Company also ranks highest in two of six factors measured including price and customer service
New Jersey American Water, a subsidiary of American Water Company (NYSE: AWK), has received the J.D. Power award for ranking highest in customer satisfaction among large water utilities in the Northeast according to the J.D. Power 2021 U.S. Water Utility Residential Customer Satisfaction Study.
“This award is truly a testament to our employees’ commitment to delivering exceptional service to our customers,” said Mark McDonough, President, New Jersey American Water. “Our employees are customer-obsessed and even in a pandemic year, they kept customers at the center of everything while continuing to deliver safe and affordable water services to the 2.8 million people we serve.”
The study measures satisfaction among residential customers of 90 water utilities that deliver water to at least 400,000 customers and is reported in four geographic regions and two size categories: Midwest Large, Midwest Midsize, Northeast Large, Northeast Midsize, South Large, South Midsize, West Large and West Midsize. Overall satisfaction is measured by examining 32 attributes in six factors (listed by J.D. Power in order of importance): quality and reliability; price; conservation; billing and payment; communications; and customer service.
In addition to ranking #1 in the Northeast Large region, New Jersey American Water also achieved the highest score in the Northeast Large region for two of the six factors measured within the 2021 study – price and customer service. The Northeast region includes water utilities in Connecticut, District of Columbia, Delaware, Massachusetts, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island.
Among the findings of the report is a correlation between customers recalling their utility’s water quality report and customer satisfaction. Water utilities are required to publish an annual Consumer Confidence Report (also called Water Quality Report) to inform their customers about compliance with water safety standards. According to the J.D. Power 2021 Study, “only 41 percent of customers recall seeing or receiving such a report but, among customers who do recall seeing or receiving a report, satisfaction scores increase 83 points, on average.”
New Jersey American Water encourages customers to view their annual water quality report published online at www.newjerseyamwater.com/WaterQuality. The report, which is issued for each service area and searchable by zip code, highlights the company’s commitment to providing drinking water that meets or is better than standards required by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and the US Environmental Protection Agency.
About New Jersey American Water
New Jersey American Water, a subsidiary of American Water (NYSE: AWK), is the largest investor-owned water utility in the state, providing high-quality and reliable water and/or wastewater services to approximately 2.8 million people. For more information, visit www.newjerseyamwater.com and follow New Jersey American Water on Twitter and Facebook.
About American Water
With a history dating back to 1886, American Water is the largest and most geographically diverse U.S. publicly traded water and wastewater utility company. The company employs more than 7,000 dedicated professionals who provide regulated and market-based drinking water, wastewater and other related services to 15 million people in 46 states. American Water provides safe, clean, affordable and reliable water services to our customers to help keep their lives flowing. For more information, visit amwater.com and follow American Water on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210518006082/en/
Contacts
Denise Venuti Free
Director of Communications & External Affairs
Denise.Free@amwater.com