Perceived quality

[GRI - 103-1], [GRI - 103-3], [GRI - 413-1], [GRI - 102-40], [GRI - 102-42], [GRI - 102-43], [GRI - 102-44], [GRI - 102-48],
Quality

The Customer listening Unit of the Parent Company coordinates the process of measuring customer and citizen satisfaction with the services provided in the electrical, water46 and public lighting sectors. The Unit works in agreement with the operating compa- nies that manage the services and supports top management with analysis of the data collected.

Customer satisfaction surveys (“perceived quality”) are carried out twice a year by an institute specialising in demographic research, selected by tender.

In 2021, with a view to the constant improvement of measurements, a new continuous survey method has been designed, especially for the satisfaction surveys of customers who contacted Acea through the various channels available.

The 2021 half-yearly surveys, in line with previous years, were con- ducted using CATI methodology47, but CAWI (online surveys) was also added to this survey method. Since the new method has not yet been applied uniformly to the various Group companies and in- troduces a discontinuity in the interpretation of results, in order to maintain a comparison, presented here are only the data collected using the CATI method, which have enabled the following main indicators to be processed:

  • the overall judgement on the general quality of the service (scale of 1 to 10), where 1 means very bad and 10 means very good, which expresses an instinctive evaluation by customers;
  • overall opinions on individual aspects of the service (scale of 1-10);
  • the percentages of satisfaction with the items, or quality fac- tors, selected within each aspect of the service, according to the importance attached to them by the respondents.

The synthetic CSI (Customer Satisfaction Index) indicators pre- sented in previous editions of the Sustainability Report are therefore being replaced by overall opinions on services and their individual aspects, as these are more stable indicators than the CSI48. To en- sure comparability with the previous year, the results of the 2020 surveys were expressed using the same indicators as those used in 2021.

Interviews on "contact channels" are aimed at selected customers, using the "call back" method, from among those who have used the services (toll-free numbers for commercial information or fault reporting, website, branch, technical intervention, chat channels and digital service points) immediately before the first entry and con- sented to be contacted again.

Concerning the physical branch, unlike what happened in some cases, in 2020 following the closures imposed by the health emer- gency for the first semester, in 2021 it was possible to conduct the interviews in both the first and second semester.

In the two customer satisfaction survey sessions carried out in 2021, a total of 35,283 people were interviewed about the qual- ity of the services provided by Acea Energia, Areti - both for the distribution and public lighting service -, Acea Ato 2 (Rome and Fiumicino and province), Acea Ato 5, GORI, Gesesa and AdF. The overall opinions expressed on each service, as an average of the two six-monthly surveys, fall within the area of average satisfaction and between 6.3 and 7.9 (see the charts below and the tables at the end of this paragraph).

The overall opinions expressed on the electricity service and the main aspects into which it is divided indicate, for Acea Energia sales, positive evaluations and above average satisfaction (rating > 7/10) both for the service in general (7.9/10 for standard market custom- ers and 7.6/10 for free market customers) and for the aspects of "billing" and "online branch", the latter surveyed among free market customers, while the aspects of "toll-free number" and "branch" are in the area of complete satisfaction (ratings of 8-10) for both standard and free market customers. For distribution, managed by Areti, the overall rating is 7.8/10 and the aspects of the service, with the exception of "fault reporting" which, with 6.9/10, is in the aver- age satisfaction range (ratings of 6-7), receive overall opinions above 7/10 and in particular the "technical aspects of the service" (7.9/10) and "technical intervention" (7.7/10) are close to the complete satis- faction area. Residents of Rome were interviewed about the Public Lighting service for all areas. The overall opinions on the service and its aspects are confirmed to be of average satisfaction (rating of 6-7), with 'fault reporting' receiving higher ratings of 7.5/10.

 

As regards the water service (sale and distribution of water), the satisfaction of customers of Acea Ato 2 (Rome and Fiumicino and province) and Acea Ato 5 (Frosinone and province), in the Lazio area, customers of GORI and Gesesa, operating in Campania, and customers of AdF, operating in Tuscany, was measured. The overall opinion on the service provided by Acea Ato 2 in Rome and Fiumici- no is 7.9/10; the "billing" and "technical aspects” of the service re- ceive overall ratings above the satisfaction average (> 7/10) and "fault reporting", "technical intervention", "sales toll-free number" and "branch" are in the area of complete satisfaction (ratings of 8-10). For Acea Ato 5, which operates in the city and province of Frosi- none, the overall rating of the service is 6.3/10; the overall opinions on "billing" and "technical aspects" are on the average level of satisfaction, while all other aspects receive overall ratings of over 7/10 and close to complete satisfaction. For GORI, which manages the service in the Sorrento peninsula and Vesuvian centres between the provinces of Naples and Salerno, the overall opinion is also 6.6/10; the "billing" aspect, with an overall opinion of 6.6/10, is in the area of average satisfaction, "fault reporting" (7.7/10) and "commercial toll-free number" (7.8/10) are close to complete satisfaction and the other aspects of the service have overall opinions of 8/10 or high- er. With regard to AdF which operates in Tuscany, in the provinces of Grosseto and Siena, the overall opinion on the service is 7.5/10; the overall rating of the service aspects are over 7/10 for "billing" and "technical aspects" and over 8/10, i.e. in the area of complete satis- faction, for all other areas. Finally, for Gesesa, which operates in the city and province of Benevento, the overall opinion for the service is 6.9/10; the 'technical aspects of the service' receive an overall opin- ion of 7.2/10, higher than the average satisfaction rating, and billing 6.9/10.

 

The charts below show, for each service, the 2021 overall opinion (scale of 1-10), as the average of the two surveys for the year, and Tables 16 and 17 also show the percentages of satisfied customers insofar as the most important quality factors for the electricity sales and distribution services, the public lighting service and the water service, and the comparison with the previous year, with indication of the most significant deviations.

Chart no. 22 – Overall opinion and on electricity service aspects – sale and distribution of energy - 2021 (scale of 1-10)

Chart 22

NB: the overall opinions and on the individual aspects of the service – shown in the chart are the average of the two semi-annual surveys.

Chart no. 23 – Overall opinion and on aspects of the public lighting service in Rome and Formello - 2021 (scale of 1-10)

Chart 23

NB: the overall opinions and on the individual aspects of the service – shown in the chart are the average of the two semi-annual surveys.

Chart no. 24 – Overall opinion and on aspects of the water service – sale and distribution of water in Rome and Fiumicino 2021 (scale of 1-10)

 

NB: the overall opinions and on the individual aspects of the service – shown in the chart are the average of the two semi-annual surveys.

SURVEYS ON SATISFACTION WITH WATER SERVICE IN OTHER AREAS IN ATO 2 – CENTRAL LAZIO

Customer satisfaction surveys were also conducted in the province of Rome. In particular, in 2021, the two six-monthly surveys involved a sample of 2,200 customers with direct users, representative of three territorial areas – North Lazio, East Lazio and South Lazio – falling within Optimal Territorial Area 2 – Central Lazio, managed by Acea Ato 2. The surveys carried out in previous years, on the other hand, referred to four specific 'sentinel' municipalities; the results of the two-year surveys are therefore not directly comparable.

The overall opinion on the water service in 2021 was 7.2/10; ratings for individual aspects of the service were 7.5/10 for "technical aspects" (including continuity of service and water pressure level), 7.3/10 for "billing", 6.8/10 for "fault reporting", 7.3/10 for "technical intervention", 7.3/10 for "sales toll-free number" and 6.5/10 for "branch". All the ratings expressed are therefore in the area of average satisfaction.

Chart no. 25 – Overall opinion and on aspects of the water service – sale and distribution of water in Frosinone and its province 2021 (scale of 1-10)

Chart 25

NB: the overall opinions and on the individual aspects of the service – shown in the chart are the average of the two semi-annual surveys.

Chart no. 26 – Overall opinion and on aspects of the water service – sale and distribution of water in Sarnese Vesuviano 2021 (scale of 1-10)

Grafico 26

NB: the overall opinions and on the individual aspects of the service – shown in the chart are the average of the two semi-annual surveys.

Chart no. 27 – Overall opinion and on aspects of the water service – sale and distribution of water in Territorial Conference No. 6 “Ombrone” - 2021 (scale of 1-10)

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NB: the overall opinions and on the individual aspects of the service – shown in the chart are the average of the two semi-annual surveys.

Chart no. 28 – Overall opinion and on aspects of the water service – sale and distribution of water in Benevento and its province 2021 (scale of 1-10)

N 28

NB: the overall opinions and on the individual aspects of the service – shown in the chart are the average of the two semi-annual surveys.

Table no. 16 –Results of customer satisfactions surveys: sales and distribution of energy, public lighting service (2020-2021)

average of the two interim reports
  u. m. 2020 2021  
electrical service – sale of energy – ACEA ENERGIA
STANDARD MARKET CUSTOMER (*)
sales activity (overall opinion) 01-ott 8 7,9  
aSPECTS OF THE SERVICE AND ELEMENTS OF QUALITY        
billing 01-ott 7,7 7,7  
correctness of the amounts % 90,4 91,9  
bill clear and easy to read % 89,1 90,1  
sales toll free number 01-ott 7,8 8,4  
operator’s competence % 92,9 93,6  
operator’s courtesy and availability % 94,9 94,3  
branch 01-ott 8,2 8,4  
operator’s competence % 93,5 92,2  
clarity of the information provided % 93,1 91,9  
fREE MARKET CUSTOMER (**)
sales activity (overall opinion) 01-ott 7,9 7,6  
aSPECTS OF THE SERVICE AND ELEMENTS OF QUALITY        
billing 01-ott 7,7 7,5  
correctness of the amounts (***) % 88,7 86,8  
bill clear and easy to read % 89,8 88,6  
sales toll free number 01-ott 7,8 8,3  
operator’s competence % 91,9 89,1  
clarity of answers provided % 92 88,5  
branch 01-ott 8,3 8,4  
operator’s competence % 93,5 90,5  
clarity of the information provided % 93,6 90,4  
on-line branch 01-ott 7,6 7,7  
clarity of the information found % 89 94,9 5
communicating meter reading % 89,7 91,7  
eLECTRICAL SERVICE – energy distribution – ARETI (Rome and Formello)
distribution activity (overall opinion) 01-ott 8 7,8  
aSPECTS OF THE SERVICE AND ELEMENTS OF QUALITY
technical aspects of the service 01-ott 8,3 7,9  
service continuity % 95,2 97,5  
planned interruption 01-ott 7,7 7,5  
clarity of information on notices regarding recovery times % 87,7 86,8  
prior notice of suspended supply % 88,7 87,1  
fault reporting 01-ott 7,3 6,9  
clarity of the information provided % 86,7 78,3  
operator’s courtesy and availability % 90,4 82,9  
technical intervention 01-ott 7,7 7,7  
intervention speed following the request % 80,7 80,3  
technicians’ competence % 89,9 85,1  
sERVIZIO DI ILLUMINAZIONE PUBBLICA - ARETI (Roma e Formello)
lighting service (overall opinion) 01-ott 6,5 6,7  
aSPECTS OF THE SERVICE AND ELEMENTS OF QUALITY
technical aspects of the service (***) 01-ott 6,7 6,7  
service continuity % 73,5 77,2  
switching on and off times % 84,8 84,7  
fault reporting 01-ott 7,6 7,5  
operator’s courtesy and availability % 91,8 90,8  
clarity of the information provided % 89,1 86,3  
 

(*) It should be noted that, in the context of the interviews of standard market customers, the "website" aspect of the service was no longer investigated in 2021; instead, the "digital consultant" and "chat service" aspects were introduced, the results of which will possibly be illustrated in the next reporting cycle, to allow for a two-year comparison.
(**) Also for free market customers in 2021, the "website" aspect was no longer investigated and the "digital consultant" and "chat service" aspects were introduced, which will possibly be presented in the next reporting cycle. On the other hand, the results of the surveys on the "online branch" aspect are made public, for which the two-year comparison can be produced.
(***) The figure refers to the correctness of the amounts of the electricity supply on the bill.
(****) From 2021 onwards, only the technical aspects dependent on Acea were rated.
NOTE: the table shows only the quality factors indicated as most important by the sample of interviewees in 2021, which may lead to consequent changes in the 2020 column. The right-hand column also shows the most significant deviations, of about 5 percentage points, for the individual items surveyed.

Table no. 17 – Results of customer satisfactions surveys: water service (2020-2021)

average of the two interim reports        
  u. m. 2020 2021  
wATER SERVIC – SALE AND DISTRIBUTION OF WATER – ACEA ATO 2 (Rome and Fiumicino)
water service (overall opinion) 01-ott 8 7,9  
aSPECTS OF THE SERVICE AND ELEMENTS OF QUALITY
technical aspects of the service 01-ott 8,1 7,9  
service continuity % 95,3 96,2  
billing 01-ott 7,3 7,3  
correctness of the amounts % 88,9 93,9 5
bill clear and easy to read % 87,4 92,3 5
fault reporting 01-ott 8,1 8,1  
clarity of the information provided % 87,6 91,3  
operator’s courtesy and availability % 92,9 93,5  
technical intervention 01-ott 8,1 8,1  
technicians’ competence % 91,5 90,6  
intervention speed following the request % 84,8 85,5  
sales toll free number 01-ott 7,9 8  
operator’s competence % 90,5 89,3  
operator’s courtesy and availability % 93,5 90,9  
branch 01-ott 8,2 8,6  
operator’s competence % 91,7 93,5  
clarity of the information provided % 91,1 93,6  

wATER SERVICE – SALE AND DISTRIBUTION OF WATER – ACEA ATO 5 (municipalities within ATO 5 – Frosinone)

water service (overall opinion) 01-ott 6,1 6,3  
aSPECTS OF THE SERVICE AND ELEMENTS OF QUALITY
technical aspects of the service 01-ott 6,7 6,9  
service continuity % 77 81,6  
billing 01-ott 6,3 6,5  
correctness of the amounts % 77 75,7  
bill clear and easy to read % 77,3 77,5  
fault reporting 01-ott 7,9 7,9  
clarity of the information provided % 93,3 90,8  
operator’s courtesy and availability % 94,6 89,3  
technical intervention 01-ott 7,7 7,8  
technicians’ competence % 89,3 88  
intervention speed following the request % 79,9 81,8  
sales toll free number 01-ott 7,9 7,8  
operator’s competence % 90,6 93,5  
clarity of the information provided % 89,4 93,3  
branch (*) 01-ott 8 7,9  
operator’s competence % 92,6 97,6 5
clarity of the information provided % 92,8 97,8 5
wATER SERVICE — SALE AND DISTRIBUTION OF WATER — GORI (municipalities within the Sarnese-Vesuviano District Area)
water service (overall opinion) 01-ott 6,6 6,6  
aSPECTS OF THE SERVICE AND ELEMENTS OF QUALITY
technical aspects of the service 01-ott 6,9 7,1  
service continuity % 81,2 79,8  
billing 01-ott 6,6 6,6  
correctness of the amounts % 76,9 72,6  
bill clear and easy to read % 77,2 78,5  
fault reporting 01-ott 7,5 7,7  
clarity of the information provided % 88,6 86,9  
operator’s courtesy and availability % 90,8 89,1  
technical intervention 01-ott 8,2 8,5  
technicians’ courtesy and availability % 96,4 91,8  
intervention speed following the request % 92,5 90,5  
sales toll free number 01-ott 7,6 7,9  
operator’s competence % 87,8 88,9  
clarity of the information provided % 89,8 89,4  
branch 01-ott 7,8 8  
operator’s courtesy and availability % 92,6 89,4  
clarity of the information provided % 90,9 88,9  
wATER SERVICE – SALE AND DISTRIBUTION OF WATER – ADF (municipalities falling within Territorial Optimal Conference no. 6 Ombrone)
water service (overall opinion) 01-ott 7,6 7,5  
aSPECT OF THE SERVICE AND elements of QUALITY
technical aspects of the service 01-ott 7,8 7,6  
service continuity % 92 92,3  
billing 01-ott 7,3 7,2  
correctness of the amounts % 85,7 87,6  
bill clear and easy to read % 86,4 87,2  
fault reporting 01-ott 8,2 8,3  
clarity of the information provided % 90,8 90,8  
operator’s courtesy and availability % 96 93,8  
technical intervention 01-ott 8,3 8,5  
problem-solving skills % 93,3 95,3  
technicians’ courtesy and availability % 95 96,5  
sales toll free number 01-ott 7,9 8,4  
operator’s competence % 88,5 94,6 5
clarity of the information provided % 87,8 94,3 5
branch (**) 01-ott - 8,3  
clarity of the information provided % - 90,3  
operator’s competence % - 89,8  
wATER SERVICE — SALE AND DISTRIBUTION OF WATER — GESESA (***) (municipalities within ATO – Calore Irpino)
water service (overall opinion) 01-ott 6,6 6,9  
ASPECT OF THE SERVICE AND ELEMENTS OF QUALITY
technical aspects of the service 01-ott 7 7,2  
service continuity % 83,6 84,2  
billing 01-ott 6,7 6,9  
correctness of the amounts % 77,8 80,1  
bill clear and easy to read % 77,2 81,9  

(*) It should be noted that in the satisfaction surveys of Acea Ato 5 customers relating to the "branch" aspect, the data for the first half of the year, included in the calculation of the average for the year, refers to a sample of only 52 respondents, which is lower than the statistical significance, due to the low influx recorded for the pandemic situation.
(**) For AdF, the 'branch' aspect was not investigated in 2020, due to the prolonged closure caused by the health emergency.
(***) For Gesesa, a smaller company, the service aspects investigated are "technical aspects" and "billing". It should be noted that in 2020 the surveys took place only in the second half of the year, while the 2021 data are the average of the two surveys of the year. The decision to illustrate the results of the customer satisfaction surveys of all the companies by means of overall opinions has made it possible to include Gesesa in the table for the first time.
NOTE: the table shows only the quality factors indicated as most important by the sample of interviewees in 2021, which may lead to consequent changes in the 2020 column. The right-hand column also shows the most significant deviations, of about 5 percentage points, for the individual items surveyed.

46As regards water services, the main results of the customer satisfaction surveys carried out by Acea SpA and reported here concern the customers of the companies Acea Ato 2 (Rome and Fiumicino and province) and Acea Ato 5 (Frosinone and province) operating in the Lazio area, Gesesa and GORI, both operating in Campania, and AdF, operating in Tuscany.
47Computer Assisted Telephone Interviewing of a stratified sample based on variables and representative of the universe of reference, following a structured questionnaire. Depending on the sample, the statistical error varies between +/- 2.8% and a maximum of +/- 4.3% and the level of significance is 95%.
48In fact, the CSI is based on a statistical formula comprising the proportion of customers satisfied with the different aspects/channels and a predetermined system of weights relating to the importance of each factor; aspects and weights are currently being revised to better reflect the evolution of services and their importance over the historical period.

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