Veterans and active military personnel often get great rates on car insurance. This is because several car insurance companies offer discounted rates to them and their immediate families. USAA is an insurance company which only insures current and former members of the military as well as their immediate families. They are known for their great rates, excellent customer service, and high claims satisfaction rating. However, there are several other auto insurance companies which can compete for offering great rates to veterans. Therefore, it is important for service men and women to explore all of their options to find the best rates.
>>MORE: Car Insurance Discounts For Active Military and Veterans
USAA
USAA is the best auto insurance company for active military personnel. Not only does USAA offer low rates, it offers discounts for garaging your car on a military base if you a going to be deployed. Furthermore, according to J.D. Power, USAA has the highest claims satisfaction rating of any major auto insurance company. Recently, however, some complaints about their service has started to appear on their message boards.
USAA car insurance is only available for current and former military personnel and their immediately families. Family members who can get USAA insurance include widows and single former spouses of military members. Additionally, if one of your parents is a current or former member of USAA, you can obtain insurance through the company. Although you may not hear as much about the company as other car insurance companies, USAA is a very solid company financially with almost 12 million members and $29 billion worth of assets. The average rate for USAA auto insurance customers is $2,542.
USAA offers additional discounts to active military personnel. The company offers a 15% discount for storing your car on base. If you are deployed, you can get up to a 60% discount on your car insurance in all states but California, Hawaii, North Carolina, and Virginia.
To help you decide on what to do with your car insurance if you are about to be deployed, USAA also offers financial guides to its members. Because of the substantial discounts that USAA offers to deployed service members it may be the best auto insurance company for active service members.
>>MORE: Best Military Discounts and Cars for Veterans
Armed Forces Insurance – AFI
Another insurance company to consider is Armed Forces Insurance or AFI. Like USAA, AFI caters to active and former military and their families. It offers car insurance in 10 states. In addition, you can go through this company to get a discounted car insurance policy from Progressive in 28 other states. You can contact the company at 1-800-637-5728.
In addition to car insurance, AFI offers renters insurance, homeowners, insurance, business insurance and umbrella insurance. It has an A.M. Best financial strength rating of B++.
GEICO
GEICO is another auto insurance company that active members of the military and their families may want to consider. Unlike USAA and AFI, GEICO is not specifically for active and former members of the military. However, GEICO does offer some discounts and perks that allow it to rival USAA and AFI. GEICO offers a 15% military discount to current and former members of the armed forces. Additionally, it is important to note that GEICO’s premiums tend to be on the low side. The average yearly rate for GEICO customers is $3,208. This does not include the military discount. In fact, when you add the military discount, your rate may be lower than what you get from USAA.
GEICO has a Military Center to help military service members with their car insurance. This center is located in Virginia Beach, Virginia and you can call 1-800-MILITARY to get in touch with them. If you are about to be deployed, GEICO offers financial guides similar to USAA to help you decide on the best option for your car insurance. Nonetheless, GEICO’s discount for deployed service members is only 25% off the premium which is substantially less than that of USAA.
Arbella
For Massachusetts residents who are in the military, you can get car insurance from Arbella. Arbella is a small insurance company that only offers insurance in Massachusetts and Connecticut. If you live in Massachusetts and are a member of the armed forces who is deployed 100 miles away from your car, you can get a 10% discount on the premiums. It is important to note, however, that the claims satisfaction rating for this company is below the industry average according to J.D. Power.
One nice thing about Arbella, however, is that it has drive-in claims centers throughout its service areas.
The General
If you live in Louisiana and are a current member of the armed forces, you may want to consider auto insurance from The General. This auto insurance company offers a discount for military personnel. The General has an A.M. Best financial strength rating of A. Moreover, The General is an auto insurance company which is best for those with a problematic driving history which includes accidents.
Esurance
Esurance is one company that allows current military service members to cancel and reinstate coverage rather easily without considering it to be a lapse in car insurance coverage. This can help to keep car insurance rates low for military service members who get deployed because a lapse in coverage can lead to significantly higher rates once you try to reobtain car insurance. It is important to note, however, that this company does not offer any other military discounts.
Special Services for Veterans and Active Military Personnel
Some auto insurance companies will significantly reduce the rates for military personal if they get deployed. If your car is parked in a secure location such as on the military base, both USAA and GEICO will reduce the rate significantly. The way in which the rate tends to be reduces is by cancelling all other types of car insurance you have for yourself and your vehicle other than comprehensive which protects your car from damage and theft.
If the location is secure enough, you can suspend your GEICO car insurance when you are deployed so that you do not have to pay a car insurance premium at all. This may be a little risky considering there is still the possibility that some damage may occur to your car even if you are not there to drive it.
Furthermore, organizations such as Veterans for Foreign Wars and/or the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America may be able to find veterans great discounted rates on car insurance.
More Discounts You May Be Eligible For
To get the best rates on car insurance, you should shop around for the auto insurance companies that offer you the most discounts even if they are not specifically reserved for military personnel.
Other discounts for which you may qualify include:
- Multi-policy discounts – if you find an insurance company that offers good rates on auto, home, and life insurance or other insurance that you need, try bundling your insurance. Some companies offer significant discounts if you have more than one policy with the company.
- Multiple Vehicle Discount – In order to get the best rate on car insurance, you should try to insure all the vehicles in your household with the same company. This will reduce the individual rates for each vehicle.
- Safe Driver Discount – if you have not had any violation or accidents in a while, you may qualify for this discount which is offered by most auto insurance companies.
- Additionally, car insurance companies such as USAA offer discounts for owning a new vehicle.
- Good student discounts are also available from most car insurance companies.
You should check out all the discounts that the auto insurance companies you are considering have to offer to see how they affect your rate before choosing an insurance company.
Current service members may want to stick to an insurance company such as USAA, GEICO, or AFI which specifically cater to service members (or has a department that does so in the case of GEICO). This will make handling your car insurance easier if you are deployed. It is important to keep in mind, that USAA offers a number of other services for current and former military members as well. Veterans, on the other hand, may want to consider all discounts that are available from different auto insurance companies to see which companies give them the best rate.