New research finds Australia’s banks have “effectively stolen” billions of dollars from customers over the past decade.

While Australia’s official cash rate has been slashed again and again, there have been no such moves for credit cards.

New analysis by consumer advocates CHOICE has revealed that the major banks’ practice of not passing on interest rate cuts has cost billions over the past decade.

CHOICE chief Alan Kirkland says credit card rates had remained “stubbornly high”.

“By failing to pass rate cuts on for credit cards, banks have effectively stolen $6.3 billion dollars from the pockets of Australians,” he said.

“Some banks ... have even increased rates on credit cards.

“This is disappointing behaviour from an industry looking to restore trust after the scandals of the banking royal commission.”

Mr Kirkland said cutting credit card rates in line with the cash rate would have saved many Australians from “falling into a debt spiral and facing years of unnecessary hardship”.

“Banks have cut interest rates on mortgages as the cash rate has fallen. There’s no justification for failing to do the same for other credit products, especially now so many Australians have lost their job,” he said.

The study found that the cards with the biggest increase in interest rates since 2016 include Coles’ Low Rate MasterCard, ME’s Frank credit card, Police Credit Union’s Extralite credit card, ANZ’s Rewards, Rewards Black and Rewards Platinum, Australian Military Bank’s Low Rate Visa credit card, Bank of Melbourne’s Vertigo, BankSA’s Vertigo, Citi’s Prestige and St George’s Vertigo.

ANZ has accused CHOICE of “selectively” highlighting rewards cards that “include features such as rewards points and travel insurance”.

“For those looking for a lower rate, ANZ reduced the rate on its low rate card by 1 per cent during the same period to 12.49 per cent – the lowest among major banks’ comparable cards,” an ANZ spokesperson told reporters.

“More than a third of our customers don’t pay interest on their credit cards on a regular basis.

“We encourage customers to talk to us about which credit card might be best for them as the ones with more features such as rewards points and travel insurance will have different rates and fees and are not suited to all customers.”

A Coles spokesperson also dismissed CHOICE’s claims.

“The 9.99 per cent rate used as a comparison by CHOICE was a promotional offer for new customers that ran for a period in 2016,” the spokesperson said.

“The interest rate both before and after this period was 12.99 per cent, which is where it remains today, and we believe it is competitive when compared to similar cards available in the market.”

CHOICE this week launched a crowd-funding campaign to raise cash for its Make Banking Fair campaign, calling on banks to do better.