Verizon has once again ranked No. 1 for customer care and service, topping JD Power and Associates' rating for the fourth year in a row.

As mobile phones have become more than ubiquitous, quality service and customer care are essential for customer satisfaction, but Verizon seems to be on top of things. Consumer survey firm JD Power and Associates put Verizon in first place based on ample amounts of surveys and feedback, taking into account all online, telephone, and in-person customers.

In other words, JD Power and Associates considers feedback from a variety of customers and information obtained through surveys to determine its results. Based on both methods, each carrier gets a score, with 1000 being the maximum. Verizon topped the rating with a score of 766, closely followed by AT&T with 759.

"For the fourth consecutive reporting period, Verizon Wireless ranks highest in wireless customer care satisfaction among full-service carriers, with an overall score of 766. Verizon Wireless performs particularly well in telephone contacts that originate in the automatic response system (ARS) channel and are then transferred to a live customer service representative (CSR), and in telephone calls made directly to a CSR," noted the press release.

Verizon got a Power Circle Rating of 5, while AT&T received 3. Sprint grabbed the third spot with a score of 745 and a Power Circle Rating of 3, while T-Mobile dropped to the fourth place. With a relatively large drop, T-Mobile scored only 715, and got a Power Circle Rating of 2. All of these ratings fall under JD Power and Associates' full service list, which also includes a non-contract section for prepaid carriers.

In the non-contract section, MetroPCS topped JD Power's ratings with a score of 733 and a Power Rating of 5. Virgin Mobile came in next, scoring 729 with a Power Circle Rating of 5. Popular prepaid carrier Tracfone took the third spot with a score of 700/ 3, followed by Boost Mobile and Straight Talk in the fourth and fifth places, respectively. Cricket ranked at the near bottom of the list, scoring 671/ 2, followed by Net10, which scored 633 with a Power Circle Rating of 2.

JD Power and Associates' study examines how the major carriers handled customers in the past year, offering services or solving problems through three main channels: retail, telephone, and online. The firm surveyed 7,332 customers for the early 2013 edition.

Verizon took the lead back in 2010 when it first topped JD Power's customer satisfaction rating and has not stepped down since. When it comes to T-Mobile, however, it remains uncertain what caused the company to fall so far behind in customer satisfaction, especially since it led the pack for years before being dethroned by Verizon.