USAA Auto Insurance Review [New + Rates & Coverage]

USAA is a well-known insurance provider, created specifically for military personnel, veterans, and their families. While this may make it a top insurance option for most drivers in Texas, we want to make sure that nothing about USAA is a surprise to you if you purchase a USAA policy.

Picking an insurance provider is an important decision, as your insurance provider will be there for accidents and other mishaps that befall you and your vehicle.

Not taking the time to fully research a provider can result in you paying out of pocket due to poor coverage or having to pay exorbitant rates each month for insurance.

To get an overall picture of USAA, we are going to look at everything you need to know, from USAA’s ratings to the ease of using USAA’s mobile app.

Keep reading to learn if USAA is the right insurance provider for you.

If you want to start comparing rates in your area today, enter your zip code in our FREE online tool above.

Rating Agency

When making the important decision of picking an insurance provider, it helps to look at multiple review sites. Reviews will give you an idea of how the company handles customers and its financial strength.

Let’s look over some major review sites’ ratings of USAA.

The first ratings we want to go through are the ones dealing with USAA’s financial strength.

• A.M Best — An A++ is the highest rating possible and means USAA has a superior ability to meet ongoing financial obligations, such as claims.
• Moody’s —  Moody’s rating evaluates a company’s creditworthiness, and USAA’s Aa1 rating means USAA has low credit risk and a strong ability to pay back its debts.
• S&P Global — USAA’s AA rating is the second highest rating possible. An AA rating means the company has a strong ability to meet obligatory financial commitments.

Now that we know USAA is strong financially, let’s move onto customer satisfaction ratings.

• Better Business Bureau — USAA’s rating of B- isn’t fantastic, seeing as BBB bases its rating mostly on complaint data.
• Consumer Affairs — USAA Auto Insurance received a poor rating from Consumer Affairs, but Consumer Affairs created this rating from only 267 customer reviews (a small percentage of USAA’s customers).
• Consumer Reports — USAA received a fantastic rating from Consumer Reports, earning 95 out of 100 points.
• J.D. Power — J.D. Power gave USAA another fantastic rating (it earned 899 points out of 1,000, making it a five circle company).

While USAA received a poor rating from Consumer Affairs, websites like these are designed to take complaints, which means unhappy customers are more likely to post reviews than unhappy ones.

JD Power considers USAA to be among the best insurance companies in Texas. This rating of customer satisfaction is based partly on customer’s satisfaction with USAA’s auto insurance claims.

Below, you can see more information about how customers rated USAA’s claim process.

USAA received a five out five in every category except repair process. These ratings are great, as it shows USAA is good at handling customers’ claims.

Company History

If you look at USAA’s company history, USAA has worked hard to expand beyond its origins in 1922. USAA has grown from just offering vehicle insurance for military members.

USAA now offers home, business, life, and health insurance, as well as banking and investment. These services and a growing customer base has made USAA a major provider of insurance for military personnel and their families.

Why do we care about USAA’s history?

Because the history of a company, such as its market shares and employee experiences, tells us if a company will continue to succeed in the future.

The last thing you want is to sign up with a company with a poor history, as it has an uncertain future.

With this in mind, let’s jump right in and look at everything from USAA’s market shares to awards.

– Market Shares

Market shares are a good indicator of if a company is growing successfully. Below are USAA’s past market shares from the Insurance Information Institute.

USAA’s market shares in the auto insurance industry have been increasing incrementally over the past few years. While the changes are slight, they show that USAA is still growing as a company.

– Service Type

USAA has multiple service types, though it is a little harder to find an agent at USAA. This is because USAA doesn’t have a local agent search on its webpage, meaning you will have to call and ask for local agents in your area.

Below are the main ways service methods USAA offers.

• Online — USAA’s website provides customers with the ability to find information and sign in to see their personal policy information.
• Agents — You can meet with a physical agent as long as there is one in your area. You will have to call USAA to ask.
• App — USAA also has an app for customers that does everything from pay bills to show policy information.

These outreach methods mean USAA is accessible in person or online, making it easier for it to market its products.

– Commercials

USAA’s marketing approach in its commercials is different from other insurers, as it is an insurance company for military families. Rather than using humor or celebrities like other insurance providers, USAA takes a more emotional approach to market its products.

By focusing on military families, USAA sends the message that it is there to serve the military members who served us.

USAA also has commercials that honor our fallen heroes on memorial day, which simply advertise the good that people are doing in military members’ memory.

The advertising message that USAA gives through its commercials is powerful; USAA is here to serve you and your family because of the sacrifices you’ve made for our country.

This emotional appeal ties in well with USAA’s services, as its discounted rates clearly show that it is trying to create cost-effective coverage for military families.

– Community Service

USAA is involved in more than just military personnel lives. USAA also donates and volunteers for programs that deal with local community issues. Because USAA has a physical location in Dallas and San Antonia, these areas are where USAA focuses its attention.

• Poverty — USAA helps families and individuals who are stuck with poverty and struggling (homelessness and hunger).
• Education — USAA donates to programs that help teach students critical skills.
• Safety and Natural Disaster Response — USAA supports programs that teach safety preparation skills for natural disasters and help people recover from natural disasters.

USAA’s support of programs and volunteer work helps its surrounding communities, showing that USAA cares about helping the community around it thrive.

– How is USAA Positioned for the Future?

This is an important question to think about when considering an insurer. If a company isn’t positioned well for the future, you risk your insurer going bankrupt or charging you higher and higher premiums to make up for its losses.

Luckily, USAA has rated well on multiple financial websites, which tells us USAA has a strong financial future and good creditworthiness.

While USAA’s customer ratings weren’t great on some sites, major survey sites like JD Power gave USAA the highest rating possible. These ratings help balance out the negative ones.

Based on these factors, USAA has a solid future ahead of it.

– Employee Experience

Employees who love their jobs means a company is doing something right. That’s why we want to take a look at different rating websites to see what USAA employees think about the company.

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Let’s take a look at some of the general statistics of employees at USAA, such as age and tenure, from A Great Place to Work’s data.

Most of USAA’s workers are millennials and Generation X. Let’s take a look at how long most of these workers stay at USAA.

A majority of USAA workers stay one to five years, while only 11 percent stay for more than 20 years. But what about employee’s experiences during their time at USAA?

89 percent of employees say USAA is a great place to work, and the following percentages of employees agreed with the following statements.

Let’s dig a little deeper into employee experience by looking at Glassdoor’s rating of USAA.

USAA recieved 3.6 stars out of five (created from over 2,600 reviews).

On Glassdoor, 65 percent of employees would recommend USAA to a friend, and 73 percent approve of USAA’s CEO. Finally, let’s take a look at Payscale’s rating of USAA.

USAA employees on Payscale gave USAA 3.9 stars out of five. Below, you can see the ratings given for different employee satisfaction categories.

USAA received good ratings in all but the fair pay and pay transparency categories. To be fair, most companies have poor ratings in these areas on Payscale.

– Awards and Accolades

USAA has won numerous awards over the years. USAA won the following awards from Glassdoor.

• 2017 Best Places to Interview (#72)
• 2014 Top CEOs (#22)
• 2009 Best Places to Work (#36)

A Great Place to Work also has a full list of USAA’s awards and accolades, though we have only included the most recent for 2019 and 2018.

USAA has received a good number of awards for its workplace environment. It also made it onto Texas’s list of best workplaces in 2019.

Cheap Car Insurance Rates

Even if you aren’t a strict monthly budget, it is still nice to save money on car insurance. Saved funds can go towards more interesting things, like a mini-vacation on a beach.

Just because an insurer has a low price rate, though, doesn’t mean you should automatically pick it. Sometimes, you’ll receive poor coverage and customer service in return for a lower price.

Right now, though, we are just going to look at USAA’s rates and what impacts rate changes before we dive into its coverages and service.

We’ve partnered with Quadrant to bring you the following data about USAA’s costs. Let’s get started.

– USAA Availability and Car Insurance Rates in Texas

When picking a provider, it is beneficial to pick a company that operates in multiple states. This way, moving to another state doesn’t have to mean switching providers.

Instead, you only need to inform your provider of your new address so it can adjust coverage levels and rates to match the new state’s requirements.

USAA is available in all 50 U.S. states.

This is great, as means that USAA is available no matter where you move to. Even better? USAA is cheaper than the state average in every one of the states it is operational in.

We also want to look at is USAA’s average premium compared to the average premium in Texas.

USAA is over 60 percent cheaper than Texas’s average premium, which is a significant amount of savings.

– USAA Compared to Top 10 Companies

Let’s see how USAA’s rates compare to other companies in the state of Texas.

USAA is the cheapest provider in Texas, costing 20 percent less than State Farm (the second cheapest provider). This is fantastic, and USAA tends to be the cheapest provider in all states.

This means that if you move, you will find similar rates to Texas.

– Commute Rates

You have a long slog of a commute to and from work every day, made worse by the fact that in addition to paying extra for gas, you are also paying extra to your insurer.

Unfortunately, this is a reality at many insurers. The longer you are on the road, the more risk there is of being in a crash, which is why most insurers will charge you more.

Below are USAA’s commute rates.

The good news is that a longer commute will only cost you an extra $63 a year. Seeing as USAA has such cheap rates to begin with, an extra five dollars a month isn’t terrible (other insurers generally charge $100 for a longer commute).

– Coverage Level Rates

If a person has a low coverage level on a car, then the only thing that matches the sinking feeling of backing into a mailbox is looking at how little the insurance company will pay for repairs.

The high cost that most insurers place on high coverage, though, can be a deterrent to customers.

Let’s see if USAA’s price increases between coverages are economical.

USAA’s price differences between coverage levels are INCREDIBLY economical. Upgrading from low to high coverage only costs $179 a year, or $15 dollars a month.

Most insurers charge hundreds (if not a thousand) for an upgrade, making USAA’s rates some of the most economical among insurers.

USAA’s extra cost will be well worth it in an accident, as high coverage will give you the best protection, so you aren’t paying out of pocket for medical bills and damages.

– Credit History Rates

The average credit score in Texas is 656. This is labeled as a fair credit score and is lower than the national average credit score of 675.

Texas is among the top ten states with the lowest credit scores.

Since Texas law allows insurers to use credit scores to determine rates, USAA’s rates change based on your credit score.

The leap between good and poor credit is about $2,000, which is higher than most insurers’ price increase (which is usually about $1,000). Because USAA is so economically priced, though, poor credit rates at USAA are still cheaper than other insurers’ rates.

In fact, USAA’s rates for poor credit are still BELOW Texas’s average rate ($4,043).

– Driving Record Rates

We know that USAA is still below the state average for credit scores, so let’s see if driving record rates are similar.

Once again, USAA’s price increases are BELOW the state average. As well, companies generally vary in whether they charge more for accidents or DUIs — USAA charges the most for a DUI.

These rates are also just for a first offense, multiple incidents will result in prices that go well above the state average.

Coverages Offered

While USAA has the cheapest rates in Texas, we want to also make sure that the coverages offered are as great as the price. A company that doesn’t offer many coverages beyond the basics will leave you with gaps in your protection.

To see what USAA offers, we will look at everything from coverages to available discounts.

Stick with us to see if USAA’s coverages go beyond the basics.

– Types Besides Car Insurance

USAA is more than just a provider of car insurance. It also offers the following types of insurance and services.

• Motorcycle, RV, and boat
• Homeowners, renters, and condo
• Valuable personal property
• Life
• Small business
• Health

USAA also has banking and investment services, such as retirement funds. This wide range of services means you can keep all your insurance policies at one provider.

It also means that if you bundle, such as an auto and home insurance policy, you could receive a discount.

– Types of Car Insurance

What we truly want to delve into, though, are the different types of car insurance that USAA offers customers.

• Bodily Injury Liability — Helps cover costs of another driver’s medical bills in an accident you caused.
• Classic Car — Covers classic cars that are used less than normal cars.
• Collision — Covers you in an accident with another vehicle or object.
• Comprehensive — Covers you in an accident with something other than another vehicle (theft, natural disasters, animals, etc.)
• Extended Benefits Coverage — Have to also carry medical payments coverage (varies by location).
• Personal Injury Protection — Protects you in an accident by helping with medical bills.
• Property Damage Liability — Helps cover costs of another driver’s property damage bills in an accident you caused.
• Umbrella — Extra liability coverage (mostly in case you’re sued).
• Uninsured and Underinsured Motorist Coverage — Protects you in hit-and-run accidents or accidents caused by another driver who has poor insurance and can’t pay your bills.

USAA has all the basics, as well as a few more type of car insurance. For the low price paid, USAA offers a great number of coverage options.

– Additional

We’ve covered what USAA offers in terms of coverages, but now we want to take a look at what additional services USAA has to offer.

• Car Buying Service — USAA has partnered with TruCar so you can research car prices to make sure you’re paying a good price.
• Commercial — For vehicles used for business.
• Ridesharing Gap Coverage — Will cover in the small usage gaps between driving on your personal insurance and ridesharing insurance.
• Roadside Assistance — Will help you if you run out of gas, have a dead battery, a flat tire, lock yourself out of your car, or need to be towed.
• Usage-Based Insurance — USAA has a SafePilot program, where drivers can receive discounts for safe driving habits.

USAA has a decent amount of services for customers, though it only offers gap coverage for rideshare drivers.

– Discounts Offered

Below are the discounts USAA offers, as well as the percentages saved (when available).

USAA doesn’t have as many discounts as other providers (the highest number of discounts is 38), but 28 is an average number of discounts.

When you consider USAA’s cheap prices, as well, the number of discounts isn’t as relevant — simply having USAA is like having a huge discount.

– What Stands Out and What’s Missing

Now that we’ve gone through USAA’s rates and coverages, let’s recap by looking at what stands out and what’s missing in USAA’s offerings.

• What Stands Out — USAA has cheap rates and a great array of coverages for the price. It has all the basic coverages required in Texas, plus a few extra. USAA also has a decent amount of discounts to add to its already low prices.
• What’s Missing — USAA has less additional options than other providers. For instance, it offers rideshare gap insurance but not ridesharing insurance. It also doesn’t have a car repair shop program. 

While USAA is missing a few additional programs that other insurers offer, its low prices help make up for it. USAA also has all the required coverages and more, showing it isn’t skimping out on coverages.

Canceling Your Policy

If at some point you decide to switch providers, the last thing you want is to wade through red tape and hidden cancellation fees. Let’s take a look at the various parts of canceling a policy at USAA, from cancellation fees to when you can cancel.

Let’s jump in.

– Cancellation Fee

The good news is that USAA doesn’t charge a cancellation fee if you decide you no longer want USAA insurance.

Most companies will charge you a $50 dollar cancellation fee, so USAA’s lack of fee means you won’t be shorted $50.

– Is There a Refund?

USAA doesn’t list anything about refunding customers when they cancel a policy. This doesn’t mean that an insurance company won’t refund anything, but it’s likely that USAA doesn’t do refunds unless there are unused premiums, especially since USAA doesn’t have a cancellation fee.

Since you pay each month for car insurance, it’s not as if USAA is taking a year of future payments from you — there usually isn’t anything to refund because you’ve received protection each month for your payments.

If you have paid for a whole year in advance, though, and cancel with four months left, USAA should refund you for the unused premium.

– How to Cancel

If you want to cancel your USAA policy, there are three ways you can do so.

• Online — You will have to log in to USAA’s website and request cancel your policy.
• Phone — You can call 800-531-USAA (8722) and request cancellation.
• Mail — You can send a request for cancellation to USAA headquarters.

You can use any of these methods to cancel your policy. If a USAA building is near you, you can also visit in-person to cancel.

– When Can I Cancel?

You can cancel your USAA policy at any time, but you should wait until you have another provider so you aren’t without car insurance.

Once the paperwork goes through, USAA will cancel your policy immediately.

You can check to make sure your policy is canceled by signing into your account.

How to Make a Claim

When you are in an accident, most of the time you will need to make a claim with your insurance company. A company’s claim process is, therefore, an important aspect to look at when considering a company.

A company who has a complicated claims process or doesn’t pay out many claims probably isn’t a company you want to pick.

Stick with us, because we are going to look at different aspects of USAA’s claim process, from premiums written to the ease of making a claim.

– Ease of Making a Claim

Let’s look at the different ways you make a claim at USAA.

• Online — USAA’s website will let you file a claim online.
• In-Person — If you are near an agent, you can file a claim through in-person.
• Phone — You can call 800-531-8722 to file a claim over the phone.
• App — You can use the mobile app to file an auto insurance claim.

These various ways to file a claim mean you can choose the method you are most comfortable with. Online and app claim filing can also be done at any time, so you can file a claim immediately after an accident.

– Premiums Written

Looking at a company’s written premiums is a good indicator of if a company is growing or not. More customers also means that if a company has a high number of claims filed, customers won’t be overcharged in order to pay for the increase in claims.

Let’s take a look at the Insurance Information Institute’s information on USAA’s written auto insurance premiums.

USAA has steadily increased its number of written premiums over the years, showing that it is still attracting new customers to its auto insurance policies.

How to Get a Quote Online

While we’ve already looked at USAA’s rates and how factors can impact the price, it is a good idea to also get a free quote from USAA. This way, you can get a better idea of what you’ll be charged before you commit.

Let’s go through the steps you need to complete to get a quote from USAA.

– Visit Their Website

The first thing you’ll need to do is go to the USAA website’s homepage.

While there isn’t a quote option readily available at first glance, if you scroll down the home page you will quickly see an option to get a free auto insurance quote.

– Get a Quote

Clicking “get a free quote” under auto insurance will take you to the following screen.

– Join (If You’re Not a Member)

If you haven’t already set up an account with USAA, you will need to click join online on the right side of the screen. You will then be redirected to a page with the option to set up an account with USAA to get a quote.

– Fill Out the Auto Insurance Form

Clicking continue will lead you to the auto insurance form (you will set up an account along the way).

Simply enter in your data as you go to get your auto insurance quote. The form will ask you for the following information.

USAA does require a social security number, which is commonly used to check credit scores and better calculate rates.

Design of Website/App

Companies need to keep up with technology these days. People will quickly grow frustrated if they have to deal with slow-loading pages or badly organized websites and apps.

Let’s take a look at how easy it is to find information on USAA’s website.

The website offers two dropdown menus (products and advice), as well as links to join USAA and a help button. Below is an example of what appears when you select products.

While this is an extensive list, there isn’t a breakdown of topics for auto insurance. You will have to click on auto insurance and then scroll down the resulting page to find information about discounts, coverages, and more.

USAA’s website is fairly easy to navigate, though, especially with the use of the search button on the top right. Because USAA has so many different types of insurance, though, it is helpful to enter in specific keywords when searching (such as auto coverages instead of just coverages).

As for USAA’s app, it received 4.8 stars (based on 334,100 ratings).

While there are few complaints about bugs with the app, such as Touch ID not working, a majority of the reviews have positive things to say about the app.

Below are all the things you can accomplish from your mobile app.

• Pay bills
• Get an auto ID card
• Request roadside assistance
• Report a claim
• Ask digital assistant questions

You can do other things on the app (it is also for banking and investment), but we’ve only included the ones that are relevant to auto insurance.

While USAA’s general app has received great reviews, USAA’s driving app wasn’t as fortunate.

The app only has six reviews and has two out of five stars. It is also only available in Arizona, Ohio, Texas, and Virginia, which means that if you move out of Texas you can’t use the app.

This lack of ability is part of the reason for the negative reviews, as people downloaded the app and found to their disappointment that it wouldn’t work in their state.

Pros and Cons

Whenever there is a big decision to be made, some of us break out our notepads and pens to make a pros and cons list. Let’s take a look at USAA’s major pros and cons to give you a snapshot view of USAA’s merits and disadvantages.

In general, USAA’s low rates mostly make up for the missing coverage and program aspects.

The Bottom Line

While it’s up to you if USAA is the right insurer for your needs, USAA is a solid option. Its low rates are an important selling point, as even increased rates will still be cheaper than the average rates at most providers.

USAA also has good ratings and increased written premiums, showing USAA is still attracting customers decades after its foundation.

While USAA does lack a few programs that other insurers have, it has all the basic coverages and more. Based on all this, USAA is a great choice of insurer, as you’ll receive necessary coverage at an economical price.

Frequently Asked Questions

Still have questions about USAA? We’ve compiled a list of commonly asked questions and answers below.

– Can my sibling be on my USAA policy?

No. You have to be an eligible family member to be on a USAA policy. Eligible family members include the following: spouses, widows, widowers and un-remarried former spouses of USAA members (have to have joined USAA prior to/during the marriage). Children, including stepchildren, are also eligible.

– What do I need to qualify for USAA’s accident forgiveness?

You will have to be accident-free for five years to qualify. If you qualify for accident forgiveness, your premium won’t go up with your first accident.

In some states, you can also purchase an accident forgiveness plan.

– Will USAA cover my windshield repair or replacement?

USAA will only cover your windshield repair or replacement if you have comprehensive coverage.

Comprehensive coverage will also protect you in cases of theft, vandalism, or natural disasters. You will have to file a glass claim in order to receive coverage.

– With rental reimbursement, how soon will I receive a rental car?

You will get a rental car when your car starts repairs in the shop. If your car is undrivable, you will receive a rental car right away.

When your car is repaired and ready to drive, you will have to return your rental car.

– Will USAA cover my rental car?

You will have to check with USAA, as coverage depends on what policy you have. It is sometimes best to purchase the rental company’s insurance, as any accidents won’t raise your premiums at USAA.

Now that you’ve made it through our comprehensive review, you are ready to decide if USAA is the right insurance provider for you and your needs.

If you want to start comparison shopping in your area today, enter your zip code in our FREE online tool below.