Research reveals 1 in 5 users make weekly errors due to “UI Friction” and “Device Lag,” with the most costly mistakes occurring between 9 PM and 11 PM.
It is a familiar nightmare for many: the heart-stopping moment you press “Send” and realize you have transferred ₦50,000 instead of ₦5,000. A new report released today by EDPlugNG reveals this is not just an occasional mishap—it is a systemic issue. The study indicates that nearly half of Nigerian banking users have suffered financial loss due to interface-related errors in the last 12 months, challenging the popular narrative that network failure is the sole villain in Nigeria’s digital banking space.
With the acceleration of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) cashless policy, transaction volumes via mobile apps and USSD have surged. However, while banks invest heavily in server capacity, less attention has been paid to the Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) aspect of these transactions.
To understand the scale of “self-inflicted” banking errors, EDPlugNG conducted a mixed-method study comprising a randomized survey of 1,450 banking users and a deep-dive analysis of 12,000 social media support tickets.
Key Findings: The Hidden Cost of UX Debt
The report, titled “The Cost of a Click,” highlights that while 65% of complaints relate to network downtime, a significant 23% of all dispute tickets are triggered by user error.
High Error Rate: 42% of respondents admitted to making at least one irreversible mistake (such as a wrong transfer or excessive airtime purchase) in the last year.
Weekly Glitches: 1 in 5 users (19%) claim they make a minor error, such as clicking the wrong button or having to restart a transaction, every single week.
The “Autopilot” Effect: A staggering 78% of users admitted they do not read confirmation pop-up details, relying instead on button color or muscle memory to proceed.
The “Big 5” Banking Mistakes
The study categorized the most frequent errors plaguing Nigerian users:
The “Zero” Glitch (34%): The leading cause of financial loss involves users adding an extra zero (e.g., sending ₦100,000 instead of ₦10,000). This is largely attributed to apps that fail to auto-format numbers with commas in real-time.
Airtime vs. Transfer Mix-up (28%): A high volume of users intended to transfer money but mistakenly bought airtime. This occurs most frequently on dashboards where “Buy Airtime” and “Transfer” icons are placed side-by-side with poor visual distinction.
The “Fat Finger” Error (15%): Selecting the wrong beneficiary from a saved list.
PIN-as-Amount (12%): A specific error prevalent among older demographics where the user mistakenly types their PIN into the “Amount” field.
Duplicate Transactions (11%): Users sending money twice due to uncertainty about the first transaction’s status.
Anatomy of a Mistake: The “Fatigue Window”
EDPlugNG’s qualitative analysis points to a “Perfect Storm” of behavioral and technical issues. The study identified a specific “Fatigue Window,” noting that errors are 3x more likely to occur between 9:00 PM and 11:00 PM.
“During late-night hours, users are often browsing in bed with low screen brightness and high fatigue,” the report notes. “Combined with ‘ghost touching’ on budget Android devices and the anxiety of unstable networks, users aggressively tap ‘Confirm’ without reviewing details, leading to costly mistakes.”
The Path Forward
The report suggests that while third-party services exist to help users convert airtime to cash after an accident occurs, the primary solution lies in better app design.
EDPlugNG recommends that financial institutions implement “Positive Friction,” such as a 3-second cool-down timer on confirmation buttons for high-value transactions, and mandatory input masking to prevent the “Zero Glitch.”
