2012 Electric Utility Residential Customer Satisfaction Study Results
Customer satisfaction with electric utility companies has declined slightly in the past year, according to the recently published J.D. Power and Associates 2012 Electric Utility Residential Customer Satisfaction Study. Average overall satisfaction with electric utility companies stands at 625 on a 1,000-point scale--only a slight decline from last year's average of 628, but the second consecutive year in which the overall score has declined.
The study, which is based on responses from more than 100,000 online interviews, considers six factors in measuring customer satisfaction: power quality and reliability; price; billing and payment; corporate citizenship; communications; and customer service. The numbers in each of these categories are little different in 2012 compared to 2011, but scores for power and reliability show the sharpest decline at 13 points. Satisfaction with price has gone up by 10 points. (The study notes that not only do some customers report slightly lower monthly bill amounts, but fewer of those surveyed say their financial condition is worse than the previous year.)
The greatest regional decline in customer satisfaction (20 points) is found in the East, where Hurricane Irene and several other weather events affected the reliability of electrical service. When outages do occur, the study suggests, utility companies can mitigate the effect on customer satisfaction by providing timely information and updates regarding restoration of services.
The study reveals that customer satisfaction averages 714--14% above the industry average--when utilities communicate with customers via electronic methods. These communications include billing and payment, outage information, and messages via social media, as well as access to the provider's website.
The study is based on responses collected between July 2011 and May 2012, from residential customers of the 126 largest electric utility brands across the U.S., which, together, provide service for nearly 94 million households. The study ranks these large and mid companies by region. The highest-ranking large companies (more than 500,000 households) are:
The study, which is based on responses from more than 100,000 online interviews, considers six factors in measuring customer satisfaction: power quality and reliability; price; billing and payment; corporate citizenship; communications; and customer service. The numbers in each of these categories are little different in 2012 compared to 2011, but scores for power and reliability show the sharpest decline at 13 points. Satisfaction with price has gone up by 10 points. (The study notes that not only do some customers report slightly lower monthly bill amounts, but fewer of those surveyed say their financial condition is worse than the previous year.)
The greatest regional decline in customer satisfaction (20 points) is found in the East, where Hurricane Irene and several other weather events affected the reliability of electrical service. When outages do occur, the study suggests, utility companies can mitigate the effect on customer satisfaction by providing timely information and updates regarding restoration of services.
The study reveals that customer satisfaction averages 714--14% above the industry average--when utilities communicate with customers via electronic methods. These communications include billing and payment, outage information, and messages via social media, as well as access to the provider's website.
The study is based on responses collected between July 2011 and May 2012, from residential customers of the 126 largest electric utility brands across the U.S., which, together, provide service for nearly 94 million households. The study ranks these large and mid companies by region. The highest-ranking large companies (more than 500,000 households) are:
- East: PPL Electric Utilities
- Midwest: MidAmerican Energy
- South: CPS Energy
- West: Salt River Project
- East: Southern Maryland Electric Cooperative
- Midwest: Omaha Public Power District
- South: NOVEC
- West: Clark Public Utilities