Category: United States

Content of Tesla’s Older App Doesn’t Stand Up to Redesigned Kia EV App, JD Power Finds

2021-05-05

jillian.breska

Electric vehicle (EV) owners are more than twice as likely to use the manufacturer’s mobile app than owners of a vehicle with an internal combustion engine (ICE), which is good news for automakers looking to increase—and ultimately monetize—their digital service offerings. According to the inaugural JD Power U.S. OEM EV App Benchmark Study,^SM released today, 41% of EV owners say they are using their brand’s smartphone app at least every other trip.

JD Power is increasing its presence in the field of customer satisfaction with automotive mobile apps, as the industry faces ongoing uncertainty to develop a compelling customer experience. Acknowledging the increase of EV sales and model offerings, the study evaluates the all-important user experience with automakers’ smartphone apps for EV owners.

The OEM EV App Benchmark Study gauges EV owners’ experience with their brand’s mobile app. Insights are derived from surveying EV owners and an expert benchmarking assessment of the most relevant EV mobile apps. Results are based on a standardized evaluation approach relying on more than 300 best practices for vehicle apps that include more than 60 EV-specific attributes.

“These owners are looking for different features in a mobile app,” said Frank Hanley, senior director of global automotive consulting at JD Power. “With charging infrastructure still being developed and range anxiety having a significant effect on customer behavior, tasks like checking the battery level and monitoring the charging process are high priorities for EV owners.”

According to the study, the top-performing EV mobile apps are Kia Access, FordPass, Porsche Connect, myChevrolet, and MyHyundai.

Tesla, the U.S. leader in EV sales, ranks sixth in the study. Tesla’s app has not changed significantly for many years, and other manufacturers are offering apps with greater functionality. However, Tesla’s app is resonating well with the brand’s owners and, in terms of speed for remote control functions, the app still proves to be the industry’s benchmark.

Following are key findings of the 2021 study:

• App usage is significantly higher among EV owners: A notable 41% of EV owners say they use their brand’s mobile app more than half the time or every time they drive. Only 19% of ICE owners say they use their brand’s app more than half the time or every time they drive.
• Dedicated EV apps lack functionality: While the scope of features is high with most apps, in some cases, EV owners experience less functionality than apps used by ICE owners. Evaluators noted that both Mazda and Volkswagen removed app functions from their EV apps that were present in their ICE apps.
• Many app executions still overwhelm owners: Manufacturers must remember that while EV owners seek new technology, much of it is still new to most owners. It is key for those apps boasting more features and functionality to show a good usability including an intuitive layout and structure. Also, as many new owners have no experience with electrical units in relation to driving range or the advantages of charging during off-peak hours, it is important to put things in terms that they can understand.
• Willingness to pay for app features remains low: EV owners are even less willing to pay for using a manufacturer’s mobile app than ICE owners. However, owners who say they’re highly satisfied with their app are more likely to consider paying.

“It’s critical that manufacturers devote proper resources to developing apps that truly fit the needs of new EV owners,” said Fabian Chowanetz, manager of automotive consulting at JD Power Europe. “Porsche Connect is just one example of a premium brand making up ground after having redesigned its first-generation app. With these automakers on the cusp of launching so many new EV models, they must be ready to adapt their apps to owners’ needs and invest in improving the digital experience. If not, loyalty and retention are at risk.”

The expert benchmarking includes apps from the top 15 brands that sell EVs in the United States and Europe. For the inaugural study, 14 models were evaluated in the United States and 5 in Europe. In addition, almost 600 EV owners in the United States were surveyed in March 2021.

For more information about the Electric Vehicle Mobile App Study, visit https://www.jdpower.com/business/automotive/electric-vehicle-mobile-app-study.

About JD Power
JD Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics. A pioneer in the use of big data, artificial intelligence (AI) and algorithmic modeling capabilities to understand consumer behavior, JD Power has been delivering incisive industry intelligence on customer interactions with brands and products for more than 50 years. The world’s leading businesses across major industries rely on JD Power to guide their customer-facing strategies.

JD Power is headquartered in Troy, Mich., and has offices in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. To learn more about the company’s business offerings, visit JDPower.com/business. The JD Power auto shopping tool can be found at JDPower.com.

Media Relations Contacts
Geno Effler, JD Power; West Coast; 714-621-6224; [email protected]
Shane Smith; East Coast; 424-903-3665; [email protected]

About JD Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules: http://www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info 

 

Satisfaction with Vacuums Remains High, Supported by Strong Performance in New Robot Vacuum Segment, JD Power Finds

2021-05-07

jillian.breska

Customer satisfaction with vacuum cleaners is extremely high, a testament to the evolving category which prompted the addition of robot vacuums to be included in the JD Power 2021 U.S. Vacuum Satisfaction Study,^SM released today. Specifically, stick vacuum owners have the highest overall satisfaction of 885 (on a 1,000-point scale), followed by upright vacuum owners (873) and robot vacuum owners (872).

“This is the first year robot vacuums have been included in the study and, despite being a newer product on the market, these vacuums are bringing very high satisfaction,” said Christina Cooley, director of the Home Intelligence practice at JD Power. “Though robot vacuums are very convenient, there’s still room for manufacturers to improve the product and customer experience—as there is with any new product on the market. If manufacturers can optimize ease of use, features and settings, they will build on the high levels of satisfaction even further.”

Study Rankings

Samsung ranks highest in the robot segment with a score of 889. Shark (876) ranks second.

Dyson ranks highest in the stick segment with a score of 893. Shark (888) ranks second.

Shark ranks highest in the upright segment with a score of 883. Dyson (880) ranks second.

The 2021 Vacuum Satisfaction Study is based on responses from 3,857 customers who purchased a vacuum in the past 12 months. The study was fielded in January 2021.

For more information about the U.S. Vacuum Satisfaction Study, visit https://www.jdpower.com/business/home/vacuum-customer-satisfaction-study.

About JD Power
JD Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics. A pioneer in the use of big data, artificial intelligence (AI) and algorithmic modeling capabilities to understand consumer behavior, JD Power has been delivering incisive industry intelligence on customer interactions with brands and products for more than 50 years. The world’s leading businesses across major industries rely on JD Power to guide their customer-facing strategies.

JD Power is headquartered in Troy, Mich., and has offices in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. To learn more about the company’s business offerings, visit JDPower.com/business. The JD Power auto shopping tool can be found at JDPower.com.

Media Relations Contacts
Geno Effler, JD Power; West Coast; 714-621-6224; [email protected]
John Roderick; East Coast; 631-584-2200; [email protected]

About JD Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules: www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info

 

Property & Casualty Insurers Stuck at Providing Only “Good Enough” Digital User Experience, JD Power Finds

2021-05-24

jillian.breska

With more property and casualty (P&C) insurance customers than ever migrating to digital channels during the past year, expectations for a superior user experience have grown and many insurers are struggling to keep pace. According to the JD Power 2021 U.S. Insurance Digital Experience Study,^SM released today, overall customer satisfaction with insurers’ digital offerings does not improve this year, despite industry-wide improvements in best-practice competency.

“The bar just continues to get higher for customer expectations around digital, and while many insurers are hitting the mark on the digital basics, few insurers are using digital in new ways to drive growth and engagement,” said Tom Super, head of property and casualty insurance intelligence at JD Power. “The real challenge for insurers is pushing the envelope on digital innovation. Customers’ pace of expected change is accelerating, and insurers must be able to take steps to go beyond the basics of simply digitizing customer tasks. Those that can make this leap will be poised to separate themselves from the pack.”

The study, now in its 10th year, evaluates digital consumer experiences among both P&C insurance shoppers seeking quotes and existing customers conducting typical policy-servicing activities. The study examines the functional aspects of desktop, mobile web and mobile apps based on five factors: ease of navigation; appearance; availability of key information; range of services; and clarity of the information. The study was conducted in partnership with Corporate Insight, the leading provider of competitive intelligence and user experience research to the financial services and healthcare industries.

“Being ‘good enough’ doesn’t cut it in a world where consumers are managing so much of their lives through digital interfaces and upending conventional notions of customer engagement,” said Michael Ellison, president of Corporate Insight. “While most insurers are making it possible to perform basic functions online or via mobile, very few are delivering a markedly improved, highly personalized overall experience via digital, even though innovative firms are showing that it is possible to do that now.”

Following are key findings of the 2021 study:

• Insurer digital solutions not keeping pace with customer expectations: Overall customer satisfaction with the P&C insurance customer service experience improves to 860 (on a 1,000-point scale) from 858 in 2020 and overall satisfaction with the shopping experience declines to 788 from 800 a year ago, as record numbers of insurance customers transitioned to digital during the height of the pandemic. Beneath these headline figures, many individual insurers saw volatile year-over-year swings in their overall satisfaction scores.
• Basic digital competency not enough to drive improvements: Overall digital competency scores improve for nearly every insurer in the study, but many customers still cite challenges with several account service and shopping tasks. Notably, satisfaction scores improve about 100 points or more when customers say that completing tasks is “very easy” vs. “somewhat easy.”
• Complex tasks become new customer experience battleground: Across all account service and shopping engagements evaluated, the study finds that customer satisfaction scores consistently decline as tasks become more complicated. Complex tasks such as requesting a quote, researching policy information, adding a driver/vehicle and viewing policy-related information are among the areas in which insurers struggle to delight digital customers.
• Tech-savvy mobile app users set stage for future of digital insurance experience: Satisfaction is substantially higher across all factors in the study among mobile app users and those who describe themselves as tech savvy. Mobile app usage increases 26% this year.  

Study Rankings

GEICO ranks highest in the service segment for a fourth consecutive year with a score of 879. Progressive (868) ranks second. Farmers (867) and The Hartford (867) rank third in a tie.

Mercury ranks highest in the shopping segment with a score of 821. Auto-Owners Insurance (816) ranks second and State Farm (807) ranks third.

The 2021 U.S. Insurance Digital Experience Study is based on 11,548 evaluations and was fielded in February-March 2021.

For more information about the U.S. Insurance Digital Experience Study, visit https://www.jdpower.com/business/insurance/us-insurance-digital-experience-study.

About JD Power
JD Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics. A pioneer in the use of big data, artificial intelligence (AI) and algorithmic modeling capabilities to understand consumer behavior, JD Power has been delivering incisive industry intelligence on customer interactions with brands and products for more than 50 years. The world’s leading businesses across major industries rely on JD Power to guide their customer-facing strategies.

JD Power is headquartered in Troy, Mich., and has offices in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. To learn more about the company’s business offerings, visit JDPower.com/business. The JD Power auto shopping tool can be found at JDPower.com.

Corporate Insight is the recognized industry leader in competitive intelligence, user experience research and consulting services to the nation’s leading financial services and healthcare institutions for over 25 years. Its best-in-class research platform and unique approach of analyzing the actual customer experience help corporations advance their competitive position in the marketplace.

Media Relations Contacts
Geno Effler, JD Power; West Coast; 714-621-6224; [email protected]
John Roderick; East Coast; 631-584-2200; [email protected]

About JD Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules: www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info

 

Pandemic Put Lenders to “Digital Test,” JD Power Finds

2021-05-25

jillian.breska

According to the JD Power 2021 U.S. Consumer Lending Satisfaction Study,^SM released today, the consumer lending space was severely disrupted during the COVID-19 pandemic as a combination of stimulus funding, record high mortgage refinance volume and a tenuous economy crimped the consumer loan market.

“The consumer lending landscape shifted dramatically over the past year and consumers need to understand that this shift will be permanent,” said Jim Houston, managing director of consumer lending and automotive finance intelligence at JD Power. “To attract and retain customers, personal lenders need to deliver easy-to-use technology and adapt communication channels to market demands.”

Following are key findings of the 2021 study:

• Customer satisfaction was flat for the Personal Loan industry:  FinTech lenders see their overall satisfaction scores decline 5 points (on a 1,000-point scale) this year, due to slower application approval times and tighter credit criteria.  By contrast, traditional bank and credit card-branded lenders see overall customer satisfaction scores rise 4 points this year.
• Trust in lending partners is up year over year:  While the pandemic forced lenders to change how they do business overall industry trust improves. Traditional lenders significantly outperformed FinTechs in putting the customer first; providing guidance; is aligned with my social views; provides honest communication; treats people fairly; and provides more reliable technology.
• Easy-to-use websites and mobile apps gain even more importance: Lenders were forced to rely on digital means during the pandemic, especially traditional lenders. FinTech customers were more likely to use their personal computer to engage, while traditional lenders relied on mobile applications. No matter how they were accessed, secure and easy to use sites were high on consumer wants, as they continue to compare site use against all of their other web interactions.

Study Ranking

American Express (874) and Discover (874) rank highest in a tie among personal loan lenders in overall customer satisfaction. Citi (864) ranks third.

The JD Power U.S. Consumer Lending Satisfaction Study measures overall customer satisfaction based on performance in three factors: offerings and terms; loan management; and application and approval. The study is based on responses from 2,467 personal loan customers and was fielded in December-February 2021. The study also includes Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) customers, but this segment was not award-eligible in the 2021 study due to a lack of lenders with sufficient sample size.

For more information about the JD Power U.S. Consumer Lending Satisfaction Study, visit https://www.jdpower.com/business/financial-services/us-consumer-lending-satisfaction-study.

About JD Power
JD Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics. A pioneer in the use of big data, artificial intelligence (AI) and algorithmic modeling capabilities to understand consumer behavior, JD Power has been delivering incisive industry intelligence on customer interactions with brands and products for more than 50 years. The world’s leading businesses across major industries rely on JD Power to guide their customer-facing strategies.

JD Power is headquartered in Troy, Mich., and has offices in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. To learn more about the company’s business offerings, visit JDPower.com/business. The JD Power auto shopping tool can be found at JDPower.com.

Media Relations Contacts
Geno Effler, JD Power; West Coast; 714-621-6224; [email protected]
John Roderick; East Coast; 631-584-2200; [email protected]

About JD Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules: www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info

 

Increasing Telehealth Utilization and Digital Contact Help Health Plans Score Points with Members During Pandemic, JD Power Finds

2021-05-26

jillian.breska

Significantly increased telehealth utilization and greater adoption of digital communication channels has helped U.S. health plans meet member needs during the pandemic. According to the JD Power 2021 U.S. Commercial Member Health Plan Study,^SM released today, 36% of privately insured health plan members in the United States accessed telehealth services, up from just 9% a year ago, contributing to a 10-point gain (on a 1,000-point scale) in overall member satisfaction.

“The past year has proven without a doubt that effective use of digital channels has the power to increase customer engagement, build trust and promote brand advocacy,” said James Beem, managing director, global healthcare intelligence at JD Power. “While many plans are showing tremendous progress by delivering for their members during a highly volatile and stressful period, they still have a long way to go when it comes to delivering consistently strong levels of customer engagement across all segments of their member populations.”

Following are key findings of the 2021 study:

• Digital contact and telehealth adoption increase significantly: Telehealth utilization increases 27 percentage points, with 36% of U.S. health plan members saying that they accessed telehealth services, up from just 9% a year ago. Digital contact with insurers also has increased, with 32% of members saying they connected with their health plans via web, mobile app or text message in the past year.
• Overall satisfaction, Net Promoter Score^© and trust increase: Overall satisfaction improves 10 points year over year, up from a 6-point increase in 2020 and a 1-point increase in 2019. The year-over-year rise in satisfaction has been driven largely by significant improvement in scores in the cost, information and communication and website factors/subfactors. Net Promoter Scores¹ also improve, having risen 7 points during the past two years. Similarly, perceived levels of trust in health plans have increased 2 percentage points during the past two years.
• Member contact significantly higher among younger generations: Members of Gen Z² and Gen Y have the highest levels of contact with their health plan, with 62% of Gen Z and 52% of Gen Y members accessing their health plan’s customer service channel at least once during the past year. That number falls to 49% among Pre-Boomers/Boomers. While contact lifts satisfaction for all members, the effect is 20 points higher among Gen Y/Z members than among older members.
• Despite improvement, many had no engagement with their health plan: More than one-third (37%) of health plan members had no engagement with their health plan. Nearly half (44%) of Pre-Boomers/Boomers had no engagement with their health plan, the highest percentage of any generational group.

Study Rankings by Region

The study measures customer satisfaction with commercial member health plans in 22 geographic regions. Highest-ranking health plans and scores within 21 award-eligible regions are as follows:

• California: Kaiser Foundation Health Plan (782)
• Colorado: Kaiser Foundation Health Plan (739)
• East South Central: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama (760)
• Florida: Humana (777)
• Heartland: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Oklahoma (742)
• Illinois/Indiana: Cigna (742)
• Maryland: CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield (759)
• Massachusetts: Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts (731)
• Michigan: Health Alliance Plan of Michigan (742)
• Minnesota/Wisconsin: HealthPartners (725)
• Mountain: Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Utah (744)
• New Jersey: Cigna (736) and Horizon Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Jersey (736)
• New York: Capital District Physicians’ Health Plan (774)
• Northeast:  Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island (722)
• Northwest: Kaiser Foundation Health Plan (747)
• Ohio: Cigna (722)
• Pennsylvania: Geisinger Health Plan (744)
• South Atlantic: Kaiser Foundation Health Plan (791)
• Southwest: Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Nevada (742)
• Texas: Humana (764)
• Virginia: Cigna (777)

The U.S. Commercial Member Health Plan Study, now in its 15^th year, measures satisfaction among members of 150 health plans in 22 regions throughout the United States by examining six key factors: billing and payment; cost; coverage and benefits; customer service; information and communication; and provider choice. The study also measures several other key aspects of the experience and member engagement. The study is based on responses from 32,066 commercial health plan members and was fielded from January through March 2021.

For more information about the U.S. Commercial Member Health Plan Study, visit https://www.jdpower.com/business/resource/commercial-member-health-plan-study.

About JD Power
JD Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics. A pioneer in the use of big data, artificial intelligence (AI) and algorithmic modeling capabilities to understand consumer behavior, JD Power has been delivering incisive industry intelligence on customer interactions with brands and products for more than 50 years. The world’s leading businesses across major industries rely on JD Power to guide their customer-facing strategies.

JD Power is headquartered in Troy, Mich., and has offices in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. To learn more about the company’s business offerings, visit JDPower.com/business. The JD Power auto shopping tool can be found at JDPower.com.

Media Relations Contacts
John Roderick; East Coast; 631-584-2200; [email protected]
Geno Effler, JD Power; West Coast; 714-621-6224; [email protected]

About JD Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules: www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info

¹Net Promoter Score, NPS and the NPS-related emoticons are registered trademarks of Bain & Company, Inc., Fred Reichheld and Satmetrix Systems, Inc.
²JD Power defines generational groups as Pre-Boomers (born before 1946); Boomers (1946-1964); Gen X (1965-1976); Gen Y (1977-1994); and Gen Z (1995-2004). Millennials (1982-1994) are a subset of Gen Y.

 

New-Vehicle Sales in May on Pace to Set Another Monthly Record; Consumer Expenditures & Retailer Profit per Unit Reach All-Time Highs

2021-05-27

jillian.breska

The Retail Sales Forecast

New-vehicle retail sales for May 2021 are expected to be the highest ever recorded for the month of May, according to a joint forecast from JD Power and LMC Automotive. Retail sales for new vehicles are projected to reach 1,388,600 units, a 34.0% increase compared with May 2020, and a 10.6% increase compared with May 2019. May 2021 has the same number of selling days as May 2020 and May 2019.

The Total Sales Forecast

Total new-vehicle sales for May 2021, including retail and non-retail transactions, are projected to reach 1,555,600 units, a 39.6% increase from May 2020 and a 1.9% decrease from May 2019. The seasonally adjusted annualized rate (SAAR) for total new-vehicle sales is expected to be 16.7 million units, up 4.7 million units from 2020 but down 0.7 million units from 2019.

The Takeaways

Thomas King, president of the data and analytics division at JD Power:
“The U.S. auto industry is showing tremendous adaptability in maintaining a record sales pace, despite historically low inventory levels. May is usually one of the highest-volume sales months with buying activity peaking around the Memorial Day weekend when manufacturers typically offer incremental incentives. This year, notwithstanding supply constraints and significantly reduced incentives from manufacturers, May 2021 will be another record-breaking month for the industry. The industry will again set records in May for monthly sales volumes and aggregate retailer profits and as well as all-time records for transaction prices, consumer expenditures and retailer gross per unit sold.

“Low inventories have still not yet had a material effect on aggregate sales results. While inventory is still the primary threat to maintenance of the current sales pace in the coming months, retailers, manufacturers and suppliers have been able to adapt to maintain the sales velocity this year. The result is a record number of retail sales during the past three months at reduced discounts.

“However, with the sales pace still exceeding the rate at which vehicles are being produced, there is a rising risk to the industry’s ability to sustain the current sales pace in the coming months.”

Consumers are on track to spend $53.1 billion on new vehicles this month, the highest on record for any month.

Total retailer profit per unit, inclusive of grosses and finance & insurance income, are on pace to reach an all-time high of $3,245, an increase of $1,678 from a year ago and the first time above $3,000 on record. Grosses have been above $2,000 for nine of the past 10 months. Coupled with the strong retail sales pace, total aggregate retailer profits from new-vehicle sales will be $4.5 billion, the highest ever for the month of May and up an astounding 162% from May 2019.

“Retailers continue to adapt to the current environment by turning inventory quickly. The average number of days a new vehicle sits on a dealer lot before being sold is on pace to fall to 47 days, down from 95 days a year ago. More notably, retailers are selling a larger proportion of vehicles almost as soon as they arrive in inventory. This month, 33.4% of vehicles will be sold within 10 days of arriving at a dealership, up from only 18.2% of vehicles sold within 10 days in May 2019.”

The strong sales pace, despite smaller discounts and more expensive vehicle purchases is due in part to extremely strong used-vehicle prices. Even with interest rates on vehicle loans increasing slightly, the average monthly finance payment is $596, up only $19, aided by average trade-in values rising to $6,201, an increase of $3,229 (up 108.7%) from a year ago. The average interest rate for loans in May is expected to increase 57 basis points to 4.2% from a year ago, on track for a second consecutive year-over-year increase since July 2019.

“While May results are exceptional in aggregate, the overall sales results for manufacturers will be mixed. Not all manufacturers are experiencing production disruption at the same time or of the same magnitude. This will materially influence various manufacturers monthly sales and profit performance for May and the months to come.

“Looking forward to June, with sales continuing to outpace production in aggregate, falling inventory levels may start to put pressure on the current sales pace. However, based on what we have seen so far, retailers may continue to adapt by turning inventory more quickly to maintain sales velocity. However, regardless of inventory position, manufacturers and retailers will continue to benefit from strong consumer demand and a higher profit per unit sold.”

Sales & SAAR Comparison

U.S. New Vehicle	May 20211, 2	April 2021	May 20193
Retail Sales	1,388,600 units (+34.0% higher than May of 2020; +10.6% higher than May 2019)2	1,346,528 units	1,254,974 units
Total Sales	1,555,600 units (+39.6% higher than May 2020; -1.9% lower than May 2019)2	1,535,288 units	1,585,011 units
Retail SAAR	15.1 million units	17.0 million units	13.9 million units
Total SAAR	16.7 million units	18.8 million units	17.4 million units

¹ Figures cited for May 2021 are forecasted based on the first 19 selling days of the month.
² May 2021 has 26 selling days, the same as May 2020 and May 2019.
³ May 2019 is displayed to avoid May 2020 pandemic-influenced comparisons.

The Details

• The average new-vehicle retail transaction price in May is expected to reach a record $38,255. The previous high for any month, $37,966, was set in December 2020.
• Average incentive spending per unit in May is expected to fall to $2,957, down from $4,825 in May 2020 and $3,878 in May 2019. Spending as a percentage of the average MSRP is expected to fall to 7.0%, down 4.6 percentage points from May 2020 and down 2.7 percentage points from May 2019.
• Average incentive spending per unit on trucks and SUVs combined in May is expected to be $2,942, down $2,003 from a year ago and down $1,050 from 2019, while the average spending on cars is expected to be $3,001, down $594 from a year ago and down $1,433 from 2019.
• Consumers are on pace to spend $53.1 billion on new vehicles, the highest on record for any month, and up $17.4 billion from May 2020 and up $11.2 billion from May 2019.
• Truck/SUVs are on pace to account for 76.2% of new-vehicle retail sales in May.
• Fleet sales are expected to total 167,000 units in May, up 114% from May 2020 and down 49% from May 2019 on a selling day adjusted basis. Fleet volume is expected to account for 11% of total light-vehicle sales, up from 7% a year ago.

Observations on New Vehicle Residual Values

Eric Lyman, vice president, ALG:
“The question most asked of ALG in May has been, ’How long will the elevated used-market prices last?’ Continued new vehicle production issues combined with pent-up demand and ongoing macro-economic recovery has created supply and demand imbalances that will persist during the next 24 months. ALG expects new vehicles sold in 2021 to be worth 60% of their original MSRP after three years. For 2022 calendar year, ALG expects 3-year-old vehicles to retain 54% of their original MSRP before settling to a more stable 50% of original MSRP in 2023 calendar year and beyond.”

Observations on the Used Vehicle Market

Jonathan Banks, vice president, Valuations Services:
“Wholesale prices in April continued to surge as consumers, dealers and rental companies leaned on this side of the market to satiate increased used-vehicle demand resulting from ongoing new-vehicle production challenges. As a result, wholesale prices increased at a rapid pace during the past 20 consecutive weeks and are up an unprecedented 37%, while used retail prices are 15% above where they were at the end of 2020. Used-vehicle prices have shown no signs of softening and are expected to remain exceptionally strong for the foreseeable future.”

Global Sales Outlook for March 2021

Jeff Schuster, president, Americas operations and global vehicle forecasts, LMC Automotive:
“Global light-vehicle sales in April increased 81% from a year ago, which is not surprising given sales in the early stages of the pandemic last April fell 45% from 2019. April’s selling rate increased to 88.1 million units, up from 87.1 million units in March and brings the year-to-date rate to 84.8 million units, still well below pre-pandemic levels. April received a boost from the vigorous US market, which nearly hit a 19-million-unit selling rate. In addition, Western Europe recovered significantly with an increase of 280% from a year ago. Brazil, India, and Eastern Europe also all performed well. Given China’s low point in 2020 was March, the improvement in April was subdued at just a 9% increase. South Korea is the only market that declined this April, with an 11% decline. Looking at May, global sales are expected to post a strong year-on-year increase of 35%, but the selling rate looks to slip back to 82 million units and the year-to-date level. In addition to the U.S. being below the 17-million rate, India is expected to drop from a 3.9-million-unit SAAR to under one million units and China is slowing to the 25-million-unit level.

“There is becoming a clear divergence in the global auto market, with the U.S. on the verge of running out of enough sellable vehicle inventory to support the surge in consumer demand while the virus is doing its own surging across much of Asia, triggering stronger restrictions and new risk to auto sales across the region. Despite the strength in the U.S., the new restriction risks and flattening demand performance across Asia has resulted in a pull back of our 2021 forecast for global light-vehicle sales, the first decrease in our outlook since the recovery started. We now expect 2021 to finish at 87.5 million units, a decrease of only 500,000, but it illustrates the volatility of the market and the recovery from the pandemic.”

Media Relations Contacts
Geno Effler, JD Power; West Coast; 714-621-6224; [email protected]
Emmie Littlejohn, LMC Automotive; Troy, Mich.; 248-817-2100; [email protected]

About JD Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info

About LMC Automotive www.lmc-auto.com

 

Home Improvement Retailers Buck Online-Only Shopping Trend That Emerged during Pandemic, JD Power Finds

2021-05-27

jillian.breska

Think everyone was staying home, doing all their shopping online and avoiding human contact at all costs during the past year? Think again. According to the JD Power 2021 U.S. Home Improvement Retailer Satisfaction Study,^SM released today, home improvement is one retail category that maintained a consistent level of in-store shopping.

“The home improvement category is booming right now as part of the pandemic-related silver lining from people being home more and finally getting the time to tackle those home projects,” said Christina Cooley, director of the home intelligence practice at JD Power. “What’s interesting is that unlike many other retail categories, when it comes to home improvement, customers are heading out to the stores to touch and feel products before buying—and wanting to engage with store staff along the way.”

Following are some key findings of the 2021 study:

• Yes, it’s true, home improvement projects are popular: Nearly one-third (30%) of U.S. consumers say they are either planning or actively working on a home improvement project.
• Vast majority of customers shop in-store, feel safe and comfortable doing so: Just 13% of home improvement retailer customers say they purchased products via a retailer’s website, while 87% shopped in a brick-and-mortar location. Of the 87% who shopped in a store, 98% say they felt safe and comfortable while shopping during the height of the pandemic.
• Make it easy: Customers don’t want to have to spend more than five minutes finding an item or aisle. Fortunately, 66% of customers say their home improvement retailer met this threshold. One differentiator is customers’ ability to receive assistance without having to search or ask for it. More than half (55%) of customers give their primary retailer credit for doing so, but there is a definite range in performance, from the best-in-class retailer achieving this criteria 72% of the time to the lowest average of 49%.
• Younger customers have highest levels of satisfaction: Overall satisfaction among Gen Y¹ and Gen Z customers averages 842 (on a 1,000-point scale) while overall satisfaction among Gen X and Boomers averages 824. These younger generations have increased their home improvement activity during the past year with 42% planning for, or in the process of, doing a project in the next three months compared with 27% among older generations.

Study Ranking

Ace Hardware ranks highest in customer satisfaction among home improvement retailers for the 14^th time in 15 years, with a score of 863. Menards (836) ranks second.

The 2021 U.S. Home Improvement Retailer Satisfaction Study measures customer satisfaction with home improvement retailers by examining five factors (in alphabetical order): in-store experience; merchandise; online experience; price; and staff and service. The study is based on responses from 2,172 customers who purchased home improvement-related products from a home improvement retailer within the previous 12 months. The study was fielded in January-February 2021.

For more information about the U.S. Home Improvement Retailer Satisfaction Study, visit https://www.jdpower.com/business/resource/us-home-improvement-retailer-satisfaction-study.

About JD Power
JD Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics. A pioneer in the use of big data, artificial intelligence (AI) and algorithmic modeling capabilities to understand consumer behavior, JD Power has been delivering incisive industry intelligence on customer interactions with brands and products for more than 50 years. The world’s leading businesses across major industries rely on JD Power to guide their customer-facing strategies.

JD Power is headquartered in Troy, Mich., and has offices in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. To learn more about the company’s business offerings, visit JDPower.com/business. The JD Power auto shopping tool can be found at JDPower.com.

Media Relations Contacts
Geno Effler, JD Power; West Coast; 714-621-6224; [email protected]
John Roderick; East Coast; 631-584-2200; [email protected]

About JD Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules: www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info

¹JD Power defines generational groups as Pre-Boomers (born before 1946); Boomers (1946-1964); Gen X (1965-1976); Gen Y (1977-1994); and Gen Z (1995-2004). Millennials (1982-1994) are a subset of Gen Y.

 

Big Bank Investments in Mobile Apps Pay Dividends as Customer Volume Shifts to Digital, JD Power Finds

2021-06-09

jillian.breska

A record two-thirds (67%) of U.S. retail bank customers used their bank’s mobile app during the past year—an increase of seven percentage points from 2020—and a record 41% of bank customers are now classified as digital-only. According to a series of recent studies of bank and credit card mobile app and online users, released today by JD Power, mobile has officially become the primary battlefield in the quest for banking and credit card customer satisfaction, and the nation’s largest retail banks are setting the pace for others to follow.

The studies—JD Power 2021 U.S. Banking Mobile App Satisfaction Study^SM, 2021 U.S. Online Banking Satisfaction Study^SM, 2021 U.S. Credit Card Mobile App Satisfaction Study^SM and 2021 U.S. Online Credit Card Satisfaction Study^SM—track overall customer satisfaction with banking and credit card providers’ digital offerings.

“The nation’s largest banks and credit card issuers have been continually innovating new digital solutions that support increasingly complex tasks, such as problem resolution, personalized alerts and profile management,” said Jennifer White, senior consultant for banking and payment intelligence at JD Power. “This is driving increased engagement and significantly higher levels of satisfaction as the world shifts to digital. That’s a challenge for regional banks that have traditionally taken a simpler design approach and are now starting to see customer satisfaction scores fall as many customers required more sophisticated digital offerings in 2020 than in previous years.”

Following are some key findings of the 2021 studies:

• Massive consumer shift to mobile favors national banks: Two-thirds (67%) of retail bank customers used mobile banking apps in the past year, 41% of bank customers are now digital-only and 31% of bank customers have used digital to resolve a problem. This combination of high customer volume and increased level of engagement with mobile as a primary interaction tool has helped large, national banks earn an 8-point increase (on a 1,000-point scale) in overall customer satisfaction with retail banking apps. Regional banks have seen their mobile app satisfaction scores decrease 17 points this year.
• Increased digital engagement with sophisticated tech drives success: The gap in customer satisfaction between national and regional banks is being driven in large part by increased levels of engagement with sophisticated digital offerings, including account management tools, personalized alerts, mobile check deposits and financial literacy tools. While smaller regional banks have focused on simple, easy-to-use digital tools, national banks are differentiating themselves with advanced features such as proactive guidance, real-time alerts and financial planning tools that have replaced previous in-person interactions.
• Credit card digital strategies reflect less variation in performance: While retail banking satisfaction scores vary more widely year over year across banks, scores for overall credit card mobile app satisfaction increases just 2 points and credit card website satisfaction increases 3 points, with most brands concentrated in the middle of the pack. Credit card mobile and online strategies would benefit from an accelerated customer experience innovation push as differentiation between issuers narrows at a time when consumer interest soars.
• Mobile apps continue to outperform websites: While national retail bank mobile apps see a significant increase in customer satisfaction this year, satisfaction with bank websites is flat. Across the board, banks and credit card issuers have invested significantly in mobile apps, attracting a faster-growing and more tech-savvy base of customers, which exposes a potential disconnect between mobile app and website digital strategies.
• FinTech challengers lurking: FinTech challenger banks such as Chime, Acorns and Dave have all shown significant continued growth throughout this period of digital transformation, setting themselves apart with streamlined digital tools, low barriers to entry and low fees.

Study Rankings

Bank of America ranks highest in banking mobile app satisfaction among national banks, with a score of 871. Chase (870) ranks second and Capital One (864) ranks third.

Bank of America and SunTrust rank highest in a tie in online banking satisfaction among national banks, each with a score of 852. BB&T (847) and PNC (847) rank third in a tie.

American Express ranks highest in credit card mobile app satisfaction, with a score of 890. Bank of America (880) ranks second and Discover (875) ranks third.

American Express ranks highest in online credit card satisfaction, with a score of 874. Discover (871) ranks second and Bank of America (860) ranks third.

Huntington ranks highest in banking mobile app satisfaction among regional banks, with a score of 870. BBVA (868) ranks second and Santander (852) ranks third.

Regions Bank ranks highest in online banking satisfaction among regional banks, with a score of 882. Fifth Third Bank (847) ranks second and KeyBank (835) ranks third.

The 2021 U.S. Banking Mobile App Satisfaction, U.S. Online Banking Satisfaction, U.S. Credit Card Mobile App Satisfaction and U.S. Online Credit Card Satisfaction studies measure overall satisfaction with banking and credit card digital channels based on four factors: navigation; speed; visual appeal; and information/content. The studies are based on responses from 17,011 retail bank and credit card customers nationwide and were fielded in March-April 2021.

To learn more about these studies, visit https://www.jdpower.com/business/resource/us-banking-and-us-credit-card-mobile-app-satisfaction-studies.

About JD Power
JD Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics. A pioneer in the use of big data, artificial intelligence (AI) and algorithmic modeling capabilities to understand consumer behavior, JD Power has been delivering incisive industry intelligence on customer interactions with brands and products for more than 50 years. The world’s leading businesses across major industries rely on JD Power to guide their customer-facing strategies.

JD Power is headquartered in Troy, Mich., and has offices in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. To learn more about the company’s business offerings, visit JDPower.com/business. The JD Power auto shopping tool can be found at JDPower.com.

Media Relations Contacts
Geno Effler, JD Power; West Coast; 714-621-6224; [email protected]
John Roderick; East Coast; 631-584-2200; [email protected]

About JD Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules: www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info

 

Auto Insurance Customer Satisfaction Stalls Despite $18 Billion in Premium Relief, JD Power Finds

2021-06-14

jillian.breska

The auto insurance industry voluntarily returned more than $18 billion in auto insurance premiums to customers in 2020 to address the sharp decline in miles driven during the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the magnitude of this historic relief effort, the JD Power 2021 U.S. Auto Insurance Study,^SM released today, finds that overall customer satisfaction with auto insurers is flat, following four consecutive years of improvement.

“What we’re seeing in this year’s study is a case of insurers delivering with their actions but missing the mark on effective communication to their customers,” said Robert Lajdziak, senior consultant for insurance intelligence at JD Power. “The refunds provided to customers during the pandemic were significant, representing nearly 7% of total industry premiums, but only half of customers were even aware of them. Worse, when customers needed to communicate with their insurers, either via phone, website or chat, many came away feeling less satisfied with the result than in the past.”

Following are some of the key findings of the 2021 study:

• Overall satisfaction stagnates: Overall customer satisfaction with auto insurance providers is 835 (on a 1,000-point scale) this year, unchanged from a year ago. This is the first time since 2017 that auto insurance customer satisfaction has not improved year over year.
• Insurers miss the mark in communication: While price is the lowest-scoring factor in the study, it has seen the greatest improvement year over year. This improvement is overshadowed by significant declines in satisfaction with interaction. Satisfaction with the assisted online channel, which is comprised of chat and e-mail functions, declines 12 points from a year ago, with decreases also seen in contact center (-5), website (-3) and local agent (-1).
• Customer awareness of COVID-19 relief efforts boosts brand perception: As of March 2021, just 52% of auto insurance customers were aware of their insurer’s COVID-19 premium relief efforts. Overall brand impressions are significantly higher among customers who were aware of these relief efforts, which was also reflected in their intent to renew their policy.
• Pandemic as catalyst to telematics growth: More than one-third (34%) of auto insurance customers say they are willing to try usage-based insurance (UBI), which uses telematics technology to track customer driving patterns and includes discounts based on safe driving and fewer miles driven. Currently, 16% of customers say they are already using the technology, which is double the volume seen just five years ago and is the largest year-over-year increase to date.
• Ready to switch at hint of a premium increase: Nearly half (45%) of auto insurance customers say they would switch if they could receive a savings of $200 or less. Of those who recently switched due to a premium increase, 57% did so for increases of $200 or less.
   

The study measures customer satisfaction with auto insurance in 11 geographic regions. Highest-ranking auto insurers and scores, by region, are as follows:

California: Wawanesa (853) (for a second consecutive year)
Central: Shelter (856)
Florida: State Farm (848)
Mid-Atlantic: NJM Insurance Co. (867)
New England: Amica Mutual (867) (for a ninth consecutive year)
New York: State Farm (859) (for a second consecutive year)
North Central: Erie Insurance (857)
Northwest: State Farm (844)
Southeast: Farm Bureau Insurance – Tennessee (883) (for a 10^th consecutive year)
Southwest: American Family (850) (for a second consecutive year)
Texas: Texas Farm Bureau (850) (for a 10^th consecutive year)

The 2021 U.S. Auto Insurance Study, now in its 22^nd year, examines customer satisfaction in five factors (in alphabetical order): billing process and policy information; claims; interaction; policy offerings; and price. The study is based on responses from 38,938 auto insurance customers and was fielded in February-March 2021.

For more information about the U.S. Auto Insurance Study, visit https://www.jdpower.com/business/resource/jd-power-us-auto-insurance-satisfaction-study.

About JD Power
JD Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics. A pioneer in the use of big data, artificial intelligence (AI) and algorithmic modeling capabilities to understand consumer behavior, JD Power has been delivering incisive industry intelligence on customer interactions with brands and products for more than 50 years. The world’s leading businesses across major industries rely on JD Power to guide their customer-facing strategies.

JD Power is headquartered in Troy, Mich., and has offices in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. To learn more about the company’s business offerings, visit JDPower.com/business. The JD Power auto shopping tool can be found at JDPower.com.

Media Relations Contacts
Geno Effler, JD Power; West Coast; 714-621-6224; [email protected]
John Roderick; East Coast; 631-584-2200; [email protected]

About JD Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules: www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info

 

 

JD Power Launches Career Development Certification to Identify Companies with Superior Employee Development Initiatives

2021-01-15

jillian.breska

JD Power, a global leader in data analytics and consumer intelligence, today announced the launch of a new certification program to recognize brands that provide an exceptional onboarding, training and career progression experience to their employees. The first organization to receive the JD Power Career Development Certification Program^SM designation is The Academy at Bank of America.

The exclusive program draws on JD Power deep data and real-world experience analytics to evaluate talent development initiatives at companies in every industry on a nationwide basis. In addition to tracking the existence of defined training and career development programs, the JD Power certification process also evaluates the employer’s focus on clear accountability for career advancement, strong cultural commitment to employee development and measurements of success towards these commitments.

The certification recognizes The Academy at Bank of America, a dedicated organization that operates alongside the learning and development function supporting more than 80,000 Consumer and Small Business, Merrill and Bank of America Private Bank employees.

“The Career Development Certification Program will help brands who’ve shown a strong commitment to employee growth showcase their employee-facing initiatives,” said Bob Neuhaus, vice president, banking and credit card intelligence at JD Power. “By applying a rigorous, standardized process to career development evaluation—based heavily on the real-world experiences of employees—we are creating a critical new metric for defining corporate cultures that are rooted in employee growth.”

“In creating a dedicated organization focused exclusively on ensuring the long-term career success of our employees, we’re living our commitment to being a great place to work by providing training and development designed to set them up for success in their current roles, and throughout their careers,” said John Jordan, head of The Academy at Bank of America. “Receiving this JD Power certification is a testament to this commitment, and we’re pleased to be the first company to achieve this important milestone.”

To qualify for the JD Power Career Development Certification Program, brands must rank among top performers in the most recent JD Power Career Development Satisfaction Index^SM. Benchmark rankings are based on overall employee satisfaction with the career development experience across 55 industries. In addition, qualifying brands must pass a comprehensive evaluation of operational best practices, collateral review and leadership validation interviews conducted by JD Power in collaboration with Kincentric, a leader in culture and engagement, leadership assessment and development. Factors reviewed in the best practices evaluation include training and development; culture; career pathing; accountability; and general talent management.

Once certified, a brand is permitted to market its achievement for 12 months with such marketing tools as a JD Power Career Development Certification emblem, online marketing collateral and in-store merchandise displays. Certified brands also will be listed on jdpower.com for consumers to search while shopping.

Kincentric, a Spencer Stuart company, approaches human capital differently to help organizations identify what drives their people, so they can drive your business. Our decades of expertise in culture and engagement, leadership assessment and development, and HR and talent advisory services enable us to help organizations change from the inside. Our global network, proven insights and intuitive technologies give us new ways to help organizations unlock the power of people and teams. Kincentric operates as a team of 400+ expert consultants, serving 50+ countries in every major geography, covering the Americas, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa (APMEA) and Europe.

JD Power is a global leader in consumer insights, advisory services and data and analytics. A pioneer in the use of big data, artificial intelligence (AI) and algorithmic modeling capabilities to understand consumer behavior, JD Power has been delivering incisive industry intelligence on customer interactions with brands and products for more than 50 years. The world’s leading businesses across major industries rely on JD Power to guide their customer-facing strategies.

JD Power is headquartered in Troy, Mich., and has offices in North America, Europe and Asia Pacific. To learn more about the company’s business offerings, visit JDPower.com/business. The JD Power auto shopping tool can be found at JDPower.com.

Media Relations Contacts
Geno Effler, JD Power; West Coast; 714-621-6224; [email protected]
John Roderick; East Coast; 631-584-2200; [email protected]

 

About JD Power and Advertising/Promotional Rules: www.jdpower.com/business/about-us/press-release-info