THERE WAS a new crisis in the banking sector yesterday as Permanent TSB revealed new data showing that customers are choosing images of pets over family members for their personalised ATM-Laser cards.

The bank launched its personalised card service in January, allowing customers to choose their own images for their debit cards.

More than 20,000 customers have signed up to the service. According to Permanent TSB, 40 per cent, or 8,000 customers, have chosen pictures of pets, followed by 28 per cent, or 5,600 customers, with family photographs.

Sporting images adorned 18 per cent of cards, while 7 per cent had pictures of special occasions such as holiday or Christmas snaps.

The bank said the most unusual images were 4D ultrasound scans of unborn babies selected by four expectant customers.

Some 13 per cent of pictures were refused for reasons of taste, decency or copyright. The bank said it refused photos of spouses or partners that "may have compromised their relationships". Film images are not permitted as they would breach copyright. The most requested movie image was from Star Wars, followed by Batman, Lord of the Rings and Sin City.

Permanent TSB head of marketing Niall O'Grady said the service began as "a bit of a novelty" but that about 10 per cent of customers between the ages of 21 and 35 had personalised cards.

Explaining why photographs of pets were the most popular, Mr O'Grady said: "Maybe people feel less guilty looking at their dog when they're buying that expensive item rather than their partner or children or maybe they're spending enough on their family members and they don't want to be reminded of them."

The bank charges customers €10 to personalise a card. Ulster Bank provides the same service for credit cards, charging €15.