Banker & Tradesman file photo

Eastern Bank leads its Massachusetts-based peers in a major survey of bank customer satisfaction.

The bank earned second place among bank customers in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont and Maine in J.D. Power’s 2023 U.S. Retail Banking Satisfaction Study, after Maine’s Bangor Savings Bank.

Rockland Trust took third place, followed by TD Bank, Citizens Bank, Santander and Bank of America.

“It’s an incredibly tenuous time for both bank customers and financial institutions, and the need for trust between these two parties has never been more pronounced,” Jennifer White, senior director of banking and payments intelligence at J.D. Power, said in a statement released along with the survey results. “Although our study was conducted prior to the recent high-profile bank crisis, the difficult economic conditions that contributed to the Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank failures have been building for quite some time. For banks to attain high marks in satisfaction and build the enduring loyalty that comes with it, customers need to feel supported through tough economic times. They need to be able to conduct their business with ease and feel like their funds are safe and secure.”

Another portion of the survey, released last week, found the percentage of customers with $10,000 or more in primary bank deposit balances has declined 16 percentage points in the past year, while the percentage of customers categorized as financially unhealthy has increased 9 percentage points. This shift is causing more customers to reallocate their funds in the hunt for higher interest rates or better savings programs, J.D. Power said, “upping the ante for banks to deliver personalized advice and guidance.”

The 2023 study is based on responses from 101,400 retail bank customers of the largest banks in the United States regarding their experiences with their retail bank. It was fielded from January 2022 through January 2023. National banks are defined as banks with more than $300 billion in domestic deposits; regional banks are those with $65 billion to $299 billion in domestic deposits; and midsize banks are those with 45 to 100 branches nationally and at least 20 branches within a respective region.

The study measures customer satisfaction across seven factors (in order of importance): trust; people; account offerings; allowing customers to bank how and when they want; saving time and money; digital channels; and resolving problems or complaints.