Mercedes Benz

OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE

Stuttgart/Berlin, Germany, Jun 24, 2010

- Mercedes-Benz is once again far ahead of direct competitors in the Service Satisfaction category of the J.D. Power and Associates VOSSSM assessment for Germany
- Top performance on premium level in Mercedes-Benz service is achieved by permanent training of employees

Mercedes-Benz once again has the most satisfied customers in the premium segment in 2010. Following its success in 2009, Mercedes once again took first place among premium brands in the Service Satisfaction category of the latest J.D. Power Vehicle Ownership Satisfaction Study (VOSSSM) for Germany. The globally renowned J.D. Power and Associates institute conducts the survey to evaluate overall vehicle ownership satisfaction in the categories of Vehicle Quality, Vehicle Appeal, Vehicle Ownership Costs, and Service Quality. This year’s survey polled 16,330 drivers in Germany online with regard to aspects such as service consultant friendliness, service facility conditions, and the thoroughness of work performed. Across all assessment categories, Mercedes-Benz performed well above the automobile premium average in terms of service satisfaction and is leading the premium-field in every service category. In the J.D. Power survey’s overall industry ranking for Service Satisfaction Mercedes-Benz finished fourth.


“The fact that our brand has once again done well in the renowned J.D. Power VOSS assessment for Germany shows that Mercedes-Benz services are very well received by our customers,” says Dr. Joachim Schmidt, Executive Vice President Sales and Marketing, Mercedes-Benz Cars. “We’re delighted about this great result and we will continue to do everything we can to offer our customers the best service possible. By offering top-class service worldwide, we are underscoring Mercedes-Benz’ stature as a premium-class brand that provides the best quality.”

Over the past few years a range of other independent evaluations - in addition to the J.D. Power VOSSSM assessments in 2009 and 2010 - have shown that Mercedes-Benz has an outstanding position within the German market with regard to service satisfaction. Since 2006, the brand with the star has, for example, taken a leading position in the workshop tests of ADAC, AUTO BILD, AUTOZEITUNG, and auto motor und sport.

“To secure our outstanding quality level in the service sector, we have established a long-term sustainable quality assurance concept, as well as extensive employee training courses and regular internal assessments,” says Harald Schuff, President & CEO Mercedes-Benz Sales Germany. “We are doing our best every day to ensure the full satisfaction of our customers. It’s our top objective.”

For the past four years, Mercedes-Benz has been conducting a program for boosting customer satisfaction with service and sales. The program consists of activities that address direct customer contact management as well as process and system optimization. Mercedes-Benz is also improving its service performance through continual comprehensive training measures, with some 200,000 employees having already participated in in-depth customer satisfaction training programs worldwide. This effort has paid off, as customer satisfaction with Mercedes-Benz service has improved significantly in nearly all markets since the program was launched. Recently, Mercedes-Benz also took first place among premium manufacturers in the J.D. Power VOSSSM assessment in France.

In the latest J.D. Power VOSSSM, Mercedes-Benz not only does well in the Service category, but also has an outstanding overall performance. Car owners are more satisfied with Mercedes-Benz than with any other automotive brand. Not only did Mercedes-Benz take first place among all the brands in the J.D. Power Index; the Mercedes-Benz C-Class and CLK-Class also came in first in their respective categories. In other words, the most satisfied drivers in Germany drive a Mercedes-Benz.

Customers know best, which is why the market research company J. D. Power has been regularly assessing automobile owner satisfaction since it was established in 1968. The company operates around the globe and is headquartered in Los Angeles. The participants in J. D. Power’s 2010 VOSS Index were required to have driven their vehicles for around two years and clocked approximately 34,000 kilometers. The resulting report was therefore able to utilize data based on over 500 million kilometers of driving. The assessment criteria included quality, reliability, appeal, service and ownership costs so that the strengths and weaknesses of the individual cars could be reliably determined.

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