Do I have full coverage?
“Full coverage” doesn’t actually exist on your auto policy. But your lender may use that term when you buy your car.
They usually mean coverage for physical damage like comprehensive and collision in addition to the minimum liability required by your state.
That doesn’t mean you’re fully covered for every scenario.
If limits for liability coverage fall short of your net worth, then an umbrella policy can provide extra coverage.
When should you file an auto insurance claim?
Sometimes filing a claim is optional, like when there’s minimal damage to your own vehicle and the cost to repair is less than your deductible. Or you don’t want to fix your vehicle and it’s not owned by any other party, lease or finance company.
Examples of when you should file a claim:
- Someone got injured.
- There’s substantial damage to your vehicle.
- You caused damage to someone else’s vehicle or property or to a municipality’s property.
What should I do before my policy renews?
In most cases, we’ll automatically renew your policy. You’ll need to review it and make sure it still meets your needs. You may also want to check your discounts.
We understand things change. If you’re thinking about canceling, see how we can help.
Video Duration: 2 minutes 46 seconds
It’s time to review: Elapsed time 0 minutes 0 seconds [00:00]
When it’s time to renew your auto policy, there can be a lot to keep track of. And you may have an opportunity save money down the road, too.
To help you stay on track and get the most out of your policy, let’s go over the 5 things you should do before a renewal.
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One. Review your renewal documents.
Taking a good look at everything that’s on your policy will help you know if it still meets your needs.
You can find your renewal documents on usaa.com or the USAA Mobile App.
- From your USAA Home page, select your initials. Then choose “Documents.”
- Select the Insurance folder.
- Select “Automobile Policy Renewal/Auto ID Cards (PDF).”
- This document includes a declarations page that shows your policy coverages, covered drivers and covered vehicles. You’ll find this page immediately after your ID cards.
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Two. Review your billing details.
If you want to check on your bill details or payment settings, you can find your Auto Property Insurance Statement on “My Documents.” Select the insurance folder.
To set up automatic payments or update payment amounts and dates, select “Pay Bills” on your statement.
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Three. Check your discounts.
Renewal time can be the best time to find new ways to save money or make sure your current discounts stay active.
Discounts like the Good Student discount and the Defensive Driving discount need to be updated at each renewal.
Review your coverage: Elapsed time 1 minute 29 seconds [01:29]
Four. Review your coverage.
The next thing you’ll want to do is make sure you have the right amount of liability, collision and comprehensive coverage.
Liability coverage helps you pay for losses if you’re at fault in an accident.
Collision coverage helps cover damage to your vehicle that’s caused by a collision, when you are at fault.
Finally, comprehensive coverage helps pay for damage that’s caused by something other than a collision, like a fire, vandalism or theft.
Also review liability limits to make sure it’s enough coverage to protect your assets.
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Five. Explore your options.
Sometimes rates can go up for reasons you can’t control, like an increase of claims in your area or the cost of labor and parts.
That’s why we offer a list of cost-saving options, like savings for having multiple USAA products, like banking or life products, and discounts for automatic payment plans.
If you’re driving less than you used to, you could switch to a pay as you drive policy to save money.
You can also save on your premium by getting SafePilot®. The better you drive, the bigger the discount you could earn.
Let’s finish reviewing your policy.
End: Elapsed time 2 minutes 46 seconds [02:46]
Find discounts and savings.
We offer several ways you can save. Here are a few:
- Get up to 3% off when you set up automatic payments. See note 1
- Save up to 10% with our safe driving program, USAA SafePilot. See note 2
- Save up to 10% with the Good Student Discount. See note 3
- You may save when you bundle your USAA policies.
In most states, your policy may provide coverage for rented vehicles. This coverage would go toward the cost of repairing or replacing a damaged vehicle.
You may also buy optional insurance coverage from the rental agency.
Also, if you use a credit card to pay for the rental, your credit card provider may include coverage.
For example, using a USAA credit card for a rental car gives you built-in auto rental coverage for physical damage or theft, towing and loss of use for up to 31 days around the world.
Contact your rental agency or credit card provider to find out more about their coverage options.
If you want to dig into more detail, you can read our advice about rental car insurance and coverage options.
International rental cars may not be covered.
If your policy is not based in the United States or you’ll be renting a vehicle outside the U.S., then your rental isn’t covered by your USAA Auto Insurance policy for liability and physical damage.
You can discuss your options by calling us at 800-531-USAA (8722).
If you give someone permission to drive your vehicle or someone reasonably believes they have your permission, then your policy covers them.
If someone drives your vehicle for more than 120 days, we consider them a regular driver. You’ll need to add any regular driver to your policy.
Keep in mind that there’s no coverage if a driver you let use your vehicle:
- Loans the car to another person.
- Is caught in an accident as a pedestrian.
- Gets injured as a passenger.
- Rents or borrows a vehicle not on your policy.
- Acquires a new vehicle.
If you have comprehensive coverage with your insurance policy, this covers your windshield for replacement or repair.
We encourage you to get your windshield fixed as soon as possible for your safety. You can report a glass claim online.
If you already paid for your replacement or repair and have comprehensive coverage, you may get reimbursed for a glass claim.
If your windshield must be replaced, you’re responsible for your comprehensive deductible unless you’ve bought the glass waiver, which isn’t available in all locations.
If your windshield can be repaired and you have comprehensive coverage, USAA will waive the deductible.
If your windshield damage is smaller than a dollar bill, Safelite AutoGlass may be able to repair it. Damage more than that will likely require full windshield replacement.
If you’ve stored your insured vehicle for any reason, like if you’re deployed, you could get up to 60% off.
For your vehicle to be eligible, it must not be driven for a minimum of 30 days in a row or while in storage in a secure location.
Before you drive it again, you need to call us to remove the storage status from your vehicle so you can be property insured while driving.
We note that vehicles undergoing repairs or vehicles that were declared a total loss aren’t eligible for the storage discount.
The discount comes with an amendment, or endorsement, to your policy.
Go to your auto policy summary to update a vehicle’s storage status. You can also read about storing a vehicle and other deployment advice.
You could also get a discount on your car insurance for driving less, based on the number of miles per year. See note 3