Despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, retail bank satisfaction improved four points year-over-year to 817 (on a 1,000 point scale), according to J.D. Power’s annual retail banking satisfaction study released today. The study noted that the rise in satisfaction was driven by increased frequency of communication provided to customers, improved relevance of communications and banks’ efforts to help customers navigate fees and display genuine concern when they encounter problems.
Nearly two-thirds of retail bank customers, 63%, said their banks “completely supported them during the pandemic,” according to the study, specifically by waiving charges, supporting the community, offering additional guidance and providing late payment forgiveness.
The study—which is based on responses from about 95,000 retail banking customers of the largest banks in the country—identified the highest-scoring institutions in 15 U.S. regions. These included: Chase Bank (south central region, Florida and Illinois); U.S. Bank (California); Oklahoma City-based BancFirst (lower Midwest region); Richmond, Virginia-based Atlantic Union Bank (mid-Atlantic region); Bangor, Maine-based Bangor Savings Bank (New England region); Columbus, Ohio-based Huntington Bank (north central region); Portland, Oregon-based Umpqua Bank (northwest region); Pittsburgh-based PNC (New York tri-state region); Warren, Pennsylvania-based Northwest Bank (Pennsylvania); Blairsville, Georgia-based United Community Bank (southeast region); Lakewood, Colorado-based FirstBank (southwest region); and San Antonio-based Frost Bank (Texas). Green Bay, Wisconsin-based Associated Bank and Chase tied for the top ranking in the upper Midwest region.
