JD Power’s Homeowners Insurance Satisfaction Survey — The Worst Satisfaction Level in 7 Years

It wasn’t a very good year for insurers writing homeowners policies in 2023. The United States saw 28 events that had $1 billion in damage or more. Total losses of the 28 events hit $92.9 billion.

That many catastrophes naturally leads to a lot of complex claims and forces insurers to extend the time it takes to make damage assessments, repairs and payments. And that, the J.D. Power 2024 U.S. Property Claims Satisfaction Study concludes, has led to the lowest customer satisfaction level in seven years.

Mark Garrett is the director of claims intelligence for J.D. Power. He notes the number of catastrophes is not the only problem. COVID put a huge strain on the nation’s supply chain and materials to fix things often take a long time to obtain.

"Catastrophic weather events are straining an already fragile system still experiencing supply chain issues that affect the availability and cost of materials,” Garrett said. "The biggest declines in satisfaction are related to explaining the claims process to customers and showing concern for their situation. To navigate this difficult stage, insurers need to redouble their efforts to proactively manage customer expectations and streamline the claims process.”

Where insurers get crossways of consumers is claims that take over three weeks to process. Garrett notes this is why it is important for insurers to improve their communication with claimants and turn the longer wait time into some sort of positive.  

The 2024 study notes the average claim cycle is 23.9 days. That’s up six days from 2023. A catastrophic event could stretch the claim cycle to 34.2 days. That, too, affects customer satisfaction.

Rising premiums aren’t helping either.

Garrett suggests insurers find ways to get claimants to use digital reporting tools. They — he said — can often speed up the process. "Insurers are offering digital tools and managed repair partners to help streamline the process, but these efforts are met with mixed results,” he noted.

Another important cog in the satisfaction survey comes with policyholders having to interact with a number of different representatives on a claim. This is where improved communication comes into play.

The list below is how consumers ranked insurer satisfaction. The average number for the study is 869.

Amica — 906

AIG — 889

Erie Insurance — 888

Farmers — 883

American Family — 877

Nationwide — 877

Chubb — 876

State Farm — 873

Auto-Owners Insurance — 869

Liberty Mutual — 869

Average — 869

Allstate — 868

Auto Club of Southern California — 864

The Hartford — 864

CSAA  (AAA) — 859

ASI Progressive — 851

Safeco — 851

Travelers — 845

Homesite — 820

*** USAA — 899, however this insurer — as most of you know — is only available to members, and former members, of the U.S. military.

Source link: Insurance Business America — https://bit.ly/3IUgbL6

Source link: PropertyCasualty360.com — https://bit.ly/3TwywTv