For years, I went with the same insurance company as my father. I, like many younger people, didn't really think to shop around. So I paid a very high premium in college and continued doing so until the company I was with got sued in a class action lawsuit. I was part of the lawsuit and actually received a small payout thanks to their shady practices.
After college, I joined the Army and soon switched to a new insurance company. They seemed to have the best rates so I stuck with them for many years. I didn't really know much about USAA at the time. So I continued paying what I thought were reasonable rates.
I must admit, I was happy (ignorance is bliss) with that "other" company for the eight years or so that I was a customer. I was very happy until I hit a patch of ice on a freeway in northern Virginia and rolled my Jeep a few times.
The company I was with sent me a check right away, made rental car arrangements for me, and settled the matter very quickly. I was very impressed.
When I went shopping for a new car, I would call the company for insurance quotes for every car I was interested in. I was very pleased to learn that my rates would not change very much since the accident.
I finally settled on a new car. I called the insurance company and got a quote. It was not much higher than the premium I was paying for my Jeep. So I purchased the car.
When I got my first insurance bill, it was almost $400 higher than the monthly quote I had gotten. I contacted the company and was told that I now had to pay for the accident that I had. They said that once I paid for the accident that I had, they would "consider" readjusting my rate.
I was furious. What have I been paying for all those years? Needless to say, I started shopping around.
An old Army friend who was still on active duty, told me about USAA. So I called and got some information and found that the same coverage was a fraction of what I was paying before my accident.
Basically, USAA saved me about $140 per month for the same level of coverage. Hopefully I will never have a claim but if I do, I feel like I won't get jerked around quite as much as I did with a company that focuses more on amphibious mascots than customer service.
