News Releases
MILWAUKEE (BUSINESS WIRE), December 13, 2011 - When it comes to customer satisfaction, Northwestern Mutual sits atop the life insurance industry for the third year in a row, according to the latest American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI).
Northwestern Mutual received the highest customer satisfaction score among all large U.S. life insurers (81), outpacing New York Life (80), Prudential (79) and MetLife (77). Greg Oberland, Northwestern Mutual executive vice president – insurance and investment products, attributes Northwestern Mutual’s high customer satisfaction score to the company’s needs-based planning process and the proven performance of the company.
“The results reflect the way that our financial representatives take the time to understand their clients’ needs and help them design plans that provide them with a foundation for both managing risk and achieving their long-term financial goals,” said Oberland. “We learned through a recent study we conducted that people prefer long-term predictability and guarantees in their financial plans. Our policyowners find that in addition to providing lifelong protection, Northwestern Mutual’s permanent life insurance delivers consistent, dependable growth in the cash value of the policies that often exceeds their expectations.”
Oberland also attributes Northwestern Mutual’s rank to its exceptional financial strength and industry-leading dividend payment. Although ratings are subject to change, Northwestern Mutual continues to maintain the highest-possible insurance financial strength ratings from the nation’s four major ratings agencies: Fitch, Standard & Poor’s, A.M. Best and Moody’s.
Northwestern Mutual is the industry leader in life insurance, disability insurance and long-term care insurance dividends paid to participating policyowners. The company’s nearly $5 billion expected dividend payment for policyowners in 2012 – the second-largest payout in the company’s 154-year history – will likely double its nearest competitor. While dividends are not guaranteed, are reviewed annually and are subject to change, the company has paid dividends every year since 1872.
Policyowners Share “Client Stories” on Facebook
Northwestern Mutual’s Client Stories series aim to share the approaches and success stories of individuals whose financial representatives have helped develop a plan based on clients’ goals to help them build financial security. The videos are not related to mean an endorsement of the ACSI study.
About the ACSI Study
Produced by Claes Fornell at the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan, the ACSI is billed as “the definitive benchmark of customer satisfaction.” The ACSI study tracks the attitudes of customers of products from more than 225 companies on service, quality, value, expectations and loyalty. Northwestern Mutual’s score was determined by surveying a sample of the company’s clients.
Company scores and other information about the ACSI can be found on the ACSI Website: http://www.theacsi.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=12&Itemid=110
About Northwestern Mutual
The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company – Milwaukee, Wis. (Northwestern Mutual), the “World’s Most Admired” life insurance company in 2011 according to FORTUNE® magazine, has helped clients achieve financial security for more than 150 years. As a mutual company with $1.2 trillion of life insurance protection in force, Northwestern Mutual has no shareholders. The company focuses solely and directly on its clients and seeks to deliver consistent and dependable value to them over time. Northwestern Mutual and its subsidiaries offer a holistic approach to financial security solutions including: life insurance, long-term care insurance, disability insurance, annuities, investment products, and advisory products and services. Subsidiaries include Northwestern Mutual Investment Services, LLC, broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, member FINRA and SIPC; the Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Company, limited purpose federal savings bank; and Northwestern Long Term Care Insurance Company; and Russell Investments.