A small but growing group of customers are turning to the Internet rather than phone calls or office visits to communicate with their auto insurance provider, according to a J.D. Power and Associates study.

Although only 7 percent of consumers are using the Internet to check on or update their auto insurance policies, their satisfaction is higher than those who use an automated phone system. In addition, their satisfaction is only slightly lower than those who talk directly with their insurance agent or representative.

"The Web represents a highly efficient communication channel," said Jeremy Bowler, director of the insurance practice at J.D. Power. "It's surprising that very few carriers appear to be successfully promoting its use for servicing customers."

The study also found that younger car insurance buyers are fueling the expansion of Internet insurance shopping. Forty-two percent of shoppers under 30 used the Internet to shop for auto insurance, compared to 29 percent of all shoppers.

The survey also revealed that customers who have recently filed a claim with an insurance carrier tend to be significantly more satisfied than those who have not.

Overall customer intent to renew their policy with their current carrier is at a four-year high and the likelihood to refer their provider to others has recovered to a level last seen in the 2001 study.

Despite these high loyalty rates, nearly one-third of consumers report that they have shopped for a new provider in the past year. More than one-half of those who shopped went on to switch their provider.

The top five companies in terms of customer satisfaction were:

Amica Mutual (for the fifth straight year)
Erie Insurance Group
Geico
Auto Club of Soutern California
State Farm

USAA, which is only open to those with ties to the military, also performed well, but was not in the rankings because of its exclusive nature.