I have been with USAA for 45 years. I have filed one claim for auto in 1996. A few months ago a woman rear ended me. I attempted to work it out with the husband but it did not work so I filed a claim with USAA. The claims process is terrible. First the claims department were simply information gatherers. Second they assigned an adjuster to me who will not read messages or return calls. Has anyone else who has USAA run into this issue? I would think a 45 year customer would mean something but evidently not. I am close to going up the chain to find another adjuster.
I had claim with USAA after a large branch caused $60,000 damage. I had exceptional service with USAA. They even approved refinishing all my hardwoods since they wouldn’t match the rest of the house. I had one claim with USAA auto after I was hit by a car while riding my bicycle. They handled all the medical claims without question.
See if the adjuster will ignore a complaint to your state department of insurance the same way he has ignored you.
I’ve had USAA since 1980, and had several claims since then. All have been handled wonderfully. But in the last handful or so years, the company has not been what it was.
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Many insurance companies assign customers a loyalty score based on how long you have been with the company and how likely you are to change companies. The higher your score the more you get to pay since they know you are less likely to defect. So yes, a 45 year customer does mean something, you get to pay the highest rates.
I’ve only been a member for 40 years. I switched my homeowners to Openly for about half what I was paying. I had zero claims with Openly, but when it was time for renewal, my premium more than doubled. At the same time, USAA sent me an email to come back. I looked and their rate was less then openly.
I should say that in 2019 I had a small tree branch fall and damage my gutter. while the adjuster was there he looked at the roof and said that I had damage there…maybe not from that storm, but there was damage. They replaced the roof, no questions asked
My new policy started on July 15 and on July 30 a two ton branch from an oak tree fell on my house, causing $60,000 damage. they recommended a firm to work on it and I had zero problems. In fact, my house is all hardwood floors and the floor in the back bedroom that sustained most of the damage needed refinished. The contractors told them that if they refinished that floor, it would not match the rest of the house, so they approved having ALL of my hardwoods refinished.
Last June, when I got my new premium notice, I fully expected it to go up significantly because of my claim. But it went DOWN by $50. Not a lot, I grant you, but I was pretty surprised and very pleased.
Thanks for the reply
There is some, but very little loyalty by any insurance company. If that’s what you think that your loyalty will do for you then buy cheap insurance. You know those “Use it and Lose it” companies Clark talks about. It doesn’t sound unusual what you experience. It sounds like a minor claim without bodily injury. Calling them with questions and whatever just delays them doing their job and slows the process. They should get back to you, especially if it is critical, but have some patients. But, asking for a supervisor when you call helps. That’s what they are there for. Good luck!
I’m sorry to hear about your experience. I’ve been with USAA for 30 years and have half a dozen claims in that time. I’ve never had an issue with them.
I did significant research into USAA recently when evaluating them for a homeowners policy. Their rates were higher than other carriers, but their reputation for good customer service made me consider them for a policy change. After digging in I found that in the last 5+ years there has been a significant negative change in their customer service and claims process, so I decided against them. It saddens me, because I always considered them to be one of the good guys, and a well run, honest company. There are not many companies that can maintain great customer service over the long haul.
I was with USAA for 40+ years, my in-laws more than 60. My claims experience has been that it all depends on the adjuster. I would NOT recommend using whoever an insurance company recommends without getting other quotes.
We are also 40+ year members of USAA. While they paid our claim and handled the process, the agent (and her manager) did not return phone calls, not a user-friendly process
I think that many of those comments may be them adapting to changes, just as the other companies are. In 2015 I had hail damage on my roof. The roof was over 15 years old and they replaced it. I have heard that wtih almost all insurance companies - if the roof is over 9 years old, they (I think all insurance companies) will not pay for a full replacement. they will prorate the roof based on age. I think some people who had an older roof replaced only to find hail damage 10 years later might give a poor review based on the past. But that would apply to almost any insurance company.
Most of my claims experiences with USAA have been very favourable. However, several years back the catalytic converter was stolen from my car. They farmed out claim management to an outside company. They were extremely unresponsive and disorganized. I had to call USAA to get them to call the company handling the claim multiple times. Once I knew who the repair shop was I could get answers right away, but they too had to wait inordinately long for responses from the claims processor. What should have been a one week max repair ended up taking over two months. With USAA footing the bill for a rental car that whole time.