Believe it or not, the claims process is becoming increasingly popular with auto insurance customers, with overall satisfaction continuing its five-year climb, according to J.D. Power’s 2014 U.S. Auto Claims Satisfaction Study, released Monday.
The finding is a result of the industry’s increasingly customer-forcused approach to claims, the report said, as shown by its responsiveness and “concern for the claimant.”
“Insurance companies are placing more emphasis on training their employees and representatives to be customer-centric, especially during the interaction process,” said Jeremy Bowler, senior director of the global insurance practice at J.D. Power. “That focus is reflected in the increase in satisfaction, specifically with claim professionals, whose primary responsibility is to accurately estimate the amount of the insurance settlement. Historically, those individuals have been recruited and trained for their technical knowledge but haven’t always been known for being customer service-oriented.”
According to J.D. Power, overall satisfaction with the auto claims process has improved steadily since 2010, with satisfaction in the service interaction factor jumping most significantly (+7 points) between 2013 and this year.
So which insurers are doing the best job in terms of customer satisfaction during the claims process? Click through the following pages for the top five from J.D. Power (score calculated on a possible 1,000-point scale).
#5 Auto Club of Southern California Insurance Group
Score: 867
#4 American Family
Score: 868
#3 State Farm
Score: 869
#2 Auto-Owners Insurance
Score: 879
#1 Amica Mutual
Score: 900 (this figure represents a 29-point improvement from 2013)