A consulting outfit dubbed the Customer Respect Group has released a new study that tracks how well Telecommunications and Communications companies treat their customers online. Specifically, the group studied the websites of the top 10 providers that supply telephone, television and Internet services.

The study focused primarily on two criteria: how well company websites allowed customer to manage their accounts (including online billing), and how easily customers are able to resolve technical problems via provided online resources. In both categories, Verizon came out at the top of the heap, according to the group.

That's not to say that companies are doing a good job when it comes to online account management and tech support. "Applications offered to consumers are mostly incomplete and fail to provide the range of functions necessary to manage and use services," the company says of its overall conclusion.

Companies quickly embraced offering triple play bundles under the promise of users paying $100+ or more per month, but their online billing and support systems have not kept pace with their financial ambitions. According to the study, eight of the ten companies tracked failed to offer a consolidated bill that comprehensively tracked all three bundled services.

Verizon has built a Web presence that is, without any question, the best available, providing a level of customer service and support that exceeds all other providers. -Terry Golesworth, president of The Customer Respect Group

The group found that the online ordering and provisioning systems for most carriers were "poor," and support systems often stretch across multiple websites without much integration. Some providers' version of online billing support simply consists of offering a pdf copy of their bill, according to the study.

While Verizon scores high in this study, our regular readers have consistently stated that the company's billing systems frequently fail to credit them for bundle discounts, and that corrections to billing issues often take many months. We've also recently seen instances where incorrect prices were listed on Verizon's website, while support reps were unsure of what the actual prices were.

According to Verizon, last year their website saw more than 189 million site visits, more than 884 million page views, and took more than 1.27 million online service orders. Verizon says that 56,900 customers per day visit the company's help center at help.verizon.com to find answers. $1.68 billion in payments were collected online in 2007.

"We're honored to receive the No. 1 rating in such an important study," said Mark Studness, director of e-commerce for Verizon in a prepared statement. "The results underscore our commitment to providing the best online experience to our customers." While Verizon billing certainly has issues, they're at least apparently making progress. How does your ISP fare?