I'm still a customer, but the product has gone down in the last 10 years, in my view.

When I was a young 2Lt pup, USAA was an Officers-only club. Service and rates were far above anyone else. This was before they had banking, buying, credit card, and other services.

I've come to the conclusion that USAA is somewhat of a pyramid or ponzi scheme. During my first 10 years, the military was still in a big buildup, then size held for a while. When the RIFs started in the early/mid 1990s, USAA saw new membership plummet. It wasn't because of a bad product....there just weren't that many new Lts inbound! So, they made the momentous decision to allow NCOs in. I think this was in the mid to late 90s.

That move was made solely to bolster the ranks with an influx of new blood. And, it worked for a couple of years. However, once the new flood of NCOs joined, the surge in membership abated again. And now, there were even more people with claims to pay.

One of the founding premises of USAA was that Officers, by virtue of (on average) having a higher education and economic standing, would be lower insurance risks. Can't say if it is true; just that the founders believed in it.

We had several years of bad hurricane damage after that move, and I believe the increased exposure proved to be a great risk for USAA. I remember getting literature from the CEO expressing concern for record payouts. I believe they were also burned in the banking collapse (ie, defaulted home loans).

Not as good as they once were, but not sure if anything is better overall. I can't see a talking lizard, announcer with a deep baritone voice, quacking duck, cartoon hottie, or a creepy woman in a white pantsuit being any better.

If they advertise all the time, they are paying for it somehow. Probably some one's premiums.