June 19, 2026
Bad Messaging Is Sending Customers Running and AI Is Not Saving the Day
Send a customer one badly worded message too many and they will not stick around to read the next one. Poor communications now drive most people to walk away from their providers, and the AI meant to smooth things over is losing their trust rather than winning it, according to the 2026 Customer Experience Benchmark research from Smart Communications.
The study drew on responses from 4,000 consumers across financial services, insurance, healthcare, and government in markets worldwide and found that most consumers would leave a provider when its communications fail to meet their expectations, with Millennials and Gen Z first out the door. Communications also count for more than ever, with consumers saying the messages they receive directly affect how they feel about a favourite brand, the highest level of importance since the study began.
Satisfaction is going the opposite way. Fewer than half of consumers rate their current communications as good or excellent, a sharp fall year on year, the study reported. Insurance fared worst of all. Clumsy writing, broken forms, and AI deployed without transparency or human oversight sit behind the slide, according to the research.
Consumers Fell Out of Love with AI
Consumer confidence in AI’s ability to improve the customer experience dropped again this year, and trust in AI to handle personal data securely fell over the same period. Worry about a lack of human control grew worldwide, with Baby Boomers reporting the biggest jump in a single year.
People also see less use in AI day to day. Fewer of them now value AI-powered financial advice, AI-suggested insurance changes, or AI health recommendations than they did twelve months ago, according to the research.
What consumers do want is honesty. Most say companies should tell them when AI is handling an interaction, the study reported, a demand loudest among Baby Boomers and in markets such as Australia. That tallies with other industry research showing consumers now expect an explanation for automated decisions. CXM has also covered why human oversight stays central to getting AI right, with people trusting brands far more when a real person stays in the loop.
Gen Z and Millennials trust companies to use AI responsibly far more than Boomers do, the study found. Since older consumers hold the most financial assets, the research warns that brands write them off at their peril.
A Broken Form Is All It Takes
Data collection is where many brands quietly lose people. Most consumers would end a relationship with a company when the data collection process is too much hassle and younger customers bail fastest of all.
Nearly half of consumers say they sometimes or always repeat information when they move between channels or representatives, even though almost everyone wants their details to follow them without friction, according to the research. When journeys fall apart, people most often ditch digital channels because of communication they cannot follow and go hunting for a human.