Fifth Win for 'Fourth Emergency Service'

The AA and RAC continue their domination of the UK's roadside assistance customer service ranking, with the former going back to the top, according to J.D.Power and Associates. Overall satisfaction scores remain high and competition intense.

The 2005 UK Roadside Assistance StudySM gives the AA an overall customer satisfaction index score of 823 (on a 1,000-point scale) with the RAC behind only by the now-customary tiny margin of 2 points. The AA tops the rankings for the most important study factor, 'timing', which measures the time taken for help to arrive and perform any necessary work. Operator / dispatcher friendliness and reassurance, and time taken to answer the phone are good factors for both companies, while the RAC's 'New Knights of the Road' lead for the fourth consecutive year on mechanic/vehicle driver appearance, courtesy and ability.

Green Flag has made the most significant improvement in customer satisfaction, with a 25 index-point improvement since 2004. Its improvement covers all factors, most notably mechanic/vehicle driver and timing.

The AA ranked highest in 1999, 2000, 2002 and 2003, while RAC came top in 1998, 2001 and 2004. Both the AA and RAC rely heavily on their in-house fleets of vehicles, whereas most other providers operate through a network of sub-contractors - this appears to be a key reason for higher satisfaction for the two top organisations.

London office Research Supervisor Karen Gibbs says the findings 'highlight the intense competition within this industry... Although cars are becoming increasingly complex, the increased satisfaction when vehicles are fixed at the roadside is immense'.

36% of respondents said their vehicles were completely fixed at the roadside, with a further 27% temporarily fixed at the roadside in order to be transported to a dealer or garage. The most common reasons for call-out are engine problems (27%), flat tyres (20%) and other mechanical problems (17%).

The study is based on responses from 23,000 randomly selected owners of '52' and '03' registered vehicles. For the fourth year running, J.D. Power and Associates teamed up with What Car? magazine to conduct the study. The overall rating is based on the following weightings of ratings for the three main factors: Timing (48%), Mechanic/Breakdown Vehicle Driver (33%), Operator/Dispatcher (20%).

The company's European headquarters are in Guildford, UK, and its web site is at www.jdpower.com

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.

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