Gen Y not happy with the service

Study finds 41 per cent had to wait more than a minute for help

Most homeowners aren’t thrilled to deal with insurance companies about their homeowner policies, but it turns out 20- and 30-something customers are the least impressed of all, says a new J.D. Power report.

In fact, as more gen Y (also know as millennials) become first-time buyers, not only do they have fewer nice things to say about interactions with insurers, but their satisfaction level is declining at a faster rate than any other generational group, according to the study released Thursday.

Dissatisfaction with the insurance firm’s service regarding non-claim related matters is the main gripe overall, it found, with 41 per cent of customers complaining they have had to wait one minute or longer to speak with a representative, and 34 per cent indicating that their issue was not resolved on the same day.

In the study, J.D. Power defines generational groups as Boomers (1946-1964); gen X (1965-1976); gen Y/millennials (1977-1994) and gen Z (1995-2004).

Understanding the billing statement is one aspect of the interaction experience that gen Y customers are struggling with more than other generations though. Only 55 per cent say they “completely” understand their billing statement, compared with the industry average of 66 per cent, the survey notes.

And millennials report experiencing more billing errors than other generations — 15 per cent compared to less than 10 per cent for each of the other groups — leading them to turn to their agent or a call centre representative for help, it found.

“Satisfying gen Y customers with the service interaction experience is critical for insurers to remain competitive in the marketplace,” said Valerie Monet, direc- tor of the insurance practice at J.D. Power.

“Insurers need to educate customers regarding the issues they most frequently contact their insurer about: policy coverage options, bill payment options, and what to do and expect in the event they have to file a claim,” she said.

The annual Canadian Home Insurance study examines customer satisfaction with their homeowners insurance company by examining five key factors: non-claim interaction, policy offerings, price, billing and payment and claims.

The non-claim interaction factor involves dealing with the local agent or broker, call centre representative or website. The customer satisfaction level is calculated in the study on a 1,000-point scale.

The report determined satisfaction among gen Y has declined significantly this year, by 12 points to 745 from 757 in 2014, compared with a 10-point decline among boomers — the largest genera- tional group of homeowners — and a onepoint decline among gen X customers.

The erosion in satisfaction levels among gen Y customers is largely driven by a significant 14-point decline in what’s considered the survey’s most important factor: non-claim interaction, the report says.

Overall satisfaction declined by 11points nationally to 759 from 770 in 2014. Regionally, it dropped to 745 from 752 in Western Canada; to 759 from 771in Ontario and the Maritimes; and to 777 from 794 in Quebec, the survey noted.

Gen Y customers said they were less content with non-claim interaction (768) and claims (749), compared with satisfaction among boomers (815 and 812, respectively).

The study is based on responses from 7,466 home insurance customers. The survey data was collected from March through April.