Barclays under fire for offering mystery shoppers £45 to pretend to be blind

London: Barclays is in hot water after it was revealed that they paid mystery shoppers to act like they were blind or deaf. This was part of a plan to see how their staff would respond to customers with disabilities.

The National Federation of the Blind of the UK (NFBUK) called this move an “insult” to blind people, saying it was totally inappropriate. They believe that if Barclays really wanted to understand the challenges faced by blind individuals, they should hire people with actual disabilities for their research.

Barclays had hired Ipsos Mori to conduct this research, and the instructions even suggested that shoppers could make up a story about losing their sight or hearing. They were offered £45 for their participation, which raised eyebrows.

Andrew Hodgson from NFBUK expressed his disappointment, emphasizing that only those with real experience can truly understand the needs of blind and partially sighted people. He mentioned that they are open to discussions with banks to improve accessibility.

In response, a Barclays spokesperson acknowledged the criticism and stated that they aim to gather feedback from various sources, including customers and charity partners. They admitted they could do better in their approach and are looking to improve immediately.