State reviewed some of USAA’s auto claims after finding 445 claim complaints from consumers, confirms 19 violations
Olympia, Wash.—Washington state Insurance Commissioner Patty Kuderer has fined USAA $140,000 for unfair or deceptive acts or practices in how it handled auto claims.
In June 2024, the Office of the Insurance Commissioner (OIC) reviewed some of USAA’s auto claims after finding 445 claim complaints from consumers between 2019 and 2024. The OIC reviewed 125 complaints filed from January 2023 to April 2024 and found at least one potential law or rule violation on 31 of the associated auto claims.
USAA confirmed 19 of those violations, which included:
- Not responding to consumers and acting timely on their claims (11 violations).
- Not using reasonable standards and investigating consumers’ claims within the legal timeframe (11 violations).
- Not completing investigations of claims within the 30-day legal timeframe (four violations).
- Refusing to pay claims without a reasonable investigation (five violations).
- Failing to include all applicable taxes and fees in a claim settlement (one violation).
- Not letting a consumer know they needed more time to determine if their claim should be accepted (one violation).
After the OIC reviewed a complaint in March 2024 and found the company didn’t include the applicable taxes and fees in its settlement offer, the OIC requested information on how many of USAA’s total loss settlements over the previous two years had the same issue.
The company reviewed its data and issued payments on 158 claims, totaling $88,241, within two months of the review. USAA also reported that it corrected the issue to prevent it from happening again.
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