WABAN, Mass., March 1, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- A new research report published by Temkin Group, 2012 Temkin Experience Ratings, rates the customer experience of 206 large companies across 18 industries. This is the second year that Temkin Group has released these ratings. The research, which is based on a survey of 10,000 U.S. consumers in January 2012, includes 14 insurers: 21st Century, AAA, Allstate, American Family, Farmers, GEICO, Liberty Mutual, MetLife, Nationwide, Progressive, State Farm, The Hartford, Travelers, and USAA.

USAA was the top-rated insurance carrier followed closely by State Farm, which are the only two insurers to receive "good" customer experience ratings. Seven insurers received "okay" ratings while five carriers at the bottom of the list - Travelers, 21st Century, MetLife, American Family, and Liberty Mutual - received "poor" ratings.

The overall insurance industry is in the middle of the pack for customer experience; its average rating places it eighth out of 18 industries. Temkin Group also analyzed the changes between 2011 and 2012 and found that insurers made the largest improvements, earning more than a five percentage-point gain since last year. Two insurers - Famers and Allstate - made double-digit gains and eight others made at least some improvement since 2011. Only two carriers - American Family and Travelers - experienced sizeable year-over-year declines.

"Many insurers are taking customer experience seriously, but their legacy systems and slow-moving cultures often get in the way," states Bruce Temkin, author of the report and Managing Partner of Temkin Group.

The Temkin Experience Ratings evaluates three dimensions of customer experience:

• Functional: Does the company meet consumers' needs?
• Accessible: How easy is it for consumers to do what they are trying to do?
• Emotional: How do consumers feel about their interactions with companies?

Other highlights from the research include:

• USAA, State Farm, and The Hartford received the highest Functional ratings, while Liberty Mutual, American Family, and 21st Century received the lowest.
• USAA, State Farm, and The Hartford received the highest Accessible ratings, while 21st Century, MetLife, and Travelers received the lowest.
• USAA, State Farm, and AAA received the highest Emotional ratings, while 21st Century and Travelers received the lowest.

This report can be accessed from the Temkin Group website at http://www.temkingroup.com or from the blog, Customer Experience Matters, at http://experiencematters.wordpress.com. The data can be accessed from the Temkin Ratings website, http://www.temkinratings.com.

For more information about Temkin Group, visit http://www.temkingroup.com.

About the author, Bruce Temkin

Bruce Temkin is widely recognized as a customer experience thought leader and is Customer Experience Transformist and Managing Partner of the Temkin Group. He is also the author of a very popular blog, Customer Experience Matters. Prior to forming Temkin Group, he was a VP at Forrester Research for 12 years. Bruce is a highly demanded speaker who consistently receives high marks for his content-rich, entertaining keynote addresses. He is also the co-founder and Chair of the Customer Experience Professionals Association (CXPA.org), a global non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of customer experience management.

About Temkin Group

Temkin Group is a leading customer experience research and consulting firm with one simple goal for its clients: increase customer loyalty by becoming more customer-centric. The company combines customer experience thought leadership with a deep understanding of the dynamics of large organizations to help senior executives accelerate their customer experience results. For more information, contact Bruce Temkin at 617-916-2075 or info@temkingroup.com.

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SOURCE Temkin Group