Supermarkets, retailers and banks, as an industry, earned average ratings of “strong” in the 2015 Temkin Customer Service Ratings, while TV service providers and internet service providers earned an average rating of “very weak.” Based on a study of 10,000 U.S. consumers, the ratings examine 278 companies across 20 industries.
For the third straight year, USAA took the top spot in ratings. USAA earned the top spot for its banking business, followed by Chick-fil-A in the second spot. USAA also was in the top 12 with its insurance and credit card businesses, along with credit unions, Aldi, Trader Joe’s, Publix, Panera Bread, H-E-B, Amazon.com and Bed Bath & Beyond.
For the second straight year, Comcast earned the lowest score in the Temkin Customer Service Ratings. The company took the bottom two spots for its TV service and internet service businesses. Filling out the bottom of the ratings are Con Edison of New York, Cox Communications (for both internet service and TV service), Charter Communications, Time Warner Cable (for both internet service and TV service), Blackboard, Frontier, CenturyLink and Cigna.
“USAA continues to define a high standard for customer service while Comcast along with other internet service and TV service providers set the dubious standard for horrible customer service,” said Bruce Temkin, managing partner of Temkin Group.
Additional highlights of the 2015 Temkin Customer Service Ratings include:
• USAA (banking) and TriCare (health plans) most outperformed their industry average scores. Eight other companies were at least 15 points above their industry averages: Georgia Power, USAA (credit cards and insurance), JetBlue Airlines, Chick-fil-A, Southern California Gas Co., Lexus and credit unions.
• Blackboard (software firms) and Consolidated Energy were the farthest below their industry averages, while five other firms were at least 15 points below their peers: RadioShack, BB&T, HSBC, Sears and United Airlines.
• Six industries improved between 2014 and 2015, while 13 declined. On average, hotels and computers increased the most between 2014 and 2015, while supermarkets, rental car agencies and major appliances dropped the most.
• The Home Depot, Ross, Marriott and eBay led 12 companies that improved by at least 10 points between 2014 and 2015. Three companies dropped by 20 points or more over the previous year: Blackboard, TD Ameritrade and Cox Communications.
In its fifth year of publication, the 2015 Customer Service Effort Ratings examines the likelihood of consumers to forgive companies across 20 industries: airlines, auto dealers, banks, computer and tablet makers, credit card issuers, fast food chains, health plans, hotel chains, insurance carriers, internet service providers, investment firms, major appliance makers, parcel delivery services, rental car agencies, retailers, software firms, supermarket chains, TV service providers, utilities and wireless carriers.
