USAA Car Insurance Review 2024 (2024)

USAA earned a spot on our list of the best car insurance companies. It’s a terrific choice if you’re a current or former military member or an immediate family member, mostly due to its pricing. Some advantages of USAA are:

• Cheap car insurance rates. Our analysis found that USAA consistently has cheaper rates than top competitors, even if you have blemishes on your driving record or are a senior driver.
• Understands the military community. USAA is available in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., so if you relocate to a new state you can keep USAA coverage. It also offers a discount if you garage your car on base.

USAA’s biggest drawback is that if you’re not part of the military community you’re not eligible to buy a policy. Other drawbacks for USAA include:

• Expensive rates when adding a 16-year-old driver. USAA generally has cheap rates, but the cost to add a driver age 16 is higher than many competitors and the national average, based on our analysis.
• Missing some coverage options. You can’t get gap insurance or a diminishing deductible with USAA.

USAA’s average rate for a good driver is $1,364 per year, according to our analysis. That’s 33% cheaper than the average cost of car insurance nationwide ($2,026 per year). USAA has the cheapest rates for many driver profiles that we evaluated.

USAA Car Insurance Rates by Age

USAA rates are cheaper than the national average for all ages we looked at. Its car insurance for an 18-year-old driver is 37% cheaper than the national average, while its rates for 75-year-olds motorists are 29% cheaper.

USAA Car Insurance Rates for Adding a Teen Driver

Car insurance for a 16-year-old driver on a USAA policy costs about $100 a year more than the national average of $2,359 a year. USAA is the sixth most expensive company for adding a teen driver out of the nine companies we evaluated.

USAA Car Insurance Rates by Driving Record

USAA’s rates are cheaper than the national average for common driver profiles. USAA’s costs for drivers with accidents are about $1,000 less than the average. It’s $1,470 less for drivers with poor credit.

USAA Car Insurance Rates for Good Drivers

USAA has the cheapest average car insurance rates for good drivers among the insurers we evaluated. Its average price for good drivers is $660 a year lower than the national average of $2,026 per year.

USAA Car Insurance Rates Drivers With a Speeding Ticket

USAA offers very low prices for drivers with a speeding ticket. Its rates are the cheapest of the companies we analyzed and are 34% cheaper than the national average of $2,533 per year.

USAA Car Insurance Rates for Drivers Who Caused an Accident With an Injury

USAA has the lowest average rate for motorists who caused an accident with an injury, compared to other top insurers we analyzed. Its rates are $1,000 a year cheaper than the national average of $3,009 a year.

USAA Car Insurance Rates for Drivers With a DUI

USAA auto insurance costs for drivers with a DUI are low compared to competitors. The national average car insurance cost for drivers with a DUI is $3,363 a year, based on our analysis of large insurers. USAA’s rates are about $760 a year cheaper than the average.

If you have a DUI on your record, comparing car insurance quotes is wise because of the wide variation in costs from one company to the next.

USAA Car Insurance Rates by Credit Score for Drivers

USAA’s s rates for drivers with poor credit are 38% below the national average of $3,889 a year among the companies we analyzed. To find the best car insurance for drivers with bad credit, try shopping around. Some companies such as Geico and Nationwide generally have cheaper rates than USAA.

Insurance companies say that drivers with poor credit are more likely to file claims. This correlation leads to higher rates. California, Hawaii, Massachusetts and Michigan prohibit insurers from using credit when pricing auto insurance. USAA’s rates for drivers with poor credit are 78% higher than their rates for those with good credit.

USAA is available in all 50 states and Washington, D.C.

USAA Car Insurance Rates by State

Car insurance rates by state vary widely for several reasons. These include the likelihood of theft and weather-related claims and differences in the required minimum amount of car insurance you must have to drive legally and, among other factors.

For example, USAA’s average rate in Idaho is $648 a year, but the average cost in Louisiana is $2,801 a year.

Here are USAA’s average rates in most states where it’s available.

USAA’s complaint level is slightly below the industry average but higher than many large insurers. Its top auto insurance complaints are related to claim delays, unsatisfactory settlement claim offers, adjuster handling of claims, claim denials and rates.

USAA Car Insurance Complaints Trend

USAA’s car insurance complaint level has gone down over the last three years and is now just below the industry average.

In a survey of collision repair professionals by CRASH Network, USAA earned only a D+ grade. That low grade indicates that USAA could improve its claims procedures for customers with collision damage.

Auto body professionals’ opinions are insightful because they see how insurers compare in the use of lower-quality repair parts, whether insurers encourage the use of repair procedures recommended by car makers, and whether insurers have claims processes that lead to quick and acceptable claims for customers.

USAA’s Car Insurance Collision Repair Grade Trend

USAA’s rating from repair specialists for its claim handling processes has steadily declined over the past four years, resulting in a poor grade of a D+ in 2024.

USAA provides the foundational types of car insurance that states require—such as liability insurance—and stands out for its fair amount of coverage options.

	Accident Forgiveness USAA has optional accident forgiveness insurance that you can pay for at first, but after five years, you can get it for free if your household hasn’t had any at-fault accidents during that time. USAA’s accident forgiveness works for one accident during a six-month or 12-month policy period.
	New Car Replacement New car replacement coverage is an optional add-on. USAA’s version of this adds an extra 20% reimbursem*nt to the actual cash value of your car if it's totaled. You need comprehensive and collision coverage to have this coverage, and it’s unavailable from USAA for leased vehicles.
	Rental Car Reimbursem*nt Rental car reimbursem*nt pays for a rental car if you cannot drive your car after an accident or other incident covered by your comprehensive or collision coverage.
	Rideshare Insurance USAA offers a rideshare insurance option as an endorsem*nt that fills the gap where personal auto insurance ends and your rideshare company’s auto insurance coverage begins.
	Roadside Assistance Roadside assistance has services to help you get back on the road, such as towing if your car is inoperable, changing a tire, jump-starting a dead battery or unlocking your car.
	SR-22s USAA can provide SR-22 insurance for high-risk drivers required by the state to prove that they have at least minimum auto insurance coverage.
	Usage-Based Insurance USAA’s usage-based insurance program, SafePilot, monitors your driving and offers tips. You may be eligible for a 30% discount based on your driving score. USAA says SafePilot isn’t used to assess a person’s insurability and won’t lead to higher rates.

Add-On Coverage USAA Does Not Offer

USAA does not offer these types of additional coverage options:

• Diminished deductible. USAA doesn’t have a diminishing deductible option. A diminishing deductible decreases your car insurance deductibles over a period of time if you don’t get into accidents or file claims.
• Gap insurance. USAA doesn’t provide loan or lease gap insurance. It’s meant to bridge the gap between a car’s value and the amount still owed on the vehicle.
• Pay-per-mile insurance. USAA doesn’t have a pay-per-mile car insurance option. Pay-per-mile coverage charges drivers a base rate combined with a per-mile rate. The less someone drives, the lower the rate for a pay-per-mile policy.

USAA offers a wide variety of car insurance discounts that may help you save on your policy’s cost. Here’s a look at some of the discounts USAA has.

	Annual Mileage Discount If you have low annual mileage, you should qualify for this discount.
	Anti-Theft Discount You can qualify for a discount if your vehicle has an anti-theft device installed.
	Automatic Payments Discount Save up to 3% when you set up automatic payments for your USAA car insurance.
	Bundling Discount You can qualify for a discount if you have two or more USAA policies. For example, USAA customers with home and car insurance policies can save an average of 6%, based on our analysis of the best home and auto insurance bundles.
	Defensive Driving Discount Get this discount if you successfully complete an approved defensive driving course.
	Driver Training Discount This is for completing a basic driver’s training class.
	Family (Legacy) Discount When a child of a USAA auto insurance member signs up for auto insurance, they can receive up to a 10% discount on their insurance.
	Good Student Discount You could get a price break if your student gets good grades.
	Length of Membership Discount Long-time members are eligible for savings.
	Military Installation (On-Base) Discount When you keep your car in a garage on a military base, you can save up to 15% on your policy’s comprehensive coverage.
	Multi-Vehicle Discount You’ll get this if you Insure two or more vehicles with USAA.
	New Vehicle Discount See savings if your car is not more than three years old.
	Safe Driver Discount If you maintain a good driving record for over five years, you’ll earn a discount from USAA.
	Vehicle Storage Discount You can save as much as 60% on your car insurance when you store your car—for example, when you’re away on deployment.
Discount availability can vary by state.

USAA’s digital experience is only average. USAA received a score of 3.7 stars (out of 5 stars) based on our evaluation of its mobile app and website functionality.

On its website, you can get quotes online, file a claim and pay your bill. There is also a helpful search function and a chat feature, but the chat lets you choose from only five topics.

Through the USAA mobile app, you can:

• Access insurance ID card.
• Access member-exclusive discounts for travel deals, online shopping, and more.
• Access mobile wallet.
• Calculate loan payments.
• Join the USAA member community.
• Locate ATMs.
• Mobile deposits.
• Pay bills.
• Report claims.
• Request roadside assistance.
• Review an accident checklist.
• Send money with Zelle.

USAA gives drivers multiple ways to make a payment and file a claim, but only one way to cancel an auto policy.

	USAA Car Insurance Payments You can pay your USAA car insurance bill through their app or website. You can also mail a check or pay over the phone by calling 800-531-8722. You can pay with a credit card, debit card, bank account or check—cash payments are not accepted.
	USAA Car Insurance Claims You can file and track a claim through USAA’s app or website. You can also call USAA at 800-531-8669 to submit a claim. Filing your claim online has advantages, such as being able to upload documents and photos, view your estimate and payments.
	USAA Car Insurance Cancellations If you want to switch car insurance companies and need to cancel your USAA auto policy, you can call 800-531-8722.

USAA stands for United Services Automobile Association and has served military members and their families since 1922. It began when 25 Army officers decided to insure each other’s vehicles. Today, USAA serves millions of members with its diversified group of financial services companies.

You can join USAA only if you are a current or former military member or the spouse of a military member. Children of military members may join USAA as well.

USAA AM Best Financial Strength Rating

USAA has an A++ (Superior) financial strength rating with AM Best, which is the highest rating you can receive.

A high financial strength rating is a good indicator that a company will be able to pay future claims.

Beyond auto insurance USAA provides a wide variety of other insurance products. For those constantly dropping or losing their phones, USAA sells cell phone protection insurance. Since warranties usually don’t cover theft or loss, a protection plan can help replace your phone.

For those who love their pet like they love their family members, USAA sells pet insurance from Embrace to help with veterinary care costs. And, if you’re hosting an event, USAA offers special event insurance that can cover event cancellation due to deployment, severe weather, illness and other reasons.

Other policies USAA offers include:

• Aviation insurance (for those with their pilot’s license).
• Boat insurance.
• Classic car insurance.
• Dental insurance.
• Farm and ranch insurance.
• Homeowners insurance.
• Life insurance.
• Major medical insurance.
• Motorcycle insurance.
• Recreational vehicle insurance.
• Renters insurance.
• Small business insurance.
• Travel insurance.
• Vision insurance.

To identify the best car insurance companies we evaluated each company based on its average rates for a variety of drivers, the coverage options offered, complaints against the company and collision repair grades from auto body professionals.

Auto insurance rates (50% of score): We used data from Quadrant Information Services to find average rates from each company for good drivers, drivers who have caused an accident, drivers with a speeding ticket, drivers with a DUI, drivers with poor credit, drivers caught without insurance, adding a teen driver, senior drivers and young drivers.

Unless otherwise noted, rates are based on a 40-year-old female driver with a Toyota RAV4 and coverage of:

• $100,000 for injuries to one person, $300,000 for injuries per accident and $100,000 of property damage (known as 100/300/100).
• Uninsured motorist coverage of 100/300.
• Collision and comprehensive insurance with a $500 deductible.

Car insurance coverage options (25% of score): Any auto insurance company can provide the basics of liability insurance, collision and comprehensive coverage and other standard offerings. But it’s also important to have access to additional coverage types that can provide greater protection or cost savings. In this category we gave points to companies that offer accident forgiveness, new car replacement, vanishing deductibles, usage-based or pay-per-mile insurance and SR-22s.

Complaints (20% of score): We used complaint data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. Each state’s department of insurance is in charge of logging and monitoring complaints against companies operating in their states. Most auto insurance complaints center on claims, including unsatisfactory settlements, delays, and denials. The industry complaint average is 1.00, so companies with a ratio below 1.00 have lower levels of complaints.

Collision repair (5% of score): We incorporated grades of insurance companies from collision repair professionals. We used data provided by CRASH Network, a weekly newsletter covering the collision repair and auto insurance market segments. CRASH Network’s Insurer Report Card used grades from more than 1,100 collision repair professionals to gauge auto insurers on the quality of their collision claims service.

Read more: How Forbes Advisor rates car insurance companies