J.D. Power and Associates Reports: Nearly Twice as Many Long-Term Homeowners are Shopping for...

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif. -- Amica Mutual Ranks Highest in Homeowner Satisfaction for Third Consecutive Year

Despite the fact that homeowners insurance premiums have largely stabilized around the country and in some markets may even be falling, a record number of long-term home owners indicate

Customers report spending a median of $600 annually in home insurance premiums in 2004 -- up from $580 in 2003, and up from $452 in 2001, an increase of 33 percent during the past three years.

"Overall, we haven't seen a significant increase in shopping behavior over the past three years. In the past 12 months, however, the rate of shopping has grown 22 percent among those customers who have owned their home for 20 years or more. These are typically the customers an insurer considers their most loyal and profitable," said Jeremy Bowler, director of the insurance practice at J.D. Power and Associates. "While shopping has increased significantly in the auto insurance industry, similar premium hikes don't appear to have driven consumers to shop for homeowners insurance in the same way. Rather, it appears that those consumers whose increasing property values have caused their homes to become significantly underinsured may have experienced more substantial premium increases, prompting their rate of shopping."

The customer satisfaction index reveals that customer experience is driven by five factors (in order of importance): interaction with the provider; policy offerings and initiation; billing; cost; and claims. The study finds that while only a fraction of consumers filed a recent claim, those who have tend to be significantly more satisfied with their carriers than those who have not filed a claim.

"Until a customer files a claim, an insurance policy is really just a promise," said Bowler. "Only those customers who have seen that promise honored can truly appreciate the value they receive in return for their annual premium."

Among homeowners insurance providers, Amica Mutual ranks highest in overall homeowners insurance customer satisfaction for the third consecutive year, followed by State Farm. Erie Insurance Group, Automobile Club of Southern California and Nationwide round out the top five. USAA achieved a higher satisfaction score than Amica, but is not included in the ranking since it is an insurance provider only open to the U.S. military community and their families.

The 2004 National Homeowners Insurance Study is based on 12,335 responses from homeowners insurance policy holders. A more detailed listing of the results by insurance provider is available at the J.D. Power Consumer Center at www.jdpower.com.

Headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is an ISO 9001-registered global marketing information services firm operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, consulting, training and customer satisfaction. Media e-mail contact: john.tews@jdpa.com or michael.greywitt@jdpa.com

No advertising or other promotional use can be made of the information in this release without the express prior written consent of J.D. Power and Associates. www.jdpower.com