Yahoo Finance Air Canada, WestJet given below-average marks for customer satisfaction
Two of Canada’s biggest airlines have failed to impress passengers, compared to their North American rivals, according to a new customer satisfaction study.
J.D. Power’s 2016 North America Airline Satisfaction Study, which was released earlier this week, gave both Air Canada and WestJet below-average grades overall in their respective classes.
Air Canada placed fourth among traditional carriers, garnering just a single 'Average' score in the category of service experience.
This takes into account the variety of in-flight entertainment, as well as food and beverages, and the availability and quality of in-flight services.
The ranking marks a significant dip for the country’s flagship airline, after it received average marks in last year’s study.
Meanwhile, WestJet, which is Canada’s second largest airline, placed third among low-cost carriers, but earned average grades for its check-in, boarding, staff, service and aircraft.
In J.D. Power’s 2015 rankings, WestJet also fell short of an average overall grade.
“For airlines ranking below the study average, investing in product and service improvements now, may reap big rewards in the future when it comes to retention, reputation and share of wallet,” said Rick Garlick, global travel and hospitality practice lead at J.D. Power, in a press release.
Robert Palmer, WestJet's public relations manager, told Yahoo Canada Finance in an email that the airline doesn’t “take issue with the results,” but believes it should be compared to all carriers, not just low-cost ones.
“If you consider the scores of all nine carriers in the survey, we’re essentially tied with Delta (Airlines) in fourth place and would fall into the average category,” he said.
He added that the majority of respondents to the survey were American travellers “who would not have the same brand understanding of WestJet as Canadians.”
“We are certain the results would be different if the majority of respondents were Canadian travellers,” said Palmer.
Flying high in this year’s rankings were Alaska Airlines, who ranked the highest among traditional carriers for the ninth consecutive year, and JetBlue Airways, which topped the low-cost carrier category for the eleventh straight year.
Highest satisfaction in a decade
J.D. Power said this year’s study found that airline satisfaction in North America has risen to a 10-year high.
The U.S. marketing research firm attributed this overall industry success to efforts made by airlines to lower fares, achieve on-time arrivals, reduce the frequency of lost luggage, improve in-flight services and higher customer tolerance for extra fees for additional leg room and baggage.
“While the perception of the airline experience still has a lot of room for improvement, there is notable progress in terms of satisfaction among the highest-ranked airlines in the study due to their keen focus on meeting or exceeding passenger needs. The airlines are clearly listening to their passengers and are taking action,” said Garlick.
“As a result, we see satisfaction rising across all touch points of the passenger experience. Airlines are making positive strides by adding value to its products and services with newer and cleaner planes, better in-flight services, improving on-time arrivals and bumping fewer passengers from their flights."
In particular, J.D. Power said top-ranked airlines have made a concerted effort to improve aspects of in-flight entertainment by ramping up the presence of screens, increasing on-demand content, providing seat-side power plugs and offering Wi-Fi onboard.
The study used responses from more than 10,000 business and leisure passengers who flew on a major North American airline from March 2015 until March 2016.
Yahoo Canada Finance reached out to Air Canada for comment, but did not receive a response by time of publication.
