The customer satisfaction industry average is now at 668 points on a 1,000-point scale-down from 704 points in 2005. Overall customer satisfaction is based on performance in six factors: power quality and reliability; company image; price and value; communications; billing and payment; and customer service. Utilities are ranked in four geographical regions as well as in a segment for medium-size utilities.
Customers report spending 16 percent more on electricity in 2006, marking the fourth consecutive year that reported average monthly bills have increased. Nationally, the average stated monthly electric bill is $127. The utility industry also experiences more outages, as customers report an 11 percent increase since 2005 in the frequency of electric service interruptions.
"Electricity prices and consumption are both up sharply, and customers are critical about how much they're now spending on electricity," said Alan Destribats, executive director of the utility practice at J.D. Power and Associates. "The leading utilities are curbing the impact of this by offering more pricing options such as time-of-use or load-control rates, and they work hard to keep their customers informed and educated about how to conserve energy and reduce their electric bills."
Eastern Region: Two utilities tie to rank highest in the Eastern Region: Allegheny Power and PPL Electric Utilities. This is the first time Allegheny has earned this distinction. PPL has ranked highest in satisfaction (or tied) in seven of eight years since the study's inception. Also performing well in the region are Exelon PECO, FirstEnergy, and Duquesne Light Company.
Midwestern Region: E.ON U.S. (formerly LG&E Energy) ranks highest in the Midwestern Region for the seventh time in eight years. E.ON U.S. outperforms all other utilities in the region in four of the six factors of satisfaction. Also performing well in the region are MidAmerican, Indianapolis Power & Light and Consumers Energy.
Southern Region: Southern Company ranks highest in overall customer satisfaction in the Southern Region for the third time in eight years. Southern Company leads the region in power quality and reliability, company image, and customer service. Also performing well are Progress Energy, Duke Energy and CPS Energy.
Western Region: For the seventh time in eight years, Salt River Project ranks highest in the Western Region. Salt River Project receives the highest score in the study, and nationally has the highest scores in five of six factors. Also performing well in the region are Sacramento Municipal Utility District, San Diego Gas & Electric, and Arizona Public Service.
Medium-Size Utilities (serving between 160,000 and 400,000 customers each): Omaha Public Power District (OPPD) ranks highest in the Medium-Size Utilities segment for a fifth consecutive year. Also performing well in this segment are Pedernales Electric Cooperative, Colorado Springs Utilities, Seattle City Light and Tucson Electric Power.
The study results are based on customer responses from 26,688 telephone interviews conducted from March 23, 2006 through June 6, 2006 among residential customers of the 76 largest electric utilities across the continental United States.
Customer Satisfaction Index Scores (Based on a 1,000-point scale) Eastern Region Allegheny Power 712 PPL Electric Utilities 712 Exelon-PECO 707 FirstEnergy-East 685 Duquesne Light 674 Energy East 669 Public Service Electric and Gas 662 Con Edison 658 East Region Average 654 Northeast Utilities 644 Pepco Holdings 636 National Grid 626 Baltimore Gas & Electric 595 NSTAR Electric 588 Long Island Power Authority 570 Midwestern Region E.ON U.S. 725 MidAmerican Energy 713 Indianapolis Power & Light 702 Consumers Energy 693 Alliant Energy 685 Xcel Energy-Midwest 684 AEP-Midwest 680 Kansas City Power & Light 679 Duke Energy-Midwest 667 Midwest Region Average 663 Ameren 656 FirstEnergy-Midwest 651 We Energies 649 Dayton Power and Light 639 Detroit Edison 633 Exelon-ComEd 624 Southern Region Southern Company 723 Progress Energy 717 Duke Energy-South 716 CPS Energy 711 Tampa Electric 705 Oklahoma Gas and Electric 697 Dominion Virginia Power 681 AEP-South 679 South Region Average 679 South Carolina Electric & Gas 671 Florida Power and Light 663 PNM Resources 656 Entergy 654 TXU Energy 629 Reliant Energy 626 Western Region Salt River Project 765 Sacramento Municipal Utility District 734 San Diego Gas & Electric 710 Arizona Public Service 699 Southern California Edison 683 Portland General Electric 676 West Region Average 675 L.A. Dept. of Water and Power 674 PacifiCorp 674 Puget Sound Energy 667 Pacific Gas and Electric 658 Sierra Pacific Resources 634 Xcel Energy-West 624 Medium-Size Utilities (Between 160,000 and 400,000 Customers) Omaha Public Power District 750 Pedernales Electric Cooperative 747 Colorado Springs Utilities 735 Seattle City Light 724 Tucson Electric Power 717 Snohomish 716 Cleco 714 Wisconsin Public Service 704 Idaho Power 702 Jacksonville Electric Authority 695 El Paso Electric 686 Austin Energy 679 Avista Utilities 677 Medium-Size Utilities Average 675 Nashville Electric Service 668 Central Hudson Gas & Electric 664 United Illuminating 636 Westar Energy 633 NorthWestern Energy 628 Aquila 625 Northern Indiana Public Service Co. 606 Memphis Light, Gas & Water 563
Headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is an ISO 9001-registered global marketing information services firm operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, consulting, training and customer satisfaction. The firm's quality and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually. J.D. Power and Associates is a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies.
