This year’s JD Power Satisfaction
Index, one of the more keenly-watched rankings in US retail
banking, has been published – and despite an almighty amount of
volatility in the US market over the past 12 months, JD Power’s
overall index of customer satisfaction has fallen by just 0.3
percent (from a score of 737 to 734, marked out of 1,000).
The 2009 study is based on responses from
28,570 US households regarding their experiences with their primary
banking provider, and was conducted in January this year.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Based on average scores across five separate
categories – convenience; fees; account statements; transactions;
and account initiation/product offerings – some of the best
performing banks overall included TD Bank (part of Canada’s
Toronto-Dominion Financial Group), Wells Fargo/Wachovia, and BNP
Paribas’s Californian subsidiary Bank of the West.
No overall ‘winner’ is stated, though looking
at the top placements in the seven regional groups, TD Bank comes
out very highly. It is the top-ranked player in two US regions,
including the wealthy Mid-Atlantic.
In a statement responding to the ranking, the
bank, which carries the tagline ‘America’s Most Convenient Bank’,
noted that high satisfaction scores are down to initiatives such as
seven-day branch banking, extended branch hours; free Penny Arcade
coin counting machines in branches; “hassle-free” banking products;
and “treats for children and dogs”.
Bharat Masrani, CEO of TD Bank, said: “This
year’s recognition is especially rewarding given that the study was
conducted in the midst of bringing together Commerce Bank and TD
Banknorth under the TD Bank brand.”
How well do you really know your competitors?
Access the most comprehensive Company Profiles on the market, powered by GlobalData. Save hours of research. Gain competitive edge.
Thank you!
Your download email will arrive shortly
Not ready to buy yet? Download a free sample
We are confident about the unique quality of our Company Profiles. However, we want you to make the most beneficial decision for your business, so we offer a free sample that you can download by submitting the below form
By GlobalDataNot all of the better performing banks were
big name players. Arvest Bank, for instance, headquartered in
Fayetteville, Arkansas, won overall in the South East US category,
beating a host of megabrands such as Bank of America, Chase and US
Bank.
Arvest, which has just 200 branches, put its
high ranking down to “some of the lowest fees in the nation [as
well as] 12-hour weekday banking, along with Saturday hours at many
locations. Arvest also offers many innovative products including
mobile banking, a reloadable Spending Card and extensive online
banking tools”.
Biggest gripe was fees
The biggest gripe among banking
customers in the US as a whole remains the same as last year:
higher banking fees. Some 15 percent of customers reported a
problem with fees, up from 12 percent in 2007.
According to the JD Power and Associates 2009
Retail Banking Satisfaction Study, one out of three US banking
customers who switched banks in the past 12 months did so because
of increased fees. In particular, overdraft fees increased most on
average, rising from $30 in 2008 to $35 in 2009.
The study, now in its fourth year, found that
only 35 percent of customers were highly committed to their retail
bank in the previous 12-month period, compared with 37 percent in
2008 and 41 percent in 2007.
This trend is especially troubling to banks
because, on average, highly committed customers use more products,
give more referrals and are much less likely to switch to another
bank compared with customers with lower commitment levels, states
the US research group.
“Customers reporting the lowest level of
commitment in 2009 just so happen to be the most valuable banking
customers, for instance, those customers with deposit balances that
are 15 percent higher than average,” said Michael Beird, director
of the banking practice at JD Power.
Customer perceptions of banks – and the
accompanying brand image – has declined for a third consecutive
year, said the study. Low customer ratings in the areas of overall
reputation, customer focus and personal service primarily drove the
drop in brand image among banks.
|
Satisfaction |
|
|
Top five and |
|
|
Top five |
Score of out 5 |
|
TD Bank |
5 |
|
Community Bank |
5 |
|
Susquehanna Bank |
4 |
|
Citizens Bank |
4 |
|
Northwest Savings Bank |
4 |
|
Bottom five |
Score of out 5 |
|
First Commonwealth Bank |
2 |
|
Citibank |
2 |
|
Keybank |
2 |
|
Capital One |
2 |
|
Astoria FS&LA |
2 |
|
Source: JD Power & Associates, 2009 |
|
