Temkin: Pay TV, ISPs Garner Most Consumer Complaints

In a survey of 10,000 consumers for 315 companies across 20 industries, it was pay TV and Internet service providers (ISPs) scoring dead last when it comes to consumer satisfaction, according to a new report.

More than 21% of ISP and more than 20% of pay TV customers reported a bad experience with their service in the past six months, a rate “considerably above” any other industry, according to Bruce Temkin, managing partner of Temkin Group, the Waban (MA)-based customer experience research firm which conducted the annual survey. A distant third on the list of industries with the most complaints was wireless at 12.5%. The industries with the least complaints were retailers and grocery stores, at about 4% each. Among all companies, Time Warner Cable (27%) and Comcast (27%) scored No. 2 and No. 3, respectively, for the highest level of consumers reporting bad experiences. Only now-defunct airline AirTran Airways scored worse (28%). HSBC Bank logged in at No. 4 with 25% of its customers complaining about their business relationship.