Puget Sound Energy improved 21 points in overall customer satisfaction, making it third in the West Region and placing in the top quartile nationwide in the 2008 J.D. Power and Associates Gas Utility Residential Customer Satisfaction Study released Sept. 25.

The study measures residential customer satisfaction with natural gas utility companies across six factors: company image, communications, price and value, billing and payment, customer service and field service. Utilities are ranked in four geographical regions.

Although industrywide reported natural gas bill amounts have increased by 6 percent since 2007, according to the study, overall customer satisfaction with natural gas utility companies averages 640 on a 1,000 point scale in 2008, up 12 points from the previous year. PSE ranks 661, up 21 points from 2007.

The 2008 Gas Utility Residential Customer Satisfaction Study is based on more than 29,000 online interviews conducted among residential customers of the 60 largest gas utilities across the continental United States. These utilities serve more than 48 million households. The study was fielded between September 2007 and July 2008.