2 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Organisations have not always invested
sufficiently in developing skills, capabilities, long-
term workforce planning, or in enabling career
pathways to retain employees. The number of
problems experienced by customers is similar
to last year but remains stubbornly high. The
drop in satisfaction with complaint handling
suggests a need to refocus on the essentials of
customer service. Deployment of technology
can be a great enabler of service, to speed up
and improve handling of routine customer issues
and interactions. But many organisations may
be overestimating their capacity to integrate
data, systems and processes to deliver seamless,
satisfying customer experiences.
This matters because customer service is at the
heart of a successful economy and society. In the
UK we are a service nation: 60% of employees
work in customer-facing roles and 80% of our
GDP is generated from services. In sectors like
manufacturing and construction, service is key
to revenue growth and reputation. In public
services and the third sector, the quality of the
customer experience is central to well-being and
social cohesion.
I believe that there are four pillars that underpin
the service nation and need to shape our
thinking.
The latest UK Customer Satisfaction Index results
present a sobering, if perhaps unsurprising
picture. Average customer satisfaction in the
UK has fallen compared to last year and is at
its lowest level since 2015. While the overall
index has declined by 1.8 points, several findings
give cause for concern. Every sector has lower
customer satisfaction than a year ago, with the
biggest downturn in Utilities and Transport. More
than half of the 275 organisations that appear
in the UKCSI have received a lower customer
satisfaction rating than they did a year ago. The
adverse impact of a poor customer experience
appears to have got worse, with customers more
likely to experience a negative reaction when
they report a problem and wait longer for their
problem to be resolved. The consequences of
organisations failing to understand and respond
to a customer’s personal situation are especially
apparent for people who are experiencing low
levels of financial well-being.
There are of course significant ongoing
challenges that affect organisations: rising
costs; supply chain disruption; skills shortages;
recruitment and retention. But we should
reflect honestly on the causes of the decline in
customer satisfaction, what this means for our
organisations and the wider economy, and how,
as leaders, we need to respond. This is not all
about price - in hard times we all want to see
greater value from organisations. That value is
linked to how we serve and support customers
and how we demonstrate our purpose, relevance
and long-term impact.
Foreword
Joanna Causon Chief Executive
3UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Customer service is key to our nation’s long-
term growth and prosperity.
This is why The Institute continues to work
with the All Party Parliamentary Group on
Customer Service, government departments
and regulators, to raise awareness of the role of
customer service in enabling productivity and
economic performance and ensure that this is
reflected in policymaking on skills, training, and
apprenticeships.
This UKCSI highlights immediate and long-
term challenges for organisations, but I believe
it also shows the opportunity for sustainable
improvement in productivity, customer
satisfaction and business performance. We
need to take the latest UKCSI results seriously as
customer satisfaction is a predictive indicator of
performance: when we see a drop in customer
satisfaction, we will, in time, see an impact on
customer loyalty, financial performance and
productivity. Smart companies understand and
are addressing these issues and they will be
best placed to weather economic shocks and
uncertainty.
This is a time to drive the service agenda so that
we a build service nation that delivers a better
future for all. As always, if you would like to
know more about The Institute, or the UKCSI,
please do get in touch.
Customer service is a business asset.
Organisations that consistently earn higher levels
of customer satisfaction than peers in their
sector achieve better financial results, greater
productivity by reducing costs associated with
problems, and higher levels of trust and reputation
– key sources of long-term value. Our next set
of data looking at the links between customer
satisfaction and financial results, to be published in
September, will provide new evidence about this.
Customer service needs to be recognised as
a valued profession.
The convergence of digitisation, greater use of
technology and analytics, and changing customer
needs and behaviours means that diverse roles,
skills, knowledge and behaviours are required to
deliver an organisation’s customer service and
business objectives. Almost every organisation I talk
to is experiencing real challenges in recruitment
and retention. There is a need to address this by
developing and building recognition for skills and
career pathways and focusing seriously on future
resource and workforce planning.
Customer service can play an important role
in enabling a fairer and more cohesive society.
The UKCSI shows evidence of a growing
polarisation in financial well-being. 18% of
customers feel their financial well-being is poor or
very poor, up from 12% a year ago. The number
of customers who rate their financial well-being as
very good or good has dropped. There is a growing
expectation that organisations demonstrate fairness
and a social purpose in relationships with all their
stakeholders, including customers, employees,
suppliers, shareholders and the wider community.
5UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Executive summary
Part 1 The state of customer satisfaction in the UK
Part 2 Customer satisfaction and business performance
Part 3 Understanding and responding to
customers’ personal situation and needs
Part 4 How and why customers use social media to learn
about and engage with organisations
Part 5 Recommendations for organisations
UKCSI Key facts
Organisations in the UKCSI
About the UKCSI
UKCSI sector reports
Breakthrough research from The Institute
About The Institute
Contents
6
26
48
60
74
84
92
93
94
95
96
98
Executive
Summary
7UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
The July 2023 UKCSI is 76.6 (out of 100), a drop of 1.8
points compared to July 2022 and the lowest score for 8
years (76.2 in July 2015)
Jul-21 Jan-22 Jan-23 Jul-23Jul-22Jan-21Jul-20Jan-20Jul-19Jan-19Jul-18Jan-18Jul-17Jan-17Jul-16Jan-16Jul-15Jan-15Jul-14Jan-14Jul-13
77.4
78.4 78.4
76.9 77.0
76.8
77.1
77.7
77.9
78.1
78.2
77.8
77.4
77.0
76.2
76.0
76.3
77.1
77.9
77.7
76.6
Index scores out of 100
8 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
The UKCSI score is based on how customers rate organisations across 26 measures which are
summarised in 5 dimensions of customer satisfaction
1
. The Complaint Handling dimension has fallen
by 7.2 points compared to a year ago and the Emotional Connection and Ethics dimensions have each
declined by at least 2 points.
Experience
Measures the quality of customers’ experiences and
interactions with organisations
Dimension (score out of 100)
July
2023
Ethics
Reputation, openness and transparency and the extent
to which an organisation is deemed to “do the right thing”
Customer Ethos
Extent to which customers perceive that organisations
genuinely care about customers and build the experience
around their customers’ needs
Complaint Handling
How organisations respond and deal with problems and
complaints
Emotional Connection
The extent to which an organisation engenders feelings
of trust and reassurance
77.6
74.6
75.8
59.2
75.5
July
2022
79.4
76.6
77.7
66.4
77.6
Year-on-
year
change
-1.8
-2.0
-1.9
-7.2
-2.1
1
See About the UKCSI at the back of this report.
9UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
The average satisfaction of a customer who had a problem or bad experience with an organisation is
60.9 (out of 100), a drop of 6.3 points compared to July 2022. Amongst customers who did not have a
problem or bad experience, average satisfaction with organisations is 79.7, a smaller decline, of 1 point
compared to a year ago.
The adverse impact of bad customer experiences with
organisations appears to have increased compared to
a year ago
60.9
79.7
67.2
80.7
Average customer satisfaction of customers who
have had a problem or bad experience with an organisation
Average satisfaction of
other customers
Jul-23
Jul-22
Index scores out of 100
10 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
48% of customers who experienced a problem said that it took longer than they expected for the
problem to be resolved, compared to 37% in July 2022. Just 17% of problems were resolved quicker
than expected: in July 2022 it was 28%. As a result, average satisfaction with speed of resolving a
complaint fell by 0.8 points to 5.8 (out of 10).
Organisations have taken longer to resolve complaints
and more problems remain unresolved
How long did it take to resolve your problem?
27.7% 35.1% 37.3%
July 2022
16.5% 35.9% 47.6%
July 2023
Quicker than expected As expected Longer than expected
11UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
In most cases, organisations react positively when customers report a problem, but there were fewer
positive reactions and more negative ones compared to a year ago. 57% of customers making a
complaint said the organisation responded positively, (for example, by listening to the problem, taking
responsibility, explaining next steps), down from 63% in July 2022. 27% said they experienced a
negative behaviour when reporting a problem, up by 5 percentage points compared to a year ago.
Negative behaviours include making excuses, passing the problem to someone else, or seeming
uninterested in the problem.
When making a complaint, customers are more
likely than a year ago to have experienced negative
behaviours
How did the organisation react when you made a complaint?
% positive behaviours experienced % negative behaviours experienced
% mixed behaviours experienced
July 2023
56.8% 26.7% 16.5%
July 2022
62.6% 21.4% 16%
12 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Each of the 13 UKCSI sectors has lower customer
satisfaction than a year ago
Jul-22 Jan-23 Jul-23 Change from
Jul-22 to Jul-23
Change from
Jan-23 to
Jul-23
Retail (Non-food)
81.9 81.7 80.8 -1.1 -0.9
Tourism
80.7 80.9 80.4 -0.3 -0.5
Banks & Building Societies
80.3 80.3 80.0 -0.3 -0.3
Leisure
81.8 80.8 80.0 -1.8 -0.8
Retail (Food)
81.7 80.5 79.5 -2.2 -1.0
Automotive
81.0 80.1 79.4 -1.6 -0.7
Insurance
80.8 80.0 78.7 -2.1 -1.3
Telecommunications & Media
76.6 75.8 75.4 -1.2 -0.4
Services
76.7 76.3 74.4 -2.3 -1.9
Public Services (National)
75.3 75.1 74.3 -1.0 -0.8
Transport
75.8 74.1 71.9 -3.9 -2.2
Public Services (Local)
72.3 72.2 71.3 -1.0 -0.9
Utilities
74.1 71.7 69.5 -4.6 -2.2
Customer satisfaction by sector July 2022 – July 2023
q Fall in UKCSI score by at least one point q Fall in UKCSI score by more than 2 points
13UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Average satisfaction with Utilities organisations
is down by 4.6 points (out of 100) compared to
July 2022. Customer satisfaction in the Energy
sector has fallen by 5.3 points to 67.9. Average
satisfaction with price / cost fell by 1 point to
5.6 (out of 10) and the perception that Energy
companies do the right thing in their business
practices slipped 0.8 points to 6.4 (out of 10): in
both cases this is the lowest score of any sector.
Average satisfaction with Water companies has
declined by 3.5 points to 72.6.
The Transport sector has an average UKCSI score
of 71.9, down by 3.9 points compared to July
2022. Customer satisfaction with Rail companies
fell by 4.3 points to 71.2: average satisfaction
with Airlines is 73.7, a drop of 4.6 points
compared to a year ago.
The biggest decline in customer satisfaction compared
to July 2022 is in the Utilities and Transport sectors
Average
satisfaction
with Utilities
organisations is down
by 4.6 points compared
to July 2022. Customer
satisfaction in the
Energy sector has
fallen by 5.3
points to 67.9
14 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
275
Organisations and
organisation
types in the UKCSI
15
Organisations have
improved yoy by
at least 2 points,
compared to July 2022
132
Organisations have
experienced a yoy
drop of at least 2 points,
compared to July 2022
Just 15 organisations (5% of those receiving a UKCSI
score) have improved by at least 2 points compared to
July 2022: 7 of these are from the Tourism sector
132 organisations (48% of those receiving a UKCSI score) have declined by at least 2 points compared to
a year ago. More than 80% of organisations in the Utilities and Transport sectors and over half of Retail
(Non-food) organisations have received a UKCSI score that is at least 2 points lower than in July 2022.
Jul-23
Rank
Organisation Sector Jul-23
Score
Jul-22
Score
Jul-22
Rank
Change
in score
Jul-22 to
Jul-23
1
rst direct
Banks & Building Societies 86.7 85.3 10 1.4
2
Starling Bank
Banks & Building Societies 86.1
NO DATA NO DATA NO DATA
3
M & S (food)
Retail (Food) 84.8 85.1 11 -0.3
4=
Hotels.com
Tourism 84.7 82.1 57 2.6
4=
John Lewis
Retail (Non-food) 84.7 86.3 3 -1.6
4=
Ocado
Retail (Food) 84.7 85.8 7 -1.1
7=
Jet2holidays.com
Tourism 84.5 83.7 22 0.8
7=
Tesco Mobile
Telecommunications & Media 84.5 86.1 4 -1.6
9
Amazon.co.uk
Retail (Non-food) 84.4 83.7 22 0.7
10
Nationwide
Banks & Building Societies 84.3 83.0 37 1.3
10 highest rated organisations
p Increase in UKCSI score of less than one point q Fall in UKCSI score p Increase in UKCSI score of one point or more
15UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
The biggest differences between the top 50 organisations and the rest relate to: satisfaction with
complaint handling; price / cost; and a range of emotional and perception measures including an
organisation caring about its customers, designing experiences around its customers, trust, reputation,
openness and transparency, providing reassurance and keeping promises.
Biggest differences between the top 50 and other organisations in the UKCSI
Top 50
Organisations
Remaining
Organisations
Difference
UKCSI (out of 100)
82.5 75.4 7.1
Proportion of customers giving a 9 or 10 out of 10
35.2% 23.7% 11.5% points
Speed of resolving your complaint
6.9 5.6 1.3
The handling of the complaint
7.0 5.8 1.2
The attitude of staff (complaints)
7.2 6.1 1.1
Price/cost
8.1 7.2 0.9
XX cares about their customers
8.1 7.3 0.8
XX designs the experience around its customers
8.1 7.3 0.8
XX is open and transparent
8.1 7.3 0.8
Reputation of the organisation
8.2 7.4 0.8
XX keeps their promises
8.2 7.4 0.8
XX makes you feel reassured
8.2 7.4 0.8
You trust XX
8.2 7.4 0.8
% experiencing a problem
10.6% 16.9% -6.3% points
% experiences right rst time
87.3% 78.9% 8.4% points
16 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
In the Retail (Food) sector, organisations with a UKCSI
score at least 1 point above sector average have grown
sales by an average of 17.6%, compared to the market
average of 10.8%
2
.
Food retailers with
UKCSI at least 1 point
below sector average
Food retailers with
UKCSI within + / - 1 point
of sector average
Food retailers with
UKCSI at least
1 point above sector average
5.8%8.1%17.6%
Annual sales growth for the 12 weeks to 14 May 2023
Against a backdrop of rising costs and prices, average customer satisfaction in the Retail (Food) sector
has declined by 2.2 points, from 81.7 in July 2022 to 79.5 (out of 100). All 11 Retail (Food) organisations
that appear in the UKCSI have lower customer satisfaction than they did a year ago. Organisations
that have suffered the biggest decreases in overall satisfaction compared to a year ago have generally
received lower ratings across a range of measures relating to price / cost, transactional experiences, trust
and doing the right thing in business practices.
2
UKCSI scores are mapped alongside Kantar’s data on annual sales growth for the 12 weeks to 14 May 2023, see
www.kantar.com/uki/inspiration/fmcg/2023-wp-uk-grocery-sees-218-million-royal-sales-bump-as-inflation-inches-down
17UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
8
See Current Account Switching Service Dashboard Issue 38
In the Banks and Building Societies sector, a rise in
switching activity
3
is likely to have been inuenced
by an increase in competitive switching incentives,
consumers’ desire to maximise their income, and
quality of customer service
Volume of current account switching 2020 - 2023
234,767
327,249
395,345
445,866
413,885
717,182
April 2020
- Sept 2020
Oct 2020
- March 2021
April 2021
- Sept 2021
Oct 2021
- March 2022
April 2022
- Sept 2022
Oct 2022
- March 2023
In this UKCSI we have reviewed data from the latest Current Account Switch Service (CASS) dashboard,
covering switches between organisations completing between October and December 2022, alongside
the corresponding UKCSI period (January 2023).
Nationwide was the biggest beneficiary of current account switching: between October and December
2022 it achieved over 111,000 net current account gains, the strongest ever quarterly performance
recorded by the Current Account Switching Service. In the January 2023 UKCSI, average customer
satisfaction with Nationwide was 82.6 (out of 100), more than 2 points above the sector average. (In the
July 2023 UKCSI, Nationwide’s average customer satisfaction is rated at 84.3, over 4 points above the
sector average).
Service benefits remain the core reasons that customers prefer their new current account to their old
one, with online or mobile app banking (41%) and customer service (29%) listed as the top two reasons
for people preferring their new current account.
18 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
The number of customers who feel their financial well-being is poor or very poor has increased from
12% in July 2022, to 18%. 41% customers claimed that their financial well-being is either good or very
good, down from 53% a year ago. As a result, the number of customers describing their financial well-
being as average has grown from 34% to 40% of respondents.
This UKCSI shows that the impact of bad customer
experiences is often most acute for customers with
low levels of nancial well-being
Very poor Poor Average Good Very good Prefer not to say
6% 12% 40% 30% 11% 1%
Jul-23
4% 8% 34% 34% 19% 1%
J
ul-22
How would you describe your financial well-being?
19UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
When dealing with XX, did you feel that they responded to your personal situation and needs?
Customers who feel an organisation responded to their personal situation and needs have relatively
high and similar levels of satisfaction, whatever their claimed state of financial well-being. For customers
who suffer from poor or very poor financial well-being, the impact of an organisation failing to respond
to personal needs and context is stark. These customers’ average satisfaction of 44.1 (out of 100) is
37 points lower than that of similar customers who dealt with an organisation that understood and
responded to their personal needs.
Yes,
they responded
to my personal needs
and situation
No,
they did not respond
to my personal needs
and situation
Gap
Very good / good nancial well-being
83.7 29.454.3
Average nancial well-being 81.5 32.149.4
Poor / very poor nancial well-being
81.1 44.1 37.0
Yes,
they responded
to my personal needs
and situation
Average customer satisfaction index scores out of 100
20 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
In the UKCSI customers are asked to select the top 3 things the organisation they dealt with should
focus on, in order to improve customer service. Customers with poor or very poor financial well-being
are more likely than other customers to feel that organisations need to make it easier to contact the
right person to help, have more staff, branches or stores and greater availability of opening times.
From the perspective of customers, the leading
priorities for organisations to improve are making
it easy to contact the right person to help, employee
behaviours and competence, and website navigation
Customers with very poor
/
poor nancial well-being
All customers in the UKCSI
Have more branches/stores available
7.3%
4.4%
Opening times
8.3%
4.5%
Better app design
7.3%
7.8%
Better choice of ways to contact them
8.6%
6.0%
Friendly / helpful staff
11.4%
12.9%
Better website navigation
10.6%
11.8%
Have more staff available
11.6%
8.2%
Easier to contact the right person to help me
15.5%
14.3%
Reliability of product / service
9.1%
9.7%
Quality of product / service
9.2%
9.6%
Availability of product / service
9.1%
8.9%
Speed of response / resolution
10.1%
9.1%
More knowledgeable staff
9.7%
11.8%
What should the organisation you dealt with do to improve its customer service?
21UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
In the UKCSI, most recorded customer
experiences with organisations
4
are conducted
in person, over the phone, on an organisation’s
website or via email. But social media has
become a significant and highly visible feature
of the customer service landscape. Alongside
this UKCSI, we conducted an additional survey
of 1,000 customers in May 2023 exploring how
and why customers learn about or engage with
organisations through social channels and how
this engagement influences buying behaviour.
How and why customers
use social media to learn
about and engage with
organisations
On average, 25% of customers regularly (either most days, or 2 – 4
times a month) follow specic companies or brands on social media
NeverOccasionally e.g. less than once a month2-4 times a monthMost days
55%20%14%11%
How often do you follow specific companies or brands on social media, to learn about them
and their products and services?
4
The breakdown of customer experiences by channel is available in the 13 sector reports available at www.instituteofcustomerservice.com/ukcsi
22 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Several factors prompt customers to use a social
channel or platform for information about an
organisation rather than use the organisation’s
website. These include the desire to get another
opinion (cited by 42% of customers), difficulty
in navigating the organisation’s website (40%),
or seeking feedback from others who have
experienced the brand or product (36%). In
addition, over 30% of customers consulted an
alternative source because they didn’t trust the
organisation, or because the information available
on the organisation’s website was too complex.
Our research found evidence
that customers’ engagement
and experiences with
organisations on social channels
has inuenced their buying
behaviour and likelihood to
recommend the organisation
15% of respondents often recommend an
organisation they follow on social media (and
39% do so occasionally). 54% of customers
often (9%) or occasionally (45%) buy from an
organisation for the first time as a result of
following them on social media. On the other
hand, 9% say that their experiences following
an organisation on social media have created
a negative impression and 7% have switched
supplier of a product or service they purchase
regularly.
23UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Based on the insight and findings in the UKCSI we have highlighted 5 areas that organisations should
address to improve customer satisfaction and business performance. Key actions and recommendations
for each of these areas are included in the full report, July 2023 UK Customer Satisfaction Index: the
state of customer satisfaction in the UK
5
.
Preventing problems and
improving complaint handling
1
Making it easier for customers to
access help and expertise
2
Responding to customers’ personal
situations and needs
3
Doing the right thing in business practice:
balancing the needs of shareholder,
customer, employee and wider society
5
Professionalising customer service
4
5
The full report is available at www.instituteofcustomerservice.com/ukcsi
Recommendations
for organisations
A drop in satisfaction with complaint handling
across most sectors is a feature of this UKCSI.
Problems and complaints are costly for
organisations: they consume time and resources
that could be deployed more productively for
improving service, developing products or winning
new business. In regulated sectors, poor customer
service and complaint handling can lead to
increased regulatory scrutiny, resulting in financial
penalties and reputational damage. Consistently
high levels of complaints make it harder to recruit
and retain employees, as well as customers.
Reducing the number of problems experienced
by customers and effective complaint handling
are fundamental to customer service and business
performance. Evidence from this UKCSI suggests
there is an urgent need for many organisations to
renew their focus on complaint handling.
1) Preventing problems
and improving complaint
handling
24 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Many organisations have invested in technology
to speed up and improve handling of routine
customer issues and interactions. At its most
effective, deployment of technology in customer
service generates a win-win scenario for
customer and organisation: cost to serve and
failure rates are reduced; customers get rapid
access to key information; employees are freed
up to focus on helping customers with complex
or sensitive issues.
However, evidence from this UKCSI suggests that
many organisations may be overestimating their
capacity to integrate data, systems and processes
to deliver seamless, efficient and satisfying
customer experiences. Improving customer
satisfaction requires that organisations review
how effectively they enable customers to get
access to the help, advice and expertise they need.
2) Making it easier
for customers to
access help and expertise
The consequences of high inflation and Covid-19
have exposed a polarisation in levels of financial
and mental well-being and heightened the
importance of understanding and responding to
a customer’s unique situation and needs.
For customers who suffer from poor or very
poor financial well-being, the impact of an
organisation failing to respond to personal
needs and context is stark. But indicators of
a customer’s status of well-being, or personal
circumstances may not always be obvious.
Sometimes organisations and employees need to
look beyond segmentation and data and act in
the moment to deliver genuine personalisation.
3) Responding to customers’
personal situations and needs
25UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
A convergence of digitisation, greater use
of technology and analytics, and changing
customer needs and behaviours mean that
diverse roles, skills, knowledge and behaviours
are required to deliver an organisation’s
customer service and business objectives. But
many potential employees
6
are more likely to
think of working in customer service roles as
a foundation for other careers rather than as
a respected and valued profession. Action is
needed to promote professional development
and career pathways and improve the perception
and recognition of roles and careers in customer
service.
4) Professionalisng
customer service
A growing range of issues - environmental
sustainability, working conditions, voice and
engagement, diversity and inclusion, data
security and transparency, the application of
artificial intelligence, risk management and
resilience - have become more prominent
considerations in corporate governance. High
levels of inflation and the rise in the cost of
living have often required organisations to make
difficult decisions affecting the interests of
customers, employees and shareholders.
Doing the right thing in business practice –
beyond meeting legal and regulatory obligations
– has become more complex and exposed
to greater scrutiny. It is therefore critical
that organisations and leaders are guided by
consistent values in making decisions that
balance short and long-term objectives and
satisfy the needs of shareholders, regulators,
customers and employees.
5) Doing the right thing in
business practice: balancing
the needs of shareholders,
customers, employees,
suppliers or partners and
wider society
6
See Building the Service Nation: changing perceptions about the profession of customer service, Institute of Customer Service, 2023
26 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
The state of
customer
satisfaction
in the UK
1
27UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
The July 2023 UKCSI is 76.6 (out of 100), a drop of 1.8
points compared to July 2022 and the lowest score for 8
years (76.2 in July 2015)
Jul-21 Jan-22 Jan-23 Jul-23Jul-22Jan-21Jul-20Jan-20Jul-19Jan-19Jul-18Jan-18Jul-17Jan-17Jul-16Jan-16Jul-15Jan-15Jul-14Jan-14Jul-13
77.4
78.4 78.4
76.9 77.0
76.8
77.1
77.7
77.9
78.1
78.2
77.8
77.4
77.0
76.2
76.0
76.3
77.1
77.9
77.7
76.6
The UKCSI has
recorded its lowest score
since July 2015
Index scores out of 100
28 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Experience
Measures the quality of customers’ experiences and
interactions with organisations
Dimension (score out of 100)
July
2023
Ethics
Reputation, openness and transparency and the extent
to which an organisation is deemed to “do the right thing”
Customer Ethos
Extent to which customers perceive that organisations
genuinely care about customers and build the experience
around their customers’ needs
Complaint Handling
How organisations respond and deal with problems and
complaints
Emotional Connection
The extent to which an organisation engenders feelings
of trust and reassurance
77.6
74.6
75.8
59.2
75.5
July
2022
79.4
76.6
77.7
66.4
77.6
Year-on-
year
change
-1.8
-2.0
-1.9
-7.2
-2.1
The UKCSI score is based on how customers rate organisations across 26 measures which are
summarised in 5 dimensions of customer satisfaction. The Complaint Handling dimension has fallen
by 7.2 points compared to a year ago and the Emotional Connection and Ethics dimensions have each
declined by at least 2 points.
29UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
% customer experiences rated as being right first time
79.6% of customer experiences were rated as being right first time, practically the same level as in July
2022 (79.7%). The number of customers who experienced a problem with an organisation fell slightly
compared to a year ago, by 0.9 percentage points, to 16.4%.
% customers experiencing a problem or bad experience
13.6
14.1
14.6
14.9
16.4
17.3
16.5
16.4
Jan-20 Jul-20 Jan-21 Jul-21 Jan-22 Jul-22 Jan-23
Jul-23
80.6
81.0
80.5
79.8
79.9
79.7
79.8
79.6
J
an-20 Jul-20 Jan-21 Jul-21 Jan-22 Jul-22 Jan-23
Jul-23
30 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
The average satisfaction of customers who had a problem or bad experience with an organisation is
60.9 (out of 100), a drop of 6.3 points compared to July 2022. Amongst customers who did not have a
problem or bad experience, average satisfaction with organisations is 79.7, a smaller decline, of 1 point,
compared to a year ago.
The adverse impact of bad customer experiences
with organisations appears to have increased
60.9
79.7
67.2
80.7
Average customer satisfaction of customers who
have had a problem or bad experience with an organisation
Average satisfaction of
other customers
Jul-23
Jul-22
Index scores out of 100
31UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
48% of customers who experienced a problem said that it took longer than they expected for the
problem to be resolved, compared to 37% in July 2022. Just 17% of problems were resolved quicker
than expected: in July 2022 it was 28%.
Organisations have taken longer to resolve complaints
and more problems remain unresolved
How long did it take to resolve your problem?
27.7% 35.1% 37.3%
July 2022
16.5% 35.9% 47.6%
July 2023
Quicker than expected As expected Longer than expected
32 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
When making a complaint, customers are more likely
to have experienced a negative reaction than a year ago
In most cases, organisations react positively when customers report a problem, but there were fewer
positive reactions and more negative ones compared to a year ago. 57% of customers making a
complaint said the organisation responded positively, (for example, by listening to the problem, taking
responsibility, explaining next steps), down from 63% in July 2022.
27% of customers reporting a problem to an organisation said they experienced a negative behaviour(s),
up by 5 percentage points compared to a year ago. Negative behaviours include making excuses,
passing the problem to someone else, or seeming uninterested in the problem.
How did the organisation react when you made a complaint?
% positive behaviours experienced % negative behaviours experienced
% mixed behaviours experienced
July 2023
56.8% 26.7% 16.5%
July 2022
62.6% 21.4% 16%
33UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Each of the 13 UKCSI sectors has lower customer
satisfaction than a year ago
5 sectors down
by more than 2 points
Utilities
Transport
6 sectors down by
between 1 - 1.8 points
Leisure
Automotive
2 sectors down by
less than 1 point
Banks & Building
Societies
Tourism
Services Retail (Non-food)
Retail (Food) Public Services (National)
Insurance
Public Services (Local)
Telecomms & Media
Change in customer satisfaction compared to July 2022, by sector
34 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Jul-22 Jan-23 Jul-23 Change from
Jul-22 to Jul-23
Change from
Jan-23 to
Jul-23
Retail (Non-food)
81.9 81.7 80.8 -1.1 -0.9
Tourism
80.7 80.9 80.4 -0.3 -0.5
Banks & Building Societies
80.3 80.3 80.0 -0.3 -0.3
Leisure
81.8 80.8 80.0 -1.8 -0.8
Retail (Food)
81.7 80.5 79.5 -2.2 -1.0
Automotive
81.0 80.1 79.4 -1.6 -0.7
Insurance
80.8 80.0 78.7 -2.1 -1.3
Telecommunications & Media
76.6 75.8 75.4 -1.2 -0.4
Services
76.7 76.3 74.4 -2.3 -1.9
Public Services (National)
75.3 75.1 74.3 -1.0 -0.8
Transport
75.8 74.1 71.9 -3.9 -2.2
Public Services (Local)
72.3 72.2 71.3 -1.0 -0.9
Utilities
74.1 71.7 69.5 -4.6 -2.2
q Fall in UKCSI score by at least one point q Fall in UKCSI score by more than 2 points
Customer satisfaction by sector July 2022 – July 2023
35UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Jan-23
Jul-23
Jul-22
74.1
71.7
69.5
Utilities
75.8
74.1
71.9
Transport
80.7
80.9
80.4
Tourism
76.6
75.8
75.4
Telecommunications & Media
76.7
76.3
74.4
Services
81.9
81.7
80.8
Retail (Non-food)
81.7
80.5
79.5
Retail (Food)
75.3
75.1
74.3
Public Services (National)
72.3
72.2
71.3
Public Services (Local)
81.8
80.8
80.0
Leisure
80.8
80.0
78.7
Insurance
80.3
80.3
80.0
Banks & Building Societies
81.0
80.1
79.4
Automotive
Customer satisfaction by sector July 2022 – July 2023
Index scores out of 100
36 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Customer satisfaction with Rail companies
is 71.2 (out of 100), a drop of 4.3 points
compared to July 2022. Each of the 4 complaint
handling measures is rated at least 1 point (out
of 10) lower than a year ago. The number of
experiences rated as being right first time fell
by 2.7 percentage points to 75.8%. Satisfaction
with price / cost, xx makes you feel reassured
and trust in organisations has declined by 0.6
points (out of 10) compared to July 2022.
Average satisfaction with Airlines fell by 4.6
points to 73.7 and 3 of the 4 complaint handling
measures (handling of the complaint, staff attitude
and speed of resolving your complaint) have
dropped by at least 2 points (out of 10) compared
to July 2022. Average satisfaction with xx makes it
easy to contact the right person to help, providing
reassurance, being open and transparent and
doing the right thing in business practices has
declined by 0.6 points, compared to a year ago.
Average satisfaction with Rail Companies and Airlines is
more than 4 points lower than a year ago
Customer satisfaction in the Transport sector
Coach / Bus
Rail / Train
Air
71.2
73.7
70.3
75.5
78.3
72.8
Jul-23
Jul-22
Index scores out of 100
37UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Customer satisfaction in the Energy sector has
fallen by 5.3 points to (67.9) out of 100. Just
66.7% of experiences were rated as being right
first time, a decrease of 4.5 percentage points
compared to July 2022. Average satisfaction for
each of the 4 complaint handling measures is at
least 1 point (out of 10) lower than a year ago.
Average satisfaction with price / cost fell by 1
point to 5.6 (out of 10) and the perception that
Energy companies do the right thing in their
business practices slipped by 0.8 points to 6.4
(out of 10): in both cases this is the lowest score
of any sector.
Average satisfaction with Water companies has
declined by 3.5 points to 72.6. The number of
customer experiences rated as being right first
time slipped by 2.7 percentage points to 73%.
Average satisfaction with speed of resolving a
complaint dropped by 1 point to 6.4 (out of 10),
though this is 0.6 points above the UK all-sector
average.
Average satisfaction with Utilities organisations is down
by 4.6 points compared to July 2022
Customer satisfaction in the Utilities sector
Energy Water
67.9
73.2
72.6
76.1
Jul-23
Jul-22
Index scores out of 100
38 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Within the Services sector, average satisfaction with Postal / Courier organisations is 71.4, a drop of 3.3
points compared to July 2022. Average satisfaction with Automotive related services declined by 1 point
to 78.2.
The Services Sector has received its lowest ever UKCSI
score, down 2.3 points to 74.4
Customer satisfaction in the Services sector
Automotive Related Services
78.2
71.4
79.2
74.7
Postal/Courier
Jul-23
Jul-22
Index scores out of 100
39UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
In the Retail (Food) sector, the average customer
satisfaction index score declined by 2.2 points to
79.5. Every Retail (Food) organisation receiving
a UKCSI score has lower customer satisfaction
than in July 2022, especially Waitrose (down by
5.6 points to 80.0), Iceland (down by 5.3 points
to 77.4) and Morrisons (down by 4.3 points to
74.4).
Customer satisfaction with Insurance organisations
is 78.7, a fall of 2.1 points compared to a year
ago. 7 of the 26 Insurance organisations that
received a UKCSI score are at least 3 points below
their July 2022 level. The biggest drop in customer
satisfaction is for complaint handling: each of the
4 complaint handling measures fell by at least 0.6
points (out of 10).
Elsewhere, 6 sectors – Automotive, Leisure, Public
Services (Local), Public Services (National), Retail
(Non-food) and Telecommunications and Media -
have received an average UKCSI score between 1
and 1.8 points below their July 2022 level.
Average satisfaction in the Banks and Building
Societies sector is 80.0, a slight fall, of 0.3 points,
compared to July 2022. Average customer
satisfaction in the banking sector appears to
be relatively stable: only 3 organisations have
moved, up or down, by 2 points or more
compared to a year ago.
In the Tourism sector, average customer
satisfaction is 80.4, slightly lower, by 0.3 points
than a year ago. However, the small movement
in the overall score conceals a wide range of
organisational scores. 7 organisations have
improved by at least 2 points compared to July
2022, whereas 5 organisations have declined
by 2 points or more compared to a year ago.
The gap between the highest and lowest rated
organisations in this sector has increased by 8.7
points to 17.5 points.
40 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
275
Organisations and
organisation
types in the UKCSI
15
Organisations have
improved yoy by
at least 2 points,
compared to July 2022
132
Organisations have
experienced a yoy
drop of at least 2 points,
compared to July 2022
Just 15 organisations (5% of those receiving a UKCSI
score) have improved by at least 2 points compared to
July 2022: 7 of these are from the Tourism sector
18%
16%
26%
52%
42%
13%
5%
20%
27%
14%
6%
8%
22%
48%
Jul-20
Jan-21 Jul-21 Jan-22 Jul-22 Jan-23
Jul-23
% of organisations whose UKCSI
has improved yoy by at least two points
% organisations whose UKCSI score
has declined yoy by at least 2 points
% of organisations that have improved or fallen by at least 2 points compared to the previous year
41UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Extent of change in organisations’ customer satisfaction scores in each sector, July 2022 – July 2023
Sector Total
number of
organisations
Number of
organisations
that have
improved by 2
points or more
Number of
organisations
that have
moved by less
than 2 points
Number of
organisations
that have
dropped by 2
points or more
Gap between
highest
and lowest
organisation
Change in the
gap between
the highest
and lowest
organisation,
compared to
July 2022
Automotive
26 1 13 12 6.4 -5.1
Banks & Building Societies
18 1 13 2 10.1 -1.8
Insurance
26 0 14 10 8.6 0.8
Leisure
27 1 15 8 15.8 4.5
Public Services (Local)
9 0 3 4 17.4 -2.3
Public Services (National)
13 1 5 6 16.9 1.0
Retail (Food)
11 0 6 5 10.4 2.6
Retail (Non-food)
26 2 7 14 13.5 5.3
Services
18 1 8 8 20.1 1.2
Telecomms & Media
13 1 8 4 16.4 0.4
Tourism
22 7 10 5 17.5 8.7
Transport
36 0 7 29 19.4 4.0
Utilities
30 0 5 25 21.7 0.9
42 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
The top
50 organisations
p Increase in UKCSI score of less than one point q Fall in UKCSI score p Increase in UKCSI score of one point or more
Jul-23
Rank
Organisation Sector Jul-23
Score
Jul-22
Score
Jul-22
Rank
Change
in score
Jul-22 to
Jul-23
1
rst direct
Banks & Building Societies 86.7 85.3 10 1.4
2
Starling Bank
Banks & Building Societies 86.1
NO DATA NO DATA NO DATA
3
M & S (food)
Retail (Food) 84.8 85.1 11 -0.3
4=
Hotels.com
Tourism 84.7 82.1 57 2.6
4=
John Lewis
Retail (Non-food) 84.7 86.3 3 -1.6
4=
Ocado
Retail (Food) 84.7 85.8 7 -1.1
7=
Jet2holidays.com
Tourism 84.5 83.7 22 0.8
7=
Tesco Mobile
Telecommunications & Media 84.5 86.1 4 -1.6
9
Amazon.co.uk
Retail (Non-food) 84.4 83.7 22 0.7
10
Nationwide
Banks & Building Societies 84.3 83.0 37 1.3
11
UK Power Networks
Utilities 84.1 86.5 1 -2.4
12
Hoseasons
Tourism 83.8 76.4 203 7.4
13=
Costco
Retail (Non-food) 83.6 84.7 14 -1.1
13=
Timpson
Services 83.6 86.4 2 -2.8
15
Greggs
Leisure 83.5 84.0 19 -0.5
16
Sky Mobile
Telecommunications & Media 83.4 82.1 57 1.3
17
Green Flag
Services 83.1 84.6 15 -1.5
18
booking.com
Tourism 83.0 82.7 42 0.3
19
Monzo Bank
Banks & Building Societies 82.9
NO DATA NO DATA NO DATA
20
Next
Retail (Non-food) 82.7 83.5 30 -0.8
21
Premier Inn
Tourism 82.5 82.4 49 0.1
22=
Jet2
Transport 82.3 83.2 34 -0.9
22=
Suzuki
Automotive 82.3 85.9 5 -3.6
24
Toby Carvery
Leisure 82.2 83.3 32 -1.1
25
Argos
Retail (Non-food) 82.1 79.2 148 2.9
25
Western Union
Services 82.1 80.5 113 1.6
27=
Expedia
Tourism 82.0 79.6 136 2.4
43UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Jul-23
Rank
Organisation Sector Jul-23
Score
Jul-22
Score
Jul-22
Rank
Change
in score
Jul-22 to
Jul-23
27=
Hyundai
Automotive 82.0 81.3 82 0.7
27=
M & S
Retail (Non-food) 82.0 85.9 5 -3.9
30=
1st Central
Insurance 81.9
NO DATA NO DATA NO DATA
30=
Holiday Inn
Tourism 81.9 78.9 154 3.0
32=
eBay
Retail (Non-food) 81.8 79.3 143 2.5
32=
Home Bargains
Retail (Non-food) 81.8 81.2 90 0.6
34=
Amazon Prime Video
Leisure 81.7 84.0 19 -2.3
34=
Apple
Retail (Non-food) 81.7 85.4 9 -3.7
34=
giffgaff
Telecommunications & Media 81.7 81.9 67 -0.2
34=
Hilton
Tourism 81.7 78.4 170 3.3
38=
Kia
Automotive 81.5 82.8 39 -1.3
38=
Specsavers
Retail (Non-food) 81.5 82.6 47 -1.1
40
P&O Cruises
Tourism 81.4 79.3 143 2.1
41=
Domino's Pizza
Leisure 81.3 80.9 102 0.4
41=
LV=
Insurance 81.3 82.8 39 -1.5
43
Trivago
Tourism 81.2 82.7 42 -1.5
44
Caffe Nero
Leisure 81.1 83.6 25 -2.5
45=
Halifax
Banks & Building Societies 81.0 81.6 76 -0.6
45=
SAGA Insurance
Insurance 81.0 84.6 15 -3.6
47
Starbucks
Leisure 80.9 78.0 177 2.9
48=
NatWest
Banks & Building Societies 80.8 82.0 62 -1.2
48=
Superdrug
Retail (Non-food) 80.8 82.8 39 -2.0
50=
Aldi
Retail (Food) 80.7 83.3 32 -2.6
50=
Audi
Automotive 80.7 82.4 49 -1.7
50=
Lidl
Retail (Food) 80.7 81.3 82 -0.6
50=
Pets at Home
Retail (Non-food) 80.7 85.1 11 -4.4
p Increase in UKCSI score of less than one point q Fall in UKCSI score p Increase in UKCSI score of one point or more
44 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
The top 50 organisations in the UKCSI include
6 banks or building societies, 3 of whom – first
direct, Starling Bank and Nationwide - are
amongst the 10 highest rated organisations.
16 of the 50 highest rated organisations are from
the Retail (Non-food or Food) sectors:
M & S (Food), John Lewis, Ocado and
Amazon.co.uk are the highest rated retailers for
customer satisfaction. Argos and eBay have each
improved by more than 2 points compared to
July 2022.
10 Tourism organisations feature in the
UKCSI top 50, compared to just 6 a year ago.
Jet2holidays.com continues to be one of the
UK’s highest rated organisations for customer
satisfaction. Hotels.com, Hoseasons and Expedia
have received their highest ever UKCSI scores.
The average UKCSI score of the top 50
organisations is 82.5 (out of 100), a drop of 1.2
points compared to July 2022 but 7.1 points
higher than the average of other organisations in
the UKCSI.
Average UKCSI scores of top 50 and other organisastions
82.5
75.4
83.7
77.7
Top 50 organisations Other organisations
Jul-23
Jul-22
45UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Biggest differences between the top 50 and other organisations in the UKCSI
Top 50
Organisations
Remaining
Organisations
Difference
(out of 10
unless stated)
UKCSI (out of 100)
82.5 75.4 7.1
Proportion of customers giving a 9 or 10 out of 10
35.2% 23.7% 11.5% points
Speed of resolving your complaint
6.9 5.6 1.3
The handling of the complaint
7.0 5.8 1.2
The attitude of staff
7.2 6.1 1.1
Price/cost
8.1 7.2 0.9
XX cares about their customers
8.1 7.3 0.8
XX designs the experience around its customers
8.1 7.3 0.8
XX is open and transparent
8.1 7.3 0.8
Reputation of the organisation
8.2 7.4 0.8
XX keeps their promises
8.2 7.4 0.8
XX makes you feel reassured
8.2 7.4 0.8
You trust XX
8.2 7.4 0.8
% experiencing a problem
10.6% 16.9% -6.3% points
% experiences right rst time
87.3% 78.9% 8.4% points
The biggest differences between the top 50 organisations and the rest are concerned with satisfaction
with complaint handling; price / cost; and a range of emotional and perception measures including an
organisation caring about its customers, designing experiences around its customers, trust, reputation,
openness and transparency, providing reassurance and keeping promises.
46 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
20 most improved
organisations
20 most improved organisations
over one year
UKCSI
score July
2022
UKCSI
score July
2023
YOY
Change
Sector Compared
to sector
average
Hoseasons
76.4 83.8 7.4
Tourism
3.4
Plusnet
73.4 77.1 3.7 Telecommunications & Media 1.7
Land Rover
74.4 78.0 3.6 Automotive -1.4
DVLA
70.4 73.8 3.4 Public Services (National)
-0.5
Haven Holidays
76.1 79.4 3.3 Tourism -1.0
Hilton
78.4 81.7 3.3 Tourism 1.3
M & S (Bank)
73.4 76.6 3.2 Banks & Building Societies -3.4
Holiday Inn
78.9 81.9 3.0 Tourism 1.5
Starbucks
78.0 80.9 2.9 Leisure
0.9
Argos
79.2 82.1 2.9 Retail (Non-food) 1.3
Hotels.com
82.1 84.7 2.6 Tourism 4.3
eBay
79.3 81.8 2.5 Retail (Non-food)
1.0
Expedia
79.6 82.0 2.4 Tourism 1.6
P&O Cruises
79.3 81.4 2.1 Tourism
1.0
P&O Ferries
71.8 73.6 1.8 Transport 1.7
Manchester Metrolink
75.0 76.7 1.7 Transport 4.8
DHL
76.9 78.6 1.7 Services 4.2
Western Union
80.5 82.1 1.6 Services 7.7
AA
77.3 78.8 1.5 Services 4.4
rst direct
85.3 86.7 1.4 Banks & Building Societies 6.7
Organisation is at least 1 point higher than the sector average Organisation is at least 1 point lower than the sector average
47UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
7 of the most improved organisations compared
to July 2022 are from the Tourism sector. Each of
these organisations, except for Haven Holidays,
has a UKCSI score that is at least 1 point above
the Tourism sector average.
Across the UKCSI, only 1 organisation (Hoseasons)
has improved by more than 5 points compared to
a year ago: an additional 7 organisations (Plusnet,
Land Rover, DVLA, Haven Holidays, Hilton, M & S
(Bank) and Holiday Inn) have improved by at least
3 points. The average year on year UKCSI score
increase of the 20 most improved organisations
is just 2.8 points, a smaller improvement than in
recent UKCSI reports.
Average yoy increase in UKCSI score
of the 20 most improved organisations
Jul-23
2.8
Jan-23
4.1
Jul-22
8.3
Jan-22
9.3
Jul-21
5.8
Jan-21
4.7
Jul-20
4.8
Jan-20
3.8
48 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Customer
satisfaction
and business
performance
2
In this section we examine evidence of the relationship between customer satisfaction and business
performance in the Retail (Food) and Banks and Building Societies sectors.
49UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Rising ination and
falling customer
satisfaction in the Retail
(Food) sector
The impact of rising inflation has been especially severe in the Retail (Food) sector: the rate of food
inflation rose from 5.9% in March 2022 to 19.1% in April 2023. Rising costs have created significant
challenges for organisations and customers and exposed a polarisation in customer needs and
behaviours.
Rate of food inflation in the UK
5.9
6.7
8.7
9.8
12.7
13.1
14.6
16.4
16.5
16.9
16.8
18.2
19.2 19.1
Mar-22
Apr-22 May-22 Jun-22 Jul-22 Aug-22 Sep-22 Oct-22 Nov-22 Dec-22 Jan-23 Feb-23 Mar-23
Apr-23
Source: ONS
50 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
7
ONS: https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/inflationandpriceindices/articles/costoflivinginsights/food
8
Customers were asked, to score the balance of price and service they would prefer to accept. A score of 8 - 10 implies a preference for excellent service, even if it
costs more. A score of 1 - 3 is interpreted as a preference for low-cost, no-frills service.
ONS has reported that during March, April and May 2023, around 50% of adults said they were buying
less food than in the previous two weeks
7
. Meanwhile the UKCSI shows that 31% of customers in the
Retail (Food) sector would prefer to receive excellent service, even if it costs more, while only 16%
would prefer the lowest cost option, even it means sacrificing quality of service
8
.
Contrasting buying and service preferences in the Retail (Food) sector
30.0%
31.3%
16.6%
15.9%
Customers with a preference for excellent
service, even if it costs more
Customers who prefer no-frills,
lowest cost
Jul-23
Jul-22
51UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
All 11 Retail (Food) organisations that appear in the
UKCSI have lower customer satisfaction than they did
a year ago
Against a backdrop of rising costs and prices, average customer satisfaction in the Retail (Food) sector
has declined by 2.2 points, from 81.7 in July 2022 to 79.5 (out of 100).
All 11 Retail (Food) organisations that appear in the UKCSI have lower customer satisfaction than they
did a year ago: 4 organisations – Waitrose, Co-op Food, Iceland and Morrisons – have a UKCSI score
that is at least 3 points lower than in July 2022.
Across the sector as whole, the biggest fall in customer satisfaction is for price / cost. Organisations that
have suffered the biggest decreases in overall satisfaction have generally received lower ratings than a
year ago for a range of measures relating to price / cost, transactional experiences, trust and doing the
right thing in business practices.
Customer satisfaction measures
(scale of 1 - 10)
Retail (Food) average Retail (Food) yoy
change
Average yoy change
of organisations
whose UKCSI score
has fallen by at least
3 points
Price / cost
7.7
-0.4 -0.6
Ease of dealing with xx
8.3
-0.2 -0.6
Handling of the complaint
6.7 -0.1 -0.2
You trust xx
7.9
-0.3 -0.6
xx does the right thing in business practices
7.7 -0.3 -0.7
% experiences right rst time
86% +1.0% points -2.1% points
52 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
9
UKCSI scores are mapped alongside Kantar’ data on sales growth, see:
www.kantar.com/uki/inspiration/fmcg/2023-wp-uk-grocery-sees-218-million-royal-sales-bump-as-inflation-inches-down
In a context of rising prices and intense competition,
organisations with the highest customer satisfaction
have generally achieved the strongest sales growth
Organisations with a UKCSI score at least 1 point above sector average have grown sales by an average
of 17.6%
9
. Organisations that are within 1 point of the sector average have grown by 8.1%. Food
retailers with a UKCSI score that is at least 1 point below the sector average grew by an average of 5.8%.
Retail (Food) July 2023 UKCSI = 79.5
Aldi
Ocado
Co - op Food
Waitrose
Sainsbury's
Iceland
Tesco
ASDA
Morrisons
Lidl
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
14%
16%
18%
20%
22%
24%
26%
74 76 78 80 82 84 86
Annual sales growth for the 12 weeks to 14 May 2023
Source: Kantar Worldpanel
UKCSI score
Customer satisfaction and sales growth: the Retail (Food) sector
Food retailers with
UKCSI at least 1 point
below sector average
Food retailers with
UKCSI within + / - 1 point
of sector average
Food retailers with
UKCSI at least
1 point above sector average
5.8%8.1%17.6%
Annual sales growth for the 12 weeks to 14 May 2023
53UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
M & S is the highest rated Retail (Food)
organisation and is the third highest rated
organisation in the UKCSI overall, behind first
direct and Starling Bank. M & S food’s UKCSI
score of 84.8 is 5.3 points above the sector
average and slightly lower, by 0.3 points, than it
was in July 2022. M & S is not included in Kantar’s
analysis of sales growth in the supermarket sector
but the company reported that food sales were
up 8.7% in the 52 weeks up to 1 April 2023
10
.
Sales of its Remarksable budget food range
increased by 40% during the year as M & S tried
to reduce the impact of rising inflation on basics
such as milk, butter and bread
11
.
Ocado has a UKCSI score of 84.7, down by
1.1 points compared to July 2022 but just 0.1
points below M & S and 5.2 points above the
sector average. Although Ocado’s sales have
continued to grow (by 5.6% in Kantar’s research
for the 12 weeks preceding 5 May 2023), the
joint venture with M & S reported a loss of
£29.5 million. However, M & S has signalled
that it plans to deepen the collaboration with
Ocado, by improving the customer experience,
introducing cost-cutting measures and leveraging
the potential of the M&S customer base
12
.
Average satisfaction of Aldi’s customers in the
July 2023 UKCSI fell by 2.6 points to 80.7 but
is 1.2 points above sector average. In Kantar’s
analysis, Aldi was the fastest growing grocer in
the 12 weeks preceding 5 May 2023: its sales
increased by 24% compared to the same period
in 2022, giving a market share of 10.1%.
Average customer satisfaction with Lidl fell
slightly, by 0.6 points, to 80.7, the same level as
Aldi. Lidl’s sales increased by 23.2%: its market
share is reported as 7.7%.
Waitrose’s UKCSI score fell by 5.6 points to 80.0,
its lowest score since January 2021 and just
above the sector average, 79.5. Kantar reports
that Waitrose grew sales by 4.8% in in the 12
weeks preceding 14 May 2023.
Customer satisfaction with Tesco (79.8),
Sainsbury’s (79.7) and Asda (78.1) fell by more
than 1 point compared to July 2022. However,
each of these organisations grew sales by more
than the grocery market average.
Morrisons has the lowest average customer
satisfaction in the sector, with a UKCSI score of
74.4. In Kantar’s analysis, Morrisons registered
0.6% sales growth in the 12 weeks to 14 May
2023, the lowest rate of any supermarket. A key
focus for Morrisons is converting former McColls
store to its Morrisons Daily fascia, which could
provide opportunities for future growth
13
.
10
www.corporate.marksandspencer.com/media/press-releases/marks-and-spencer-group-plc-full-year-results-52-weeks-ended-1-april-2023
11
www.theguardian.com/business/2023/may/24/marks-and-spencer-puts-profit-jump-down-to-better-clothing-styles-and-more-affordable-food
12
www.proactiveinvestors.co.uk/companies/news/1015951/marks-and-spencer-might-own-ocado-retail-one-day-as-it-doubles-down-on-the-joint-venture-1015951.html
13
The Times, 3 June 2023
54 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Evidence from the UKCSI, ONS and other market data suggests that Retail (Food) organisations will need to
maintain their focus on competitive pricing, employee skills, engagement and retention, quality of products
and transactional experiences and supply chain management.
Retail (Food): Customers' key priorities for organisations to improve
20.2%
13.9%
12.8%
11.2%
10.0%
9.9%
9.0%
8.8%
19.7%
14.4%
13.1%
10.3%
9.3%
10.6%
11.0%
8.5%
Availability of product / service
Product / service range
More friendly / helpful staff
Have more staff available
Quality of product / service
More knowledgeable staff
Better website navigation
Easier to contact the right person to help me
Jul-23
Jul-22
55UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
14
See Current Account Switching Service Dashboard Issue 38
The Current Account Switching Dashboard has
reported that the volume of customer account
switching is at its highest ever recorded level
14
The rise in switching activity is likely to have been influenced by an increase in competitive switching
incentives, consumers’ desire to maximise their income (switching bonuses and cashbacks offered by
providers do not count towards the £1,000 annual tax-free personal savings allowance), and quality of
customer service.
Service benefits remain the core reasons that customers prefer their new current account to their old
one, with online or mobile app banking (41%) and customer service (29%) listed as the top two reasons
for people preferring their new current account. Financial benefits including interest earned (29%) and
spending benefits (25%) are also rated as important advantages of an account switch.
Volume of current account switching 2020 - 2023
234,767
327,249
395,345
445,866
413,885
717,182
April 2020
- Sept 2020
Oct 2020
- March 2021
April 2021
- Sept 2021
Oct 2021
- March 2022
April 2022
- Sept 2022
Oct 2022
- March 2023
56 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Just 3 organisations that
appear in the UKCSI
gained more current
accounts than they lost
In this UKCSI we have reviewed data from
the latest Current Account Switch Service
(CASS) dashboard, covering switches between
organisations completing between October and
December 2022, alongside the corresponding
UKCSI period (January 2023). In the context
of increased levels of account switching just
3 organisations that appear in the UKCSI
gained more current accounts than they lost –
Nationwide, Starling Bank and Natwest.
Nationwide was by the far the biggest beneficiary
of current account switching: between October
and December 2022 it achieved over 111,000
net current account gains, the strongest ever
quarterly performance recorded by the Current
Account Switching Service. During October
and November 2022, Nationwide offered new
account joiners a £200 cash incentive to be paid
within 10 days, considered to be the biggest
cash incentive offered by any provider up to
that point
15
. In the January 2023 UKCSI, average
customer satisfaction with Nationwide was 82.6
(out of 100), more than 2 points above the sector
average. (In the July 2023 UKCSI, Nationwide’s
average customer satisfaction is rated at 84.3,
over 4 points above the sector average).
Santander, Barclays and Halifax – all of whom
received a UKCSI score within 1 point of the
sector average in January 2023 – suffered
the biggest net current account losses. Every
organisation that received a UKCSI score at least
2 points below the sector average sustained
more current account losses than gains between
October and December 2022.
15
See This is Money, 27 April, 2023: www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/saving/article-12016865/Nationwide-spent-29m-gobbling-147-000-new-customers.html
57UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Banks & Building Societies January 2023 UKCSI: 80.3
UKCSI January 2023
Nationwide
The Co-operative
Bank
Starling Bank
Halifax
NatWest
Lloyds
Barclays
Santander
Bank of
Scotland
HSBC
16
TSB
RBS
Virgin
Money
Monzo
Bank
-40,000
-30,000
-20,000
-10,000
0
10,000
20,000
30,000
40,000
50,000
60,000
70,000
80,000
90,000
100,000
110,000
120,000
76 78 80 82 84 86
Current Account Net Gains / Losses
Average current account quarterly net gains
Customer satisfaction and current account net gains and losses
Banks & Building Societies
with UKCSI within 1 point
( +/- ) of sector average
Banks & Building Societies with
a UKCSI at least 1 point above
sector average
Net current account gains Net current account gains
20,460 -14,607
Banks & Building Societies
with a UKCSI at least 1 point
below sector average
Net current account losses
-5,788
16
HSBC includes switching figures for first direct and M & S Bank
58 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
There is growing scrutiny of the interest rates offered
by banks and building societies to savers
Alongside the upsurge in current account
switching activity, there is a growing scrutiny of
the interest rates offered by banks to savers. The
Bank of England has reported that the average
interest rate available on instant access savings
accounts rose by just 1.42 percentage points
between November 2021 and March 2023,
despite its base rate rising from 0.1 per cent
to 4.25 per cent in that period. Meanwhile the
interest rate on a two-year fixed mortgage with
a 25 per cent deposit had increased by 3.22
percentage points. MPs and campaigners have
called on banks to be more proactive in passing
on higher interest rates to savers. In May 2023 the
Commons Treasury committee wrote to a number
of leading retail banks, asking them to explain
why savings rates are below the current interest
rate and whether they inform loyal customers that
higher savings rates are available
17
.
The FCA’s chief executive, Nikhil Rathi, said in a
letter to the Treasury Select Committee: “We have
made clear that firms should be able to justify and
explain the rationale for the speed and degree
to which they make changes to their various
savings rates.” The FCA has also indicated that
the Consumer Duty will give it greater flexibility to
react to market developments, without needing
to introduce additional detailed and prescriptive
rules. The FCA has previously consulted on
whether to introduce a single “easy-access” rate
on cash savings to prevent a “loyalty penalty” in
cash savings markets: the regulator has indicated
that it could revisit the idea of single easy-access
rate, or other interventions, if there is persistent
evidence that existing savers receive unfair
savings rates compared to those offered in new
accounts
18
.
17
See inews 11 May 2023 https://inews.co.uk/news/politics/high-street-banks-told-to-pass-latest-bank-of-england-interest-rate-rise-on-to-savers-2335474
18
See This is Money 20 April 2023 www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/saving/article-11994691/Banks-FORCED-pay-savers-new-rules.html
59UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Concerns about availability of bank branches,
especially amongst customers with poor or very poor
nancial well-being
Evidence from the UKCSI suggests that customers’ leading priority for organisations in the banks and
building societies sector is the same as the average of the 13 UKCSI sectors: making it easier to contact
the right person to help. In addition, almost 13% of customers highlighted availability of bank branches
as a leading priority for banks and building societies to improve: this is the top priority for customers who
describe their financial well-being as “average”, “poor” or “very poor”.
Customers’ key priorities for banks and building societies to improve
8.5%
11.2%
9.2%
8.0%
Have more staff available
12.8%
11.4%
6.7%
8.2%
Opening times
10.2%
7.6%
9.7%
9.0%
Better app design
8.2%
6.5%
12.9%
10.9%
More friendly / helpful staff
6.9%
8.0%
12.3%
11.2%
More knowledgeable staff
9.2%
8.9%
12.2%
11.3%
Better website navigation
15.7%
17.2%
11.4%
12.7%
Have more branches/stores available
13.4%
11.6%
14.9%
13.8%
Easier to contact the right
person to help me
Very good / good
nancial well-being
All customers
Average nancial well-being
Very poor / poor
nancial well-being
60 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Understanding
and responding
to customers’
personal situation
and needs
3
In this section we review changes and differences in customer satisfaction by age group and for
customers with a disability or long-term health condition. We examine the extent to which organisations
understand and respond to customers’ personal needs and situation and how this affects customer
satisfaction. We also highlight the priorities which customers believe organisations should focus on to
improve customer service.
61UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Customer satisfaction has
fallen across all age groups
compared to a year ago
Whilst the average satisfaction with organisations of customers aged over 55 has fallen slightly (by
between 0.4 and 0.6 points), there has been a larger drop in customer satisfaction, of at least 3 points,
amongst 18 – 34 year olds.
Customer satisfaction by age group
77.8
78.7
77.8
77.9
77.7
79.6
83.2
74.4
75.7
75.5
76.3
77.3
79.0
82.6
80 and above65 to 7955 to 6445 to 5435 to 4425 to 3418 to 24
Jul-23
Jul-22
Index scores out of 100
62 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
In the 18 – 34 year old age cohort the biggest decline in customer satisfaction compared to a year ago
is for complaint handling, followed by satisfaction with price / cost, ease of contacting the right person
to help, trust, and an organisation doing the right thing in its business practices. Younger customers are
more likely than others to have experienced a problem with an organisation but despite the overall fall in
customer satisfaction, these customers were less likely to have experienced a problem with organisations
than a year ago.
Customers aged 18 – 34: year on year changes in average satisfaction with organisations
Jul-23 Jul-22 yoy change
UKCSI
75.3 78.5 - 3.2
Price/cost
7.3 7.7 -0.4
XX makes it easy to contact the right person to
help
7.4 7.8 -0.4
The handling of the complaint
6.9 7.7 -0.8
Speed of resolving your complaint
6.8 7.7 -0.9
You trust XX
7.5 7.9 -0.4
XX does the right thing in business practices
(e.g. for employees/for society)
7.4 7.8 -0.4
% of customers experiencing a problem with
the organisation in the previous three months
21.3% 24.8% -3.5% points
63UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Average customer satisfaction of customers with a
disability or long-term health condition has fallen by 3
points
Average satisfaction of customers who have a disability or long-term health condition is 76.1, a decrease
of 3 points compared to July 2022: average satisfaction of other customers in the UKCSI fell by 1.4 points
to 76.9.
79.1
76.1
78.3
76.9
Customers who have a disability or long-term
health condition
Other customers
Jul-23
Jul-22
Year on year changes in customer satisfaction
Amongst customers with a disability or long-term health condition, the most conspicuous fall in
satisfaction is for complaint handling, followed by xx does the right thing in its business practices. 25.3%
of customers with a disability or health condition experienced a problem with an organisation, a 7.4
percentage point drop compared to July 2022, but 11.5 percentage points more than other customers in
the UKCSI.
Index scores out of 100
64 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Average customer satisfaction of the youngest customers (aged 18 – 34) who have a disability or long-
term health condition has fallen by 7.2 points to 72.9: this level of satisfaction is lower than that of other
customers in the same age group of older customers who have a disability or long-term health condition.
Customer satisfaction of people with a disability or long-term health condition: selected measures
Customer satisfaction measures
(out of 10 unless stated)
Jul-23 Change compared
to July 2022
Compared to other
customers in the
UKCSI
The handling of the complaint
6.2 -1.1 +0.5
Speed of resolving your complaint
6.1 -1.2 +0.6
You trust XX
7.5 -0.4 -0.2
XX does the right thing in business practices
(e.g. for employees/for society)
7.3 -0.5 -0.2
% of customers experiencing a problem with
the organisation in the previous three months
25.3% -7.4% +11.5% points
Average satisfaction of
other customers, aged 18-34
Average satisfaction of customers, aged 18-34
with a disability or long-term health condition
July 2022 July 2023
80.1
July 2022 July 2023
78.2 76.072.9
Index scores out of 100
65UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
The number of customers who feel their nancial
well-being is poor or very poor has increased from 12%
in July 2022, to 18%
In the July 2023 UKCSI, 12% of people described their financial well-being as poor and 6% said they
feel it is very poor. 41% customers claimed that their financial well-being is either good or very good,
down from 53% a year ago. As a result, the number of customers describing their financial well-being as
average has grown from 34% to 40% of respondents.
Very poor Poor Average Good Very good Prefer not to say
6% 12% 40% 30% 11% 1%
Jul-23
4% 8% 34% 34% 19% 1%
J
ul-22
How would you describe your financial well-being?
66 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Customers with poor or very poor financial well-being tend in general to be less satisfied with organisations
than customers who are more affluent or financially secure. But the average satisfaction of customers with
very poor financial well-being is 72.5 (out of 100), up by 2.4 points compared to a year ago.
72.5
70.1
Very poor
74.3
73.9
Poor
76.476.4
Average
78.378.3
Good
83.1
84.1
Very good
Jul-23
Jul-22
Average customer satisfaction by financial well-being status
Index scores out of 100
67UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
However, there are differences in the average customer satisfaction of people with poor or very poor
satisfaction depending on age group. Customer satisfaction of younger customers (aged 18 – 34)
who have poor or very poor financial well-being is 70.7, a drop of 3.8 points compared to July 2022
and more than 3 points below the average satisfaction of older customers who also suffer from poor
financial well-being.
70.7
74.4
76.5
73.7
74.5
71.4
76.9
72.7
18 - 34 35 - 64 65 and above All
Jul-23
Jul-22
Average customer satisfaction of people with poor or very poor financial well-being, by age group
Index scores out of 100
68 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
The impact on customer satisfaction of organisations
failing to respond to personal needs and context
appears to more keenly felt than in July 2022
Just over 60% of customers felt that the organisation they dealt with responded appropriately to their
personal needs and situation, around the same level as a year ago. 10.9% of customers believe that the
organisation they dealt with failed to address their personal needs and situation.
Customers who feel an organisation responded to their personal situation and needs have relatively
high and similar levels of satisfaction, whatever their claimed state of financial well-being. But in cases
where customers feel an organisation did not respond to their personal situation and needs, average
satisfaction is just 49.8 (out of 100), a drop of 4.1 points compared to July 2022. This suggests that the
adverse impact on customer satisfaction of an organisation failing to respond to a customer’s personal
situation and needs has increased.
% customers
July 2023
CSI
July 2023
(out of 100)
CSI
July 2022
(out of 100)
yoy change in
CSI score
Yes, they responded to my
personal needs and situation
60.0% 82.0 83.7 - 1.7
No, they did not respond to my
personal situation and needs
10.9% 49.8 53.9 - 4.1
Didn’t need them to respond to
my personal situation and needs
24.4% 76.0 76.4 0.4
Don’t know
4.7% 67.4 70.2 - 2.8
When dealing with XX, did you feel that they responded to your personal situation and needs?
69UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
For customers who suffer from poor or very poor
nancial well-being, the impact of an organisation
failing to respond to personal needs and context is
stark
These customers’ average satisfaction of 44.1 (out of 100) is 37 points lower than that of similar
customers who dealt with an organisation that understood and responded to their personal needs.
Yes,
they responded
to my personal needs
and situation
No,
they did not respond
to my personal needs
and situation
Gap
Very good / good nancial well-being
83.7 29.454.3
Average nancial well-being 81.5 32.149.4
Poor / very poor nancial well-being
81.1 44.1 37.0
Yes,
they responded
to my personal needs
and situation
Average customer satisfaction index scores out of 100
70 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Leading priorities for organisations to improve are
making it easy to contact the right person to help,
employee behaviours and competence, and website
navigation
In the UKCSI customers are asked to select the top 3 things the organisation they dealt with should
focus on, in order to improve customer service. As in July 2022, customers’ priorities for improvement
are making it easier to contact the right person to help, developing friendly, helpful and knowledgeable
staff, and better website navigation. In addition, the number of customers citing the need to improve
reliability or availability of a product or service has increased compared to last year.
14.3%
12.9%
11.8%
11.8%
9.7%
9.6%
9.1%
8.9%
8.2%
7.8%
7.4%
6.0%
13.7%
15.0%
13.2%
13.7%
8.3%
8.9%
8.5%
7.7%
7.6%
7.6%
7.0%
5.4%
Easier to contact the right person to help me
Friendly / helpful staff
More knowledgeable staff
Better website navigation
Reliability of product / service
Quality of product / service
Speed of response / resolution
Availability of product / service
Have more staff available
Better app design
Product / service range
Better choice of ways to contact them
Jul-23
Jul-22
What should the organisation you dealt with do to improve its customer service?
71UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Customers with poor or very poor nancial well-
being are more likely than other customers to feel
that organisations need to make it easier to contact
the right person to help, have more staff, branches or
stores and greater availability of opening times
Customers with very poor
/
poor nancial well-being
All customers in the UKCSI
Have more branches/stores available
7.3%
4.4%
Opening times
8.3%
4.5%
Better app design
7.3%
7.8%
Better choice of ways to contact them
8.6%
6.0%
Friendly / helpful staff
11.4%
12.9%
Better website navigation
10.6%
11.8%
Have more staff available
11.6%
8.2%
Easier to contact the right person to help me
15.5%
14.3%
Reliability of product / service
9.1%
9.7%
Quality of product / service
9.2%
9.6%
Availability of product / service
9.1%
8.9%
Speed of response / resolution
10.1%
9.1%
More knowledgeable staff
9.7%
11.8%
What should the organisation you dealt with do to improve its customer service?
72 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
From the perspective of customers with poor or
very poor financial well-being, the key aspects
of customer experience organisations should
improve are making it easier to contact the
right person to help, more availability of staff,
friendly / helpful staff and website navigation. In
addition, these customers are more likely than
others to highlight a need for organisations to
improve staff availability, a better choice of ways
for organisations to contact customers, opening
times and greater availability of branches or
stores.
73UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Key takeouts:
the personal context
and impact of customer
satisfaction
• Customer satisfaction has fallen across all age
groups, but the largest drop is amongst 18 –
34 year olds, from an average of 78.5 in July
2022 to 75.3 (out of 100)
• Average customer satisfaction of customers
with a disability or long-term health condition
has fallen by 3 points, to 76.1
• Average customer satisfaction of the
youngest disabled customers (aged 18 – 34)
has fallen by 7.2 points to 72.9
• The number of customers who feel their
financial well-being is poor or very poor has
increased from 12% in July 2022, to 18%
• Customer satisfaction of younger customers
(aged 18 – 34) who have poor or very poor
financial well-being is 70.7, a drop of 3.8
points compared to July 2022 and more than
3 points below the average satisfaction of
older customers who also suffer from poor
financial well-being
• For customers who suffer from poor
wellbeing, average satisfaction with
organisations is 81.1 (out of 100), when an
organisation responds to their personal needs
and situation. When an organisation fails to
do so, average satisfaction is just 44.1
• From the perspective of customers, leading
priorities for organisations to improve are
making it easy to contact the right person to
help, employee behaviours and competence,
and website navigation
• Customers with poor or very poor financial
well-being are more likely than other
customers to feel that organisations need to
make it easier to contact the right person to
help, have more staff, branches or stores and
greater availability of opening times.
74 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
How and why
customers use
social media to
learn about and
engage with
organisations
4
75UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
In the UKCSI, most recorded customer
experiences with organisations
19
are conducted
in person, over the phone, on an organisation’s
website or via email. But social media has
become a significant and highly visible feature
of the customer service landscape. In this
section, we explore how and why customers
get information or engage with organisations
through social channels, how this engagement
influences buying behaviour, and key
considerations for organisations as they evolve
social media deployment in the context of
customer experience strategy. The findings are
based on research conducted separately from
the UKCSI, in May 2023, with a sample of 1,000
consumers.
19
The breakdown of customer experiences by channel is available in the 13 sector reports available at www.instituteofcustomerservice.com/ukcsi
76 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
On average, 25% of customers regularly (either most
days, or 2 – 4 times a month) follow specic companies
or brands on social media
The main reasons for following organisations on social media are to get news, in some cases on local
news or development, access special offers and deals and manage personal finances. 37% of customers
follow at least 1 company regularly (at least 2 – 4 times a month) for news; 33% for local news and
development issues; 30% for special offers or deals, or to manage personal finances.
NeverOccasionally e.g. less than once a month2-4 times a monthMost days
55%20%14%11%
How often do you follow specific companies or brands on social media, to learn about them
and their products and services?
77UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
24%
18%
13%
13%
12%
12%
12%
11%
10%
10%
9%
9%
9%
8%
8%
8%
7%
13%
15%
17%
17%
13%
12%
17%
12%
15%
12%
13%
12%
12%
12%
16%
15%
10%
20%
21%
22%
21%
17%
21%
23%
20%
22%
21%
19%
18%
19%
20%
26%
27%
15%
43%
47%
48%
49%
58%
55%
49%
57%
52%
57%
59%
61%
61%
59%
50%
50%
68%
7% 12% 16% 65%
News
Local news and local development (thinking public services)
Special offers and deals
Managing your money
Other interests/hobbies of mine
Technology
Food & cooking
Health & Fitness
Managing your utilities and bills
Wellbeing
Fashion
Beauty
Environmental sustainability
Public Transport (trains, buses etc.)
Eating out
Travel and holidays
Parenting
Cars
NeverOccasionally e.g. less than once a month2-4 times a monthMost days
How often do you follow specific companies or brands on social media, to learn about the
following?
78 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
The most popular sites or platforms for engaging with
companies are Facebook (used by 41% of customers),
YouTube (29%), Google reviews (25%) and Instagram
(24%)
41%
29%
25%
24%
19%
19%
19%
11%
9%
9%
8%
5%
5%
2%
2%
21%
Facebook
YouTube
Google reviews
Instagram
Trip Advisor
Twitter
Trustpilot
LinkedIn
TikTok
Online communities/forums
Pintrest
Snapchat
Reddit
Tumblr
Feefo
Don't use any of these
% of customers using these channels or sites to learn about or engage with organisations
79UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Active social media users are present in every age
group but customers aged 18 – 24 appear to be the
most likely to be regular followers of an organisation
or brand on social media
More than 40% of people in this age group engage with organisations regularly (either every day or at
least 2 – 4 times a month) on a wide range of topics including news, special offers and deals, personal
finances, technology, food and cooking, health and fitness, managing utility bills, fashion, eating out,
travel and holidays.
NeverOccasionally e.g. less than once a month2-4 times a monthMost days
41%
32%
46%
57%
75%
73%
28%
26%
22%
23%
11%
15%
17%
22%
19%
13%
7%
6%
15%
20%
13%
8%
7%
5%
18 - 24
25 - 34
35 - 44
45 - 54
55 - 64
65+
How often do you follow specific companies or brands on social media to learn about the
following? A breakdown of customer responses by age group
There are, however, noticeable differences in the likelihood of customers in different age groups to
use social channels to engage with companies. On average, over 50% of people aged 18 – 44 have
used Facebook to engage directly with an organisation, compared to around 25% of people aged 55
and over. 41% of people aged 55 – 64, and 32% of those aged 65 and over have never used a social
channel to engage with an organisation. While Facebook is the most popular option amongst customers
aged 18 – 24 for engaging with organisations, these customers are more likely than others to use
Instagram, Tiktok, Pinterest and Snapchat.
80 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Looking at reviews and seeking information about
an organisation, product or service a customer has
not used before, are key reasons to learn about
organisations through social channels
The leading motivations for engaging with companies through social channels are to look at reviews
(cited by 45% of respondents, seeking information when buying a product the customer has never or
seldom previously purchased (41%), using a company for the first time (35%), or making an expensive
purchase (35%).
45%
41%
35%
35%
26%
24%
21%
19%
19%
17%
16%
To look at reviews
When buying a product I don't often buy/have not used before
When using a new company
When purchasing something expensive
To get discounts/offers
If I have heard negative feedback about a company/product
To get in contact with them
When signing up to a new contract
When signing up to a new subscription service
If the organisation's website isn't very easy to understand
When purchasing something for someone else
What is your motivation for using social channels to learn about or engage with
organisations?
81UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
42%
40%
36%
33%
32%
22%
18%
If I wanted to get another opinion
If the website was difcult to navigate
If I wanted to nd out from people who had already
has an experience with that brand/company/product
If I don't trust the brand/company
If the content was overly complex
If the website was basic in design
If the website wasn't easily accessible/
geared up to accessibility requirements
Why would you seek information through sites or platforms other than an organisation's
website?
Several factors have prompted customers to use a social channel for information about an organisation
rather than use the organisation’s website. These include the desire to get another opinion (cited by
42% of customers), difficulty in navigating the organisation’s website (40%), or seeking feedback from
others who have experienced the brand or product (36%). In addition, over 30% of customers consulted
an alternative source because they didn’t trust the organisation, or because the information available on
the organisation’s website was too complex.
82 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Our research found evidence that customers’
engagement and experiences with organisations on
social channels has inuenced their buying behaviour
and likelihood to recommend the organisation
15% of respondents confirmed that they often recommend an organisation they follow on social
media (and 39% do so occasionally). 54% of customers often (9%) or occasionally (45%) buy from an
organisation for the first time as a result of following them on social media. On the other hand, 9% say
that their experiences following an organisation on social media have created a negative impression and
7% have switched supplier of a product or service they purchase regularly.
Social media can be a compelling and cost-effective opportunity for organisations to build customer
relationships, make a personal connection and increase an organisation’s reach. But unlike other
channels, customers’ engagement with organisations though social media can be highly visible: the
potential impact and risk to reputation is heightened. Organisations therefore need to consider carefully
how they present on social media and how they resource and integrate customer service strategy across
all relevant channels.
As a result of following organisations on social media have you done any of the following?
NoYes, occasionally
Yes, often
Recommended to friends or family
Purchased something new/recommended
Stopped using a company
Purchased from a company you've never used before
Changed your opinion about a company to be positive
Changed your opinion about a company to be negative
Switched supplier for a regular purchase
15% 39% 46%
9% 51% 40%
9% 33% 57%
9% 45% 46%
9% 39% 52%
9% 37% 54%
7% 34% 58%
83UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Engaging with customers
through social media:
key considerations for
organisations
• Understand your audience: who is engaging
with you on social media; their interests,
challenges, aspirations; which social media
channels or platforms they prefer; and how
they are using your products and services
• Create a quality of content that reflects your
customer proposition and is relevant, timely
and based on insight on how customers are
using and engaging with your products and
services
• Ensure that you resource appropriately
to monitor and deal promptly with
customer engagement across channels. Set
expectations about response times outside
standard business hours or at the weekend
• Develop rules of engagement for
communicating with customers that
empower employees to be responsive and
authentic, in the context of consistent brand,
tone of voice and service guidelines
• Ensure that customer data systems are
accessible to colleagues working in all
channels, including social media
• Monitor customer feedback and sentiment
about the organisation and use it to inform
customer service and engagement strategy
• Measure social media engagement alongside
broader measures of overall customer
engagement and experience.
• Judgement about when responses or
escalations are required, or when monitoring
or no direct response is appropriate, when to
transfer a social media conversation with a
customer to a private channel
• Ability to communicate with clarity,
brevity and emotional intelligence,
creating personalised responses that are
consistent with brand tone of voice and the
organisation’s customer service proposition
• Time management and effective prioritisation
of tasks
• Cross-organisation relationships, and
knowledge of relevant products and services,
customer service operations, standards and
current service issues
• Creativity and collaboration to enable
continuous development of content that
engages customers
• Agility to manage different types of customer
conversations, explore different types of
content and keep up to date with changes
in customer behaviours and developments in
social media.
Recruit and develop employees with key knowledge, skills and behaviours
84 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Recommendations
for organisations
5
85UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
The UKCSI measures 5 dimensions of satisfaction
that reflect customers’ priorities in their
experiences and relationships with organisations,
as well as emotional and factors that influence
customer attitudes and behaviours.
In the January 2023 UKCSI
20
, we highlighted
recommendations to enable organisations to
develop a culture of service excellence. In this
section we focus in particular on 5 areas that
address the issues and findings in the July 2023
UKCSI.
20
See January 2023 UK Customer Satisfaction: the state of the nation, available at www.instituteofcustomerservice.com/ukcsi
Preventing problems and
improving complaint handling
1
Making it easier for customers to
access help and expertise
2
Responding to customers’ personal
situations and needs
3
Doing the right thing in business practice:
balancing the needs of shareholder,
customer, employee and wider society
5
Professionalising customer service
4
86 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
1) Preventing problems
and improving
complaint handling
Key recommendations
for organisations
• Provide straightforward ways for customers
to complain through all available channels
• Benchmark complaint volumes: if complaint
volumes appear to be low, proactively invite
feedback and complaints from customers
• Focus on employee behaviours when
customers report a problem or complaint
• Resolve complaints as quickly as possible:
set realistic expectations about when a
problem will be resolved
• Keep customers informed and make sure
agreed commitments are honoured
• Deal with complaints in a fair and consistent
way
• Make sure there is an escalation point /
process if customers do not accept the
outcome of the complaint
• Follow-up complaints that have been
resolved to ensure there are no outstanding
issues
• Identify root causes of problems
• Develop actions to prevent customers
experiencing problems that result in
complaints.
A drop in satisfaction with complaint handling
across most sectors is a feature of this UKCSI.
16.4% of customers experienced a problem
with an organisation: this incidence of problems
is slightly lower than a year ago, when it was
17.3%, but is noticeably more than in January
2020, the last pre-Covid 19 UKCSI, when 13.6%
of customers said they had experienced a
problem with an organisation.
Problems and complaints are costly for
organisations: they consume time and resources
that could be deployed more productively for
improving service, developing products or winning
new business. In regulated sectors, poor customer
service and complaint handling can lead to
increased regulatory scrutiny, resulting in financial
penalties and reputational damage. Consistently
high levels of complaints make it harder to recruit
and retain employees, as well as customers.
Reducing the number of problems experienced
by customers, and effective complaint handling,
are fundamental to customer service and
business performance. Evidence from this UKCSI
suggests there is an urgent need for many
organisations to renew their focus on complaint
handling. The Institute’s research has highlighted
factors that are essential to managing problems
and complaints effectively:
87UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
2) Making it easier for
customers to access
help and expertise
Key recommendations
for organisations
• Map customer journeys for key experiences,
how customers will access information,
services or help, and assess factors that are
critical to success at each point
• Map the hand-offs or transfers between
channels, especially between digital
channels and direct employee intervention
• Ensure all channels through which
customers can engage with the
organisation are appropriately resourced
so that customers can access help in a
reasonable timeframe
• Develop knowledge and CRM systems to
give employees access to relevant, timely
information
• Test technology deployment with customers
to identify critical points which may require
intervention by an employee
• Test and learn: continuously review
customer journey design and decision trees
to identify issues or opportunities to simplify
and improve experiences.
Evidence in the UKCSI indicates that making it
easier to contact the right person to help is the
leading issue customers want organisations to
improve. Other recent research from The Institute
confirmed that, when organisations launch new
technologies, the most important factors they
should consider from a customer service context
are the option to speak to a person and the
quality of customer support.
Many organisations have invested in technology
to speed up and improve handling of routine
customer issues and interactions. Familiar
examples include self-service through digital
channels, queries handled by artificial-intelligence
chatbots, and equipping employees with data
and prompts to give better advice to customers.
At its most effective, deployment of technology
in customer service generates a win-win scenario
for customer and organisation: cost to serve and
failure rates are reduced; customers get rapid
access to key information; employees are freed
up to focus on helping customers with complex
or sensitive issues.
However, evidence from this UKCSI suggests that
many organisations may be overestimating their
capacity to integrate data, systems and processes
to deliver seamless, efficient and satisfying
customer experiences. Improving customer
satisfaction requires that organisations review
how effectively they enable customers to get
access to the help, advice and expertise they need.
88 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
3) Responding to
customers’ personal
situations and needs
Key recommendations
for organisations
• Encourage employees to show empathy,
emotional intelligence and reassurance in
interactions with customers and colleagues
• Enable customers to speak to an employee
when it is needed
• Give relevant, practical advice and
recommendations to help customers get the
most from products and services, or about
different pricing options
• Proactively communicate practical and
relevant information and advice to support
customers’ well-being
• Encourage customers to make contact if
they are experiencing financial difficulties or
a change in personal circumstances
• Demonstrate flexibility in policies or
processes to respond appropriately
to changes in a customer’s personal
circumstances
• Provide offers that recognise and reward
customer commitment and loyalty
• Ensure that robust processes are in place
to identify and give appropriate support to
vulnerable customers.
The most satisfied customers are typically those
who feel that an organisation has understood
and responded to their personal needs and
situation.
The consequences of high inflation and Covid-19
have exposed a polarisation in levels of financial
and mental well-being and heightened the
importance of understanding and responding
to a customer’s unique situation and needs.
Our latest evidence indicates that the number
of customers suffering from poor or very poor
financial well-being has grown; but indicators
of a customer’s status of well-being, or personal
circumstances, may not always be obvious.
Sometimes organisations and employees need to
look beyond segmentation and data and act in
the moment to deliver genuine personalisation:
89UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
4) Professionalisng
customer service
Key recommendations
for organisations
• Build a workforce plan setting out the
capabilities and resource your organisation
requires, in both the short and long-term
• Ensure there is customer service experience
and ownership in the boardroom
• Customer service people should upskill
in data analytics, commercial awareness
and presentation, so that they can make a
compelling business case for investing in
customer service
• Encourage employees to gain professional
qualifications in customer service
• Give greater definition and visibility to
career pathways
• Benchmark levels of pay, taking into
account the range and level of skills
required and the importance of the role in
delivering customer service and business
objectives
• Engage with education providers, education
business partnerships, careers services
and recruitment companies to ensure that
potential employees have access to relevant
information about customer service-
orientated careers.
A convergence of digitisation, greater use
of technology and analytics, and changing
customer needs and behaviours mean that
diverse roles, skills, knowledge and behaviours
are required to deliver an organisation’s customer
service and business objectives. Professionalising
customer service is therefore concerned both
with embedding a culture across an organisation
to deliver commercial and customer experience
objectives, as well as developing specific skills
and capabilities.
Our research
21
has found that many potential
employees are more Iikely to think of working in
customer service roles as a foundation for other
careers, rather than as a respected and valued
profession. There is also a mixed picture in terms
of how organisations measure competence
and performance and promote professional
development and career pathways. This suggest
that action is needed to improve the perception
and recognition of roles and careers in customer
service.
21
See Building the Service Nation: changing perceptions about the profession of customer service, Institute of Customer Service, 2023
90 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
5) Doing the right thing in business practice: balancing
the needs of shareholders, customers, employees,
partners and suppliers and wider society
In UK company law, directors are responsible for acting in a way that is “most likely to promote the success
of the company for the benefit of its members as a whole
22
.” This has often been interpreted as reaffirming
the primacy of shareholder interests in the way companies are managed and governed. Company directors
must also have regard to the long-term consequences of decisions, environmental impact and the interests
of customers, employees, the community, and report on how these have been addressed.
In recent years a growing range of issues - environmental sustainability, working conditions, employee
voice and engagement, diversity and inclusion, data security and transparency, the application of artificial
intelligence, risk management and resilience - have become more prominent considerations in corporate
governance. High levels of inflation and the rise in the cost of living have often required organisations
to make difficult decisions affecting the interests of customers, employees and shareholders. Our latest
research, from a survey conducted in March 23, suggests that at least 60% of customers believe companies
should hold prices for essential products and services, regulators should limit the price companies can
charge for essential service, and shareholders and investors should be prepared to accept lower profits.
Jul-23
Jan-2
3
68%
64%
61%
60%
59%
56%
43%
68%
70%
66%
62%
66%
61%
64%
58%
43%
Regulators should limit the amount that companies
are allowed to charge for essential services
Companies should hold prices for
essential products and services
Companies should be proactive in giving
information and advice about how ustomers
can make savings on what they spend
Shareholders and investors should be
prepared to accept lower prots
Companies should make savings in their
business operations so they can
minimise the need to increase prices
Government should provide extra
nancial support for people in need
Companies should operate low tariffs/a social tariff
on essential services for people who are struggling nancially
Customers should be allowed to defer payment on
essential services, which they will repay at a later date
Customers' perspectives about how organisations should support customers during the cost of
living crisis: % of customers strongly agreeing with each statement (those scoring 8 – 10 when
asked to indicate their strength of agreement, on a scale of 1 – 10)
22
Companies Act 2006, see https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2006/46/section/172
91UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Key recommendations
for organisations
• Focus on both short and long-term measures
of business and customer service performance
• Review how the organisation balances the
requirements of key stakeholders including
shareholders, customers and employees
• Develop understanding and build expertise
in the evolving range of factors impacting
governance including environmental
sustainability, employee engagement, changing
customer needs, diversity and inclusion, data
security and transparency, artificial intelligence,
risk management and resilience
• Ensure the board is informed about latest
customer insights and key customer
experience measures
• Be transparent about changes to prices and
terms and conditions
• Proactively engage with customers,
offering practical, relevant advice to help
manage rising costs
• Consider how your organisation will assess
the ethical and reputation implications and
risks of artificial intelligence and broader
technology deployment
• Recruit and promote leaders who
consistently demonstrate ethics and values as
well as business acumen and performance.
In this context, doing the right thing in business
practice – beyond meeting legal and regulatory
obligations – has become more complex and
exposed to greater scrutiny. It is therefore
critical that organisations and leaders are guided
by consistent values in making decisions that
balance short and long-term objectives and
satisfy the needs of shareholders, regulators,
customers and employees.
92 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
UKCSI
Key facts
Number of years UKCSI has run.
The UKCSI is published twice a year, normally in
January and July.
Number of sectors the UKCSI covers.
11 in the private sector as well as the local and
national public sectors. The Institute also publishes
sector reports with a detailed breakdown of scores by
sector and organisation.
Number of unique responses included in July
2023, from over 10,000 customers. Customers are
geographically and demographically representative
of the UK population and participate in the survey
through an online panel. Customers are asked to
provide a score for organisations based on their most
recent interaction.
Number of responses per sector, except for Transport
and Utilities which have 6,750 responses.
Number of individual organisations and organisation types
which received a UKCSI rating. 259 named organisations
which have exceeded a minimum sample size are scored in
the 13 sector reports. In addition, scores are given for 16
generic providers including “your local Council”, “your local
restaurant/takeaway” etc.
15
13
52,000
3,500
275
93UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Organisations
included in the July
2023 UKCSI
Automotive
Audi
BMW
Citroen
Dacia
Fiat
Ford
Honda
Hyundai
Jaguar
Kia
Land Rover
Lexus
Mazda
Mercedes-Benz
Mini
Nissan
Peugeot
Renault
Seat
Škoda UK
Suzuki
Tesla
Toyota
Vauxhall
Volkswagen
Volvo
Banks & Building Societies
Bank of Scotland
Barclays
first direct
Halifax
HSBC
Lloyds
M & S
Monzo Bank
Nationwide
NatWest
RBS
Sainsbury's
Santander
Starling Bank
Tesco
The Co-operative Bank
TSB
Virgin Money
Insurance
1st Central
AA Insurance
Admiral
Aviva
AXA
BUPA
Churchill
Co-op Insurance
Direct Line
Esure
Halifax
Hastings Direct Insurance
Legal and General
Lloyds
LV=
M & S (insurance)
More Than
Nationwide Insurance
Petplan
Prudential
RAC
SAGA Insurance
Sainsbury's
Tesco
Virgin Money
Zurich
Leisure
Amazon Prime Video
Burger King
Caffe Nero
Cineworld
Costa Coffee
Deliveroo
Domino's Pizza
Greggs
Harvester
JD Wetherspoon
Just Eat
KFC
McDonald's
Nando's
Netflix
Now TV
Odeon
Pizza Express
Pizza Hut
Pret A Manger
Spotify
Starbucks
Subway
Toby Carvery
Vue Cinema
your local independent coffee shop
your local restaurant/takeaway
Public Services (Local)
GP surgery / health centre
Library
your Housing Association
your local Ambulance Service
your local Council
your local Council via a recycling centre
your local Council via waste collection
your local Fire Service
your local Police Service
Public Services (National)
Companies House
Department for Work and
Pensions (DWP)
Disclosure and Barring Service
DVLA
HM Land Registry
HM Passport Office
HMRC (Inland Revenue)
National Highways
NHS / hospital service
NS&I (National Savings and
Investments)
Post Office
The Environment Agency
The university I attend
Retail (Food)
Aldi
ASDA
Co-op Food
Iceland
Lidl
M & S (food)
Morrisons
Ocado
Sainsbury's
Tesco
Waitrose
Retail (Non-food)
Amazon.co.uk
Apple
Argos
ASOS.com
B&Q
Boots UK
Costco
Currys
eBay
H&M
Holland & Barrett
Home Bargains
Ikea
John Lewis
Lloyds Pharmacy
M & S
Matalan
Next
Pets at Home
Poundland
Primark
Specsavers
Sports Direct
Superdrug
TK Maxx
Wilko
Services
AA
British Gas Home Services
DHL
DPD
Green Flag
Halfords Autocentre
Hermes / Evri
Homeserve
Kwik Fit
My private landlord
RAC
Royal Mail / Parcelforce
Timpson
Uber
Western Union
Yodel
your local solicitor
your local tradesman
Telecommunications & Media
BT
EE (including T-Mobile or Orange)
giffgaff
O2
Plusnet
Sky
Sky Mobile
TalkTalk
Tesco Mobile
Three
Virgin Media
Virgin Mobile
Vodafone
Tourism
Airbnb
booking.com
British Airways Holidays
Butlins
Center Parcs
easyJet Holidays
Expedia
Haven Holidays
Hilton
Holiday Inn
Hoseasons
Hotels.com
Jet2holidays.com
Lastminute.com
Marriott
On the Beach
P&O Cruises
Premier Inn
Travelodge
Trivago
TUI
Virgin Holidays
Transport
Arriva - Bus group
Avanti West Coast
British Airways
C2C
CrossCountry
East Midlands Railway
easyJet
Eurotunnel
First Group - bus companies
Grand Central
Great Northern
Great Western Railway
Greater Anglia
Heathrow Express
Jet2
London North Eastern Railway
London Northwestern Railway
London Underground
Manchester Metrolink
Merseyrail
National Express
Northern / Northern Trains
P&O Ferries
Ryanair
ScotRail / ScotRail Trains
South Western Railway
Southeastern (train operating
company)
Southern
Stagecoach (Bus)
Thameslink
The Trainline.com
TransPennine Express
Transport for Wales
TUI Airways
Virgin Atlantic
West Midlands Railway
Utilities
Affinity Water
Anglian Water
Bristol Water
British Gas
Bulb
Dwr Cymru (Welsh Water)
E.ON (energy)
EDF Energy
Northumbrian Water
npower
Octopus Energy
OVO Energy
Power NI
Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks
Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE)
Scottish Gas
Scottish Power
Scottish Water
Severn Trent Water
Shell Energy
South East Water
South West Water
Southern Water
Thames Water
UK Power Networks
United Utilities (water)
Utilita
Utility Warehouse
Wessex Water
Yorkshire Water
94 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
A barometer of customer satisfaction
in the UK since 2008
The UKCSI (UK Customer Satisfaction Index)
provides insight into the state of customer
satisfaction in the UK for 13 key sectors. The
UKCSI is published twice a year, in January and
July. Each UKCSI incorporates two sets of data to
create a rolling measure of customer satisfaction.
The July 2023 UKCSI includes responses from
surveys conducted between 5 September to 3
October 2022 and 6 March to 11 April 2023.
52,000 customer responses
The UKCSI is based on an online survey of over
10,000 consumers, who are representative of the
UK adult population by region, age and gender.
The July 2023 UKCSI comprises 52,000 responses,
3,500 from each sector except for Transport and
Utilities which include 6,750 responses each.
Customers are asked to rate their experience
of dealing with a specific organisation in the
previous three months. Customers rate only
one organisation per sector. Each customer can
complete the survey for up to five different sectors.
Over 25 metrics of the quality of customers’
interactions and relationship with
organisations
Customers rate the quality of their experiences and
relationship with organisations on over 25 metrics
including employee professionalism, product /
service quality, ease of dealing with an organisation,
timeliness, complaint handling and attitudes
towards trust, reputation, an organisation’s
customer ethos and ethical behaviour.
Metrics reflect the priorities identified by
customers, as well as attributes that show
a strong relationship with overall customer
satisfaction. The UKCSI also includes measures of
customer effort and a Net Promoter Score (NPS).
Customers rate organisations on a scale of 1 – 10
except for the question “how likely would you be
to recommend xx to friends and family”, which
is a scale of 0 – 10.
275 organisations received a UKCSI rating
These include 259 named organisations and 16
generic providers including “your local Council”,
“your local restaurant/takeaway” etc. Customers
select an organisation to rate from a randomised
list of leading and emerging players in each
sector which is reviewed before each UKCSI.
Customers can also select an organisation to
rate that is not on the list. Organisations which
exceed a minimum sample size are given a score
and are named within one of the 13 sector
reports.
How the UKCSI is calculated
Index scores are expressed as a number out of
100. The UKCSI score for each organisation is
the average of all of its customers’ satisfaction
scores, multiplied by ten, with a weighting
applied reflecting the priority score for each
measure. The sector score is the mean average
of all responses for that sector, multiplied by ten.
The overall UKCSI is based on the mean average
of each sector’s score.
About
the UKCSI
95UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
UKCSI
sector reports*
* Two sector reports are available as a membership benefit to The Institute’s Trusted Advisory Network
members; one report for Discovery Roadmap and Council members. For Corporate and Pathway
members, discounts apply.
Sector reports are available for purchase by non members at www.instituteofcustomerservice.com
13 reports are available with sector-specic insight and recommendations
• Customer satisfaction performance of leading organisations on over 25 customer experience metrics
• Channel use and satisfaction
• Drivers of complaints and satisfaction with complaint handling
• Links between satisfaction and future buying behaviours
• Recommendations and opportunities to improve
Sector resource packs
• Key sector and organisational measures in
spreadsheet format
• Sector satisfaction by age, region, gender
• Key issues organisations should improve
• Satisfaction by product type in the Banking,
Insurance and Telecommunications &
Media sectors
Sub-sector customer experience measures
• Leisure (Quick Service Restaurants;
Entertainment)
• Transport (Air; Rail; Coach / Bus)
• Retail Non-food (Fashion retailers)
• Utilities (Energy; Water)
Automotive
Banks & Building Societies
Insurance
Leisure
Public Services (Local)
Public Services (National)
Retail (Food)
Retail (Non-food)
Services
Telecommunications & Media
Tourism
Transport
Utilities
96 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
Breakthrough
research from
The Institute
Building the Service Nation:
Changing Perceptions about The Profession of Customer Service
• Examines the extent to which customer service is seen as a profession
with defined skills and standards
• Identifies potential career pathways and reviews how professional
development in a customer service context is supported and evaluated
• Highlights key actions to build recognition of service as a valued career
and profession, with a significant voice and position in the board room.
A Connected World?
Ensuring the right blend of people and technology for customer service
• Investigates customer perspectives on using technology to interact
with organisations, potential applications to improve service, the risk of
digital exclusion and how organisations should address it
• Examines how organisations are combining human and technology-
based experiences in the context of customer service
• Highlights 10 key enablers to deploy technology and achieve business
performance and customer service objectives.
97UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
To find out more about The Institute’s research programme, contact us at:
T: 0207 260 2620
Work with a Purpose:
Building a shared vision of the future
• Examines impact and learnings from Covid-19
• Identifies skills and capabilities organisations will need to achieve
sustainable customer experience and business performance
• Assesses what employees want from work and how organisations will
need to engage with and support their employees
• Highlights key factors that will influence work culture and practice and
implications for job design, skills and training, organisational culture,
structures and measurement.
Customer Behaviours:
Evolution or Watershed?
• Examines how customer expectations and behaviours have evolved in
the last 2 years and how they will change in the future
• Assesses if there are customer segments that can be defined around
key behaviours
• Identifies key actions and recommendations to help organisations
respond effectively to evolving customer expectations and behaviours.
98 UK Customer Satisfaction Index | July 2023
T: 020 7260 2620
July 2023
instituteofcustomerservice.com
ISBN 978-1-911715-01-6
About The Institute of Customer Service
The Institute of Customer Service is the UK’s
independent, professional body for customer
service.
Our purpose is to enable organisations to achieve
tangible business benefits through excellent
customer service aligned to their business goals
and to help individuals maximise their career
potential and employability by developing their
customer service skills.
We provide tools and services to support
continuous customer service improvement and a
framework for our members to share and learn
from each other.
We are independent – setting standards so that
our customers can improve their customers’
experiences and their business performance.
The Institute is the secretariat for the All Party
Parliamentary Group on Customer Service.
Key Activities
• Research and reports on the latest customer
service trends and thinking
• Publication of the UK Customer Satisfaction
Index (UKCSI) twice a year
• Benchmarking customer experience to identify
areas for improvement, drawing on the views
of both customers and employees
• Bespoke customer insight and research
• Training and accreditation programmes for
customer service professionals
• Professional qualifications for individuals at all
stages of their career
• Public policy development.
For further information please visit
www.instituteofcustomerservice.com
