Skoda and Isuzu Ute top Australian customer satisfaction survey

Skoda has topped the latest Roy Morgan customer satisfaction survey, which canvassed the opinions of more than 50,000 consumers.

The research, which covers the 12 months to April 2018, shows that overall satisfaction with car manufacturers in Australia was at 92.6 percent, up from 92.4 percent during the same period a year prior.

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Czech manufacturer Skoda – which is part of the Volkswagen Group – rated the highest with new buyers, with a customer satisfaction rating of 97.5 percent, up a significant 5 percent over its score last year.

In second was Isuzu Ute, with 96.4 percent, ahead of Suzuki (95.3 percent), Mazda (95.2 percent), and Subaru (95.1 percent).

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Skoda was the most-improved manufacturer, while Kia saw the biggest drop of the top 15 brands, falling to 11th in the rankings at 93.0 percent (down 0.6 percent).

Lexus, Mercedes-Benz, Toyota, Hyundai, Honda, Kia, Nissan, Land Rover, Volkswagen, and Audi all had a customer satisfaction rating above the industry average.

Roy Morgan’s findings come from the company’s ‘Single Source’ survey of more than 50,000 consumers, which include “in-depth personal interviews” with more than 40,000 car owners.

Norman Morris, Industry Communications Director at Roy Morgan says customer satisfaction for new car owners is no longer tied to the price of the vehicle.

“In this very competitive industry where all car manufacturers are endeavouring to improve their satisfaction rating, there is very little now between the major competitors, with only 4.8 percentage points separating the top fifteen performers,” he explained.

“Satisfaction in this market is not directly correlated with price but appears to be linked more to perceived value and expectations. This is illustrated by the fact that the top five performers are in lower price brackets compared to the prestige brands such as Lexus, Mercedes-Benz, Audi and BMW and yet they have higher satisfaction.”

Of all 32 industries that Roy Morgan measures customer satisfaction in, car manufacturers rate the highest.