Superquinn proved that several years ago when its joint venture with TSB, Tusa, first lost stacks of money, and then floundered back in 2001.

The retailer had bet that instore banks would attract consumers in droves as they wheeled their trolleys down the aisles. They didn't. The business survived just two years, building up substantial accumulated losses before the life support was unplugged. Offering mortgages, car loans and other products, the operation attracted just 10,000 customers. Only 500 took out mortgages with Tusa.

Since then, Tesco remains the only retailer offering a suite of financial products to consumers. In the UK, the division, which operates as a joint venture with Royal Bank of Scotland, has been posting profits since 1999, two years after it went live. Last year it reported an operating profit of £205m, of which Tesco's share was £103m.

But despite offering loans, mortgages, pet insurance and savings products, Tesco's core revenue-generating products remain credit cards and motor insurance. It now has five million customer accounts, of which 1.8 million are credit card holders and 1.4 million are car insurance policies.

It added 200,000 customers last year, a pretty low amount when you consider the number of customers who pass through Tesco's doors every day, even in the UK alone, where roughly £1 in every £8 spent in retailing every year is spent with Tesco. That's annoyed some people so much that there's now even a dedicated site called tescopoly. org, funded by organisations such as the Small and Family Farms' Alliance.

Tesco's Irish financial arm, whose products are offered by RBS-owned Ulster Bank, remains relatively low-key, despite having fairly attractive rates. People are probably still reluctant to mix their grocery shopping with their finances, especially when the high street banks have such a dominant hold on the market. It can be hard to change habits.

That's despite Tesco offering what is one of the most competitive unsecured loan rates currently available. Customers who sign up to borrow anything between 2,500 and 30,000 are currently being offered a fixed rate of 7.5%.

It's interesting that not even Tesco's partner, Ulster Bank, offers rates that low.

Ulster Bank customers who take out a five-year loan over the internet for 10,000 will be charged a rate of 9.1%. The same amount borrowed via an in-branch application will cost 9.3%. Tesco will stump up 0% interest on balance transfers to one of its credit cards for nine months, charging 14.9% on purchases. Ulster Bank will offer the same 0% interest for the same period, but charges 17.9% on its basic credit card products. It beats Tesco with its 'Zinc' card, with an APR of 12.9%.

AIB's basic credit card offers an introductory rate of 6.9% for 12 months, then a rate of 13.9% for the following year if the user has made purchases totalling more than 5,000 using the card in the past 12 months. If not, the rate is set at 16.9%.

Bank of Ireland, meanwhile, offers a basic card with a 0% rate for purchases for six months, or a 2.9% balance transfer rate for the same period. It then charges 16.8% for purchases.

Tesco's car insurance is underwritten by Hibernian. A Dublin-based 30-year-old male with no penalty points, driving a 1.4-litre Ford Focus, would be charged 639 for fully comprehensive insurance through Tesco, while a 30-year-old female, also with no penalty points and driving the same vehicle, would pay 502.

With an online quote from Quinn Direct, the same 30year-old male with no previous claims or penalty points would pay 428 for fully comprehensive insurance, while a female of the same age and circumstances would pay 367.

Consumers need to bear in mind that haggling over the phone can often produce instant and fairly substantial discounts in insurance quotes, however.

As ever, the advice is to shop around. Insurance prices have been the bugbear of many consumer advisers, as well as the government, which have extolled the virtues of making a few extra phone calls before committing to any one quote. Play insurers off each other until they give you their rock-bottom deal.

Tesco says it is "constantly reviewing" the financial products on offer to Irish consumers, but is unwilling to break down any figures for Ireland as to the number of people who have obtained credit cards, car insurance or other products through the Irish retail network. As such it is virtually impossible to estimate the success, or otherwise, of the company's foray into financial services in Ireland.

A spokesman for Tesco said the company is "happy" with the relationship it has with both Ulster Bank and Hibernian and that it has "worked very well".

For consumers used to hearing the rip-off Ireland mantra, a trip to Tesco isn't going to be a cure-all for any financial woes. While its credit cards and loan rates are good value, its car insurance can still be beaten.

But all competition is good and if Dunnes Stores was to get in on the act, then maybe things could even be shaken up a bit more. But don't expect Lidl or Aldi to follow suit. After all, they don't even accept credit cards. At least that's one way of helping you keep your finances in check.