Slump in Customer Satisfaction for UK Insurance Companies

Last month a survey conducted by Engine Service Design’s found that nearly one third of people found the insurance sector to be the worst when it comes to customer service.

More recently, The Institute of Customer Service has found that insurance is the only sector whose customer satisfaction rating has not improved since July last year. The body has urged insurance companies to resolve existing issues in order to improve performance.

Figures from the UK Customer Satisfaction Index make for even worse reading for insurance companies. Their findings have indicated that the insurance sector’s score went down by 0.5 points on the index when compared with last year. The 2017 score for customer satisfaction was 78.9 out of 100, compared with 79.4 last year. 2016’s results were better than this year’s due to simple things, such as complaints being handled properly and better customer service during phone conversations.

It’s not just how queries and complaints are handles by customer service personal that affects whether someone will be unhappy with the service they are receiving. In fact a recent survey conducted by PHMG, an audio branding specialist found that making on hold customers listen to generic music is one of the most off-putting things that a company can subject a customer to. Factors such as how long a customer is put on hold for, and whether or not they have an out of hours auto attendant can affect how valued the customer feels by the company.

This is not to say by any means that all insurance companies fared poorly. Out of 29 different companies in the industry, LV was seen to be the highest scorer, with Halifax and M&S the most improved.

In spite of the slump in customer satisfaction in the insurance sector, the report indicates that insurance did still do better than many other sectors as far as customer service goes. Despite this it appears that many of these companies are struggling to create a more customer-centric business model.

Jo Causon, the CEO of The Institute of Customer Service had this to say regarding the findings:

“The findings from this report paint a clear picture for insurance: to begin to build on customer satisfaction in an uncertain economic climate, place the customer at the center of business strategy – or risk losing out to those who do,”

Causen added “Although effective complaint management does contribute positively to satisfaction, preventing problems at the source is a far more effective guarantee of loyalty and recommendation.”