UK & Ireland consumers back AI service if it works

Consumers in the UK and Ireland are willing to use automated customer service instead of a human agent if it resolves their problem quickly. Research from Parloa found that 87 per cent would keep using an automated system if it solved their issue instantly nine times out of 10.

More than half of respondents, 54 per cent, said they first turn to a digital or AI-based route for support. That included 24 per cent who would use a company's own AI assistant or chatbot, 16 per cent who would ask an AI tool directly and 15 per cent who would search a website.

By comparison, 46 per cent preferred more traditional contact methods: 23 per cent chose the phone, 19 per cent email and 4 per cent social media.

The findings suggest consumers are not opposed to automation itself, but judge it on results. Even so, 65 per cent said they would rather wait longer for a human if that meant their issue was properly resolved, rather than risk a faster but inaccurate automated interaction.

Comfort with automated service appears to outpace trust in its accuracy. Some 60 per cent of respondents said they were somewhat or very comfortable using an automated voice system before reaching a human, but 64 per cent said they were only somewhat confident or not confident at all that automated systems could understand and resolve their request accurately.

Thin patience

The study suggests consumers have limited tolerance for poor automated service. Two-thirds of respondents, or 66 per cent, expected a standard issue to be resolved within five minutes, while only 4 per cent would accept a wait of more than 10 minutes.

Repetition was another clear pressure point. Nearly half, 47 per cent, said they would repeat themselves only twice to a chatbot or interactive voice response system before disconnecting or asking for a human agent. A further 24 per cent said they would abandon the interaction entirely if they had to repeat themselves even once.

Long queues and hold times remained the most common frustration, ahead of bots failing to understand requests, being transferred between agents and repeating information. When consumers had to use IVR menus, only 7 per cent said those systems always met their needs.

More than half of those surveyed, 56 per cent, said they had deliberately tried to bypass a chatbot or IVR system to reach a human. The most common tactics were being polite to the system or repeating the same question until it transferred them.

Brand effect

The research also found a strong link between service performance and brand perception. Almost all respondents, 94 per cent, said their customer experience affected how they viewed a brand or organisation.

When service failed, the reaction often extended beyond the original interaction. More than half, 56 per cent, said they would tell friends and family, 22 per cent said they would complain publicly on social media or in reviews and 39 per cent said they would switch brands altogether.

The figures suggest customer service problems can quickly become a reputational issue, particularly when consumers feel trapped in a queue or unable to get a clear answer from an automated system.

Disclosure split

Views were more mixed on whether companies should tell customers when they are interacting with AI. Some 36 per cent said disclosure would strengthen their trust in a brand, while 38 per cent said it would make no difference.

Opinion was evenly divided on whether disclosure should be a legal requirement. About 43 per cent said it should, while the same proportion said they only cared about the outcome of the interaction.

The issue carries added weight for businesses serving customers in Ireland and the wider European Union, where rules require disclosure when users interact with AI systems. For UK businesses with cross-border customers, it has become part of a broader compliance discussion around customer service technology.

Parloa commissioned the survey, which was conducted by research firm Propeller Insights. It covered more than 700 consumers aged 18 and over in the UK, Ireland, France and Germany who had interacted with a company's customer service department in the previous 12 months. The published figures were drawn from the UK and Ireland sample.

"Our latest CPI data confirms what we've long believed: consumers aren't choosing AI because it's new, they choose it because, when it's built properly, it solves their problem. That's a real opportunity for any business willing to build AI agents that resolve issues, rather than relying on outdated legacy technology that doesn't understand customer needs, makes them repeat themselves or presents queues dressed up as innovation. Get it right, and you don't just save a conversation, you earn lasting trust," said Malte Kosub, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of Parloa.

"This isn't a death knell for any particular channel or a human-staffed contact centre. What the Index shows is growing trust and willingness among consumers to use AI agents, when done right. Reliability over novelty is what is winning people over to automation for customer experience, and that's where businesses should be investing," Kosub said.