Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulfcoast on Monday, August 31, 2005. I evacuated from New Orleans, LA on Sunday, August 30th. Needless to say, the roads were packed. I loaded up my 10 year old car with my 3 cats and clothes and hit the road. About 4 hours later I had travelled about 120 miles when my car started acting up. I got it pulled over along the interstate and it died.
There I was, stuck with my cats, a dead car and a hurricane on the way in Hattiesburg, MS. I called USAA Roadside assistance and they began searching for someone in the area to pick up my car. They found a towing company that came and put the car on their lot until I could find a mechanic to take a look at it and a friend picked me up.
A week later that towing company charged me $490.00 for towing the car, keeping it on his lot for 7 days, then towing it to a garage. I was shocked. I was not expecting to be charged even half that amount, especially during a national disaster.
But I contacted USAA to find out what they would pay for under the Roadside Assistance coverage. I knew that Roadside Assistance would not cover all of the charges, so I wanted to know what to expect. I was told to submit the bill with a letter explaining what happened. Two weeks later I received a check from USAA covering the entire amount!!
This is a company that put their customers first during a national disaster, even when it cost them. I really appreciate what they did for me and will always remember it.
