Measuring the Customer Perceived Service Quality for Life Insurance Services: An Empirical Investigation

Liberalization of the financial services sector has led to insurance companies functioning increasingly under competitive pressures; so companies are consequently directing their strategies towards increasing customer satisfaction and loyalty through improved service quality. The present study strives to develop a valid and reliable instrument to measure customer perceived service quality in life-insurance sector. The resulting validated instrument comprised of six dimensions: assurance, personalized financial planning, competence, corporate image, tangibles and technology. Further the results of analytical hierarchy process highlighted the priority areas of service instrument with assurance is the best predictor, followed by competence and personalized financial planning. The gap scores show that there is ample room for improvement in all the aspects related to service quality. These results would help the service managers to efficiently allocate attention and resources among these dimensions on the differential basis, consistent with the customer priorities. These findings can be transformed into effective strategies and actions for achieving competitive advantage through customer satisfaction and retention.