Study Indicates FNOL Significant to Customer Satisfaction

Feb. 11, 2020—  Insurance carriers are delivering the highest levels of customer satisfaction ever catalogued by the J.D. Power U.S. Auto Claims Satisfaction Study.

For the last couple of years, the activity that occurs at the first notice of loss (FNOL) is significantly important to overall satisfaction of the customer at the end of the repair, says David Pieffer, vice president, head of property and casualty practice of global insurance intelligence at J.D. Power.

Overall satisfaction with the auto insurance claim process increases to a record-high 868 (on a 1,000-point scale), up 7 points from last year’s study. 

If a customer feels more at ease during the FNOL, then overall, the customer will have higher levels of satisfaction, Pieffer notes. The customer should understand the process the vehicle will go through in the repair, understand insurance coverage and have questions answered.

"Communicating with the customer the way they want to be communicated is critically important," Pieffer says.

On average, the industry meets this challenge just 64 percent of the time, according to the study. Communication techniques can vary for generations and can affect baby boomers and Gen Z. One struggle that insurance carriers have is when a lot of people are involved in the claim, Pieffer says. The more people involved in the claim, generally the lower satisfaction. 

Over the last five years, however, insurers have had consistent satisfaction in CSI scores. Pieffer predicts a change in that trend.

"As generations drop off and we have more Generation Y, Gen X, and Gen Z, we'll start to see those scores drop off because the process carriers use to deal with those older generations is not going to work for next generation," he says.

So, what does it mean for the body shop?

Pieffer says if the body shop operators want the customer to have a better experience then they need to work on understanding how the customer wants to communicate during this process. Staying ahead of the customer is also critical.

It's all about being proactive in the claims process.

"If a customer has to pick up a phone and call anybody then satisfaction drops way off," he says. "You can’t put any work on the customer."