ALLENTOWN, Pa., July 13, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- PPL Electric
Utilities ranked highest among large electric utilities in the
eastern United States for
residential customer satisfaction for the fifth year in a row,
according to a J.D. Power study.
The honor comes as the company continues its investments in
technology, the power grid, and the customers and communities it
serves.
The award is PPL's 13th from J.D. Power for residential customer
satisfaction. It also has received 11 J.D. Power awards for
business customer satisfaction.
"We are continually looking for ways to improve the service we
provide our customers," said PPL Electric Utilities President
Greg Dudkin. "We are particularly
focused on providing more reliable service, making it easier for
customers to reach us and do business with us, and keeping our
rates reasonable."
Dudkin said each of the company's employees plays a role in
making a positive difference for customers. PPL, he said, is
focused on continuous improvement. "Maintaining the status quo does
not drive a more reliable grid or an award-winning customer
experience. We're always focused on the next step because our
customers depend on us," he said.
The utility is active on many fronts, including:
Reliability: Outages are down 30 percent compared to 2007
and another 15 percent improvement is forecast over the next five
years. Investments in stronger poles and wires, more smart grid
automation, and comprehensive tree clearing are among the factors
in these results.
Customer Experience: Customers who need to speak to a
customer service associate can now do so with extended hours and
the utility also initiated live chat on its website from
8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays. In
addition, the company continues to upgrade its website to make it
more mobile-friendly in an increasingly mobile-centric world.
Value: The company's rates are below the average for
electric utilities in the mid-Atlantic region. The company
continues to find ways to reduce operating costs and work more
efficiently, with a goal of keeping customer bills reasonable.
Communities: PPL Corporation established the PPL
Foundation in September 2015 to focus
on helping the communities it serves, with the focus on education,
community revitalization and workforce development. Earlier this
year, PPL launched the Cover to Cover child literacy program,
providing 25,000 books to more than 5,000 K-3 students in its
service area. The aim was to help children expand their reading
skills over the summer.
Safety: Nothing is more important. PPL Electric Utilities
reaches out in many ways including a program that provides free
safety information to contractors and first responders. Thousands
of elementary school students also get safety information through
performances by The National Theatre for Children.
"The J.D. Power award is recognition of the hard work of more
than 2,300 PPL Electric Utilities employees who serve 1.2 million
residential customers across a 10,000-square-mile service area,"
said Dudkin. "It's satisfying to be named tops in the eastern U.S.
for large utilities, but we won't sit still."
The J.D. Power East Large utility group is comprised of 16
utilities. PPL Electric Utilities' score of 705 improved on last
year's score by 12 points and the average score in the group also
increased from 650 to 659. Companies are ranked on a 1,000-point
scale.
PPL Electric Utilities Corporation, a subsidiary of PPL
Corporation (NYSE: PPL), provides electricity delivery services to
about 1.4 million customers in Pennsylvania and consistently ranks among the
best companies for customer service in the United States. For more information visit
www.pplelectric.com.
Visit our media website at
www.pplnewsroom.com for additional news and
background about PPL Corporation.
Contact: Paul Wirth,
610-774-5997
PPL Electric Utilities
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SOURCE PPL Electric Utilities