Toyota Leads UK Auto Industry in Customer Satisfaction
- Toyota ranked highest among automotive business in the July 2020 edition of the Institute of Customer Service UK Customer Satisfaction Index
- Success reflects Toyota’s constant focus on complete customer satisfaction, keeping pace with consumers’ changing needs and preferences
- Five-year new vehicle warranty, transparent service pricing, investment in web-based services and retail network initiatives all contribute to overall customer satisfaction
Toyota is the highest-ranked auto-sector business in the latest UK Customer Satisfaction Index from the Institute of Customer Service, also taking a top-20 spot among all the British businesses represented in the independent benchmark survey.
The July edition of the bi-annual index shows Toyota improving its performance to climb 20 places to 19th spot overall.
Its successful performance includes the highest scores in four out of the five index sections: Experience (including range and quality of products and services, communications, clarity, staff helpfulness and competence); Customer Ethos (how a business cares for its customers, keeps its promises and designs its experiences around the customer); Emotional Connection (customers trust the business and feel reassured); and Ethics (business reputation, openness and transparency and good business practice for employees and society).
Toyota’s achievement reflects its core focus on delivering complete satisfaction and keeping pace with changing customer priorities in all aspects of their relationship with the company – the services it provides, how it communicates with them, the kind of products it offers and its performance as a business that is open, honest and cares about its customers.
Robin Giles, Toyota (GB) Customer Services Director, said: “The latest index results are a great reward for the huge efforts invested by everyone at Toyota, particularly by the teams working across our national network. Achieving complete customer satisfaction is central to what we do as a business, but it isn’t a fixed target. Instead, we have to constantly improve and adapt the way we work to make sure we keep perfectly aligned with customer preferences and expectations.”
Building satisfaction
The built-in quality of Toyota’s vehicles is matched by a five-year/100,000-mile warranty on all new cars, giving the customer peace of mind. Where the top-selling hybrid models are concerned, there’s the added benefit of a free hybrid health check as part of the regular service schedule, and extended cover for the hybrid battery. Price transparency, with fixed-price servicing and menu pricing are also provided.
The voice of the customer is essential in developing and improving service, reflected in the use of user feedback to fine-tune performance of the customer website. Toyota has also invested in its Toyota.co.uk website to increase the scope of the “live chat” function, while also extending the hours for its customer support service.
Through its Best Retailer in Town initiative – part of a global approach to improving its retailers’ performance – Toyota has made significant investment in skills, technical capabilities and customer handling across its UK network. The required standards for new dealers now include customer handling and the way in which retailers will take ownership of issues to resolve any problems promptly and to the customer’s satisfaction. To expedite issues with minimum delay, retailers have also been given scope to self-authorise goodwill to customers.
