Business Customer Satisfaction With Electric Utilities Reaches All-Time High

Improving for a third consecutive year, business customer satisfaction with electric utility providers has reached historically high levels, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2007 Electric Utility Business Customer Satisfaction Study^SM released today. The study's nationwide customer satisfaction index has increased considerably—from 667 points on a 1,000-point scale in 2006 to 690 in 2007.

Utilities are doing a great job in offering price and customer service options, both of which improve customer satisfaction," said Alan Destribats, vice president of the energy utility practice at J.D. Power and Associates. "In addition, utilities are now focused on talking directly to their business customers via proactive telephone contacts and on-site visits. Business customers have responded positively to this attention."

The study is based on interviews with representatives of more than 12,900 U.S. businesses that spend between $500 and $50,000 monthly on electricity. Overall customer satisfaction is measured through six factors: power quality and reliability, customer service, company image, billing and payment, price, and communications.

Businesses served by the largest 55 electric utilities in the United States rate their experiences better across all components in 2007, with price and communications attributes registering the largest increases.

For more information, check out the press release J.D. Power and Associates Reports: Satisfaction of Business Customers With Electric Utilities Reaches All-Time High.