The operator was joint nineth in the latest Institute of Customer Service’s UK Customer Satisfaction Index.

The UKCSI is the national barometer of customer satisfaction published twice a year. It is an independent benchmark of more than 272 organisations and organisation types in 13 sectors.

Jet2holidays scored 83.5 compared to 80.2 a year ago, propelling it from 45th place last year to its top 10 position now. Top of the chart was First Direct, with a score of 86.6. Hotels.com was among the most improved brands, scoring 78.1, up 7.1.

Apart from Jet2 holidays, no other travel brands featured in the UKCSI top 20. Premier Inn was 25th, with a score of 82, with Saga Holidays and Trivago immediately behind with 81.9. Booking.com was in 32nd place with 81.7. Jet2’s airline scored 81.1, putting it at joint 44th place.

Overall, the tourism sector scored an average 78.6, slightly down on a year ago, when it reached 78.8. Air travel satisfaction levels fell slightly, from 74.3 a year ago to 70.5 now.

However, more than 40% of tourism brands scored at least two points higher than a year ago, making transport and tourism the biggest improvers when it came to customer experiences. An overwhelming 67.9% said the change in customer service they received from tourism businesses during the pandemic was positive.

The survey also asked customers if they were prepared to pay more for excellent service. In the tourism category, 34% said they felt happier knowing they had support and advice and were prepared to pay extra. This response was one of the highest recorded in any sector.

The July edition assesses how customer experience, behaviours and preferences have changed during the pandemic. For the first time, 50% of all customer experiences in the survey were digital, with in-person transactions at 30.4%, down 10 percentage points in a year.

Overall, the UKCSI index reached 77.4 out of 100, 0.4 points higher than a year ago and 0.6 points ahead of January 2021. Almost 15% of customers experienced a problem, the highest since 2009, but satisfaction with complaint handling is at its highest ever.