Service Drives Score Better Despite Longer Wait Times

Vehicle owners say they’re more satisfied with dealer service department service, despite continued parts and labor shortages that have extended the wait for appointments.

J.D. Power’s 2024 U.S. Customer Service Index Study found overall customer satisfaction rose five points to 851 on a 1,000-point scale.

That's even though mass-market vehicle owners are waiting an average of 5.2 days for a dealer service appointment, up from 4.8 days a year ago, while premium-vehicle owners wait 5.4 days, a slight improvement. The waits are moving many to after-market service, J.D. Power says.

“… capacity and wait time issues have gotten progressively worse since the pandemic and show no immediate signs of easing up,” said Vice President of Automotive Retail Chris Sutton said in a press release on the study findings.

He pointed out that owners of battery-electric vehicles, or purely electric models, are experiencing the worst service experience on the whole, excluding Tesla owners.

“As sales of BEVs continue to grow and the industry moves out of the early-adopter phase, the typical owner will not be as willing to tolerate a less-than-stellar service and ownership experience,” said Sutton, who indicated that there’s a higher rate of manufacturer recalls of BEVs contributing to that dissatisfaction.

For non-Tesla BEV owners, a lack of trust in dealer service drives to make complex repairs and give practical guidance to owners feeds dissatisfaction.

LEARN MORE: How to Deliver Great, Not Just Good, Service

Originally posted on Auto Dealer Today