Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Did You Serve Honorably?

I'm from a long line of people who have served in various branches of the US military. Though I never enlisted myself, I still benefit from my father's service in that I'm a member of USAA. This is a private banking and insurance agency that is known for top-notch customer service, and also for being run on a non-profit basis. As the child of a USAA member, I've always been eligible. It's one of the few military benefits that those who serve can pass on to their children. I've found it to be extremely worthwhile, since their homeowner's and auto insurance rates and policies can't be beat. I also use their totally, 100% free banking services. Anytime I have a question or concern, I can call USAA and quickly get a real, live, competant, polite human being on the phone to help me. I couldn't be happier with USAA, and I don't say that lightly.

The reason I'm posting about USAA is that they recently changed their eligibility rules. It used to be that active duty military personnel could enroll anytime, and then there was a window of opportunity after discharge. After a certain amount of time had passed after discharge, you could no longer enroll, though the children of any USAA member could enroll at any time. Now USAA has opened eligibility to anyone who served honorably in any branch of the US military.

If this applies to you and you're not a USAA member, I urge you to consider becoming one. We save a lot of money and hassle with the services USAA provides. We just got our auto insurance dividends, and next month we'll get our annual rebate from our USAA credit card. And yes, those checks arrive at a particularly nice time of year. Even if it didn't make obvious sense from a financial perspective to use USAA for our banking and insurance, I would seriously consider paying for their services just for the outstanding level of customer service they provide. The sweet thing is, we pay less for that service. A lot less.

So if you or someone you know qualifies under the new eligibility rules, especially if that person is your spouse or parent, check out USAA. I would use any service they provide, with confidence that they would do right by me.

6 comments:

Siegfried said...

obviously us army gets popular

Unknown said...

We've had a USAA Credit Card for nearly 18 years (which we pay off monthly!). I've been very pleased with their services - including fraud alert. They were right on it. However, I have never really considered their other services. Don't know why. After the information you've given, I'll be looking into it.
Thanks for sharing.

Elsie said...

I have used USAA for years and also feel it is the best deal and the best service available hands down. The savings in car insurance alone makes it worth enrolling. Not to mention free banking. If you can do it, do it. So worthwhile!

JodieLynn said...

My husband is a Marine, and we've been with USAA since we got married. I can not say enough great things about them! Thanks for sharing that information with others, I know many people will benefit from checking into their other services. My favorite program is Total Rewards. They add points earned from debit and credit cards together. We earn points much faster that way, and save them up for Christmas gifts each year.

sv koho said...

USAA is an insurance company and to say it is better than any other insurance company is delusional. I joined after discharge as a military officer from overseas in 1975 and found them easy to work with and cooperative until the past 10 years or so. Since then I have found them deceptive and incompetent and like most insurance companies will be quick to take premiums and slow to pay out claims. Their software for online use is buggy and annoying. I still use them for some insurance but my opinion on them is that they like most insurance companies are not to be believed or trusted and if you have a significant claim with them, you will almost certainly have to hire an attorney. You are well advised to exercise due diligence and get many estimates before doing business with them. Anyone who believes that insurance companies, big banks and creditcard companies have your interests at heart needs to be on some better medication.

USAA said...

Thank you so much for your membership. Please remember that we are here to serve you 24 hours a day. You can reach us by phone at 1-800-531-8722, by dialing #USAA on your cellphone, or by contacting us online at www.usaa.com.

It is our goal to provide excellent service to our members and I apolgize if any of you have had a bad experience. Please feel free to contact me directly at socialmedia@usaa.com if there is anything I can do to help.