted and forgetting that existing customers cost so much less to win.
Britannia Building Society is to hold its Annual General Meeting (AGM) for all members on 23 April at the Britannia Stadium, Stoke-on-Trent.
As with all building societies, eligible members tend to be those with current accounts, savings or mortgages with the society who are over 18 years of age. They are entitled to a vote on the future of the organisation. Votes for Britannia's AGM can be cast online, by post, at one of Britannia's 254 branches or in person at the AGM.
Neville Richardson, group chief executive of Britannia, said: "Our AGM is an important opportunity for our members - the owners of the business - to have their say on the future of the Society.
"Although we have traditionally achieved a high voting turnout, it is important that we listen to the feedback from members about how our AGM voting process can be made even simpler.
"Based on last year's feedback, we have now completely re-designed the voting packs, to make them easier to understand and to hopefully encourage more members than ever to have their say in shaping the society's future."
In recent years, Britannia's AGM has achieved the highest voting record of all building societies in the UK."
