USAA car insurance is a great bargain for its members, but the state where you live will impact what you pay
The United Services Automobile Association (USAA) is a unique, membership-based insurance and financial services organization dedicated to offering current and retired servicemen and women (and their families) excellent service in support of its financial products. Since starting in 1922, it has grown to include insurance, investing, banking and a host of related products and services to benefit the men and women who have volunteered to protect and serve this country.
USAA car insurance is some of the best in the country. The company routinely tops annual surveys ranking car insurance companies for categories such as overall value, customer service and claims handling. It may be one reason why the company has grown to become the seventh largest provider of car insurance in the country, while still maintaining its status as one of the more affordable insurers.
Membership with a nod to service
One reason why USAA consistently maintains great value for its products and services is that it stays focused on a unique customer base. Access to USAA is earned. In fact, to be eligible for USAA insurance, you need to qualify as a member. Membership in USAA is limited to:
- Active, retired and honorably separated officers and enlisted personnel of the U.S. military
- Officer candidates in commissioning programs (Academy, ROTC, OCS/OTS)
- Adult children of USAA members who have or had a USAA auto or property insurance policy (children under the age of 18 can be added to a parent or legal guardian’s car insurance policy and after they turn 18, separate policies can be purchased for them or they can remain on a parent or guardian’s policy until they turn 25 or 26, depending on the state where they live and drive and in some circumstances, only if they are a full-time student)
- Widows, widowers and former spouses of USAA members who have or had a USAA auto or property insurance policy while married (USAA recognizes same-sex marriages and legally recognized partnerships for this eligibility requirement.)
Take a moment and review some quick car insurance coverage quotes
Certain USAA products (including investments, financial planning services and life insurance products) are available to the general public.
Coverage costs vary by state
Once you’ve established your eligibility for USAA insurance, you will have access to some remarkable base rates and additional discounts for car insurance coverage. While USAA car insurance can be found in all 50 states (and the District of Columbia) what you eventually wind up paying will depend on a number of factors, including which of those states you live in. To give you some idea of what you can expect to pay (and save) for car insurance should you choose USAA, we’ve developed a hypothetical driver profile that we will take shopping for USAA car insurance in a few states. We’ve selected a pretty typical driver profile and we’ve also selected states that offer a good cross-section of expensive, inexpensive and mid-range states for car insurance costs. While your specific costs and circumstances will vary, this can give you some benchmark for comparing what you are currently paying for car insurance and whether you should look into your eligibility for USAA products and services.
Our driver profile
To go shopping for USAA car insurance, we created a hypothetical driver to build a coverage plan around. Our phantom car insurance shopper is a 30-year old college professor named Erin. She has never been married and she owns a 2011 Subaru Imprezza (the basic 4-door sedan with few bells and whistles.) Erin has a clean driving record with no accidents in her past. She is currently renting in the college towns where she lives and works. She typically walks to work and uses the car for mostly pleasure and recreation, putting between 10-12,000 miles on it each year. Erin has great credit and she is the only person who drives the car. She is also fairly conservative and likes to put coverage levels in place that exceed the state minimum requirements for car insurance in the states where she lives, works and drives. She is eligible for USAA car insurance because both her father and grandfather are decorated Veterans (her father is even a current USAA member and customer.)
Our insurance markets
To get a full sense of what USAA car insurance can do for our hypothetical driver, Erin, we’re going to take her shopping in three different states: West Virginia, Kentucky and Maine. We’ve selected these states because, according to a number of annual surveys, they represent expensive, mid-range and inexpensive states (respectively) when it comes to car insurance costs. In the case of Kentucky, the state lands dead in the center as the annual average car insurance premium cost for a driver in the U.S. in 2014 is reported to be $1,503, and for a driver in Kentucky, it’s also $1,503.
When we took Erin car insurance shopping in these three states, here’s what we found:
(Note: the rates provided were the result of online calculations and queries conducted in March of 2014.)
West Virginia
West Virginian is one of the most expensive states to get car insurance in 2014. Licensed drivers in West Virginia are required to have, at a minimum, the following car insurance options and levels of coverage in place:
- $20,000 in bodily injury liability for a single person in an accident
- $40,000 in total bodily injury liability for a single accident
- $10,000 in total property damage liability per accident
- $20,000/$40,000in uninsured motorist bodily injury coverage
- $10,000 in uninsured motorist property damage coverage
In keeping with Erin’s propensity to put greater levels of coverage in place, when we took her shopping for car insurance in the Eastern Kentucky college town of Morgantown, we put the following USAA car insurance plan in place:
- Liability coverage at 100/300/100 levels
- Uninsured motorist coverage at 100/300/100 levels
- Comprehensive coverage with a $500 deductible
- Collision coverage with a $500 deducible
- Rental reimbursement option in place
- Roadside assistance option in place
Even with a few discounts for low mileage, safe driving and for driving a safe vehicle, Erin can expect her monthly premium for her West Virginia USAA car insurance to be $185 - $200.
Kentucky
Drivers in the Bluegrass State fall smack dab in the middle for car insurance costs. The state’s requirements for licensed drivers as it relates to car insurance options and coverage levels include:
- $25,000 in bodily injury liability for a single person in an accident
- $50,000 in total bodily injury liability per accident
- $10,000 in total property damage liability
- $10,00 in personal injury protection (PIP)
We took Erin shopping for insurance in the college town of Lexington, Kentucky and put the following package together for her:
- Liability coverage at 100/300/100 levels
- Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage at 100/300/100 levels
- PIP at $10,000 (with a $1,000 deductible since she gets full health insurance coverage at the college where she teaches)
- Comprehensive coverage with a $500 deductible
- Collision coverage with a $500 deductible
- Rental reimbursement in place
- Roadside assistance in place
Taking advantage of a handful of available discounts, Erin’s total monthly premium for this USAA Kentucky package of car insurance coverage will be $145 - $160.
Regardless of the state you live in, we can help you with free car insurance quotes
Maine
Consistently one of the most affordable states in the country for car insurance costs, licensed drivers in the state of Maine are required to have the following coverage options and limits in place to comply with state laws:
- $50,000 in bodily injury liability for a single person in an accident
- $100,000 in total bodily injury liability per accident
- $50,000 in uninsured/underinsured motorist bodily injury coverage for a single person in an accident
- $100,000 in total uninsured/underinsured motorist bodily injury coverage per accident
- $2,000 in medical payments coverage
We took Erin shopping for car insurance in the Maine college town of Brunswick and put in place the following plan:
- Liability coverage at 100/300/100 levels
- Uninsured/underinsured motorist coverage at 100/300/100 levels
- Medical payments coverage at $2,000 (since she already has full health insurance coverage through the college where she teaches)
- Comprehensive coverage with a $500 deductible
- Collision coverage with a $500 deductible
- Rental reimbursement in place
- Roadside assistance in place
Even though she has fewer discounts available to her in this state, Erin’s monthly premium for this USAA Maine car insurance package is $100 - $125.
Use this guide to see all the car insurance options and discounts you may have access to through USAA
While your individual costs and coverage preferences will vary, this give you some idea of the ranges of cost you can expect if you select USAA as your car insurance provider. Of course, one of the best ways to get a sense of what you will be paying for car insurance is to sit down with a local, licensed car insurance professional and have all your coverage questions addressed. An agent can even show you numerous coverage and pricing proposals before you have to buy to ensure that you’re getting the best package to can afford. Reply! can be of assistance here as we can link you to car insurance professionals in your area eager to help you get the best coverage that meets your unique driving needs.