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The USAA US touring auto policy is a special auto insurance policy available to USAA members living overseas. The USAA touring policy covers you when borrowing or renting vehicles in the United States while on leave or temporary military assignment.
When I lived in the United Arab Emirates for 2 years on military assignment I cancelled my US auto insurance coverage. I had no vehicles in the States and I lived in the UAE so most of my driving was outside of the US.
I signed up for the USAA UST for me and my wife. For $2 per month or $24 per year, we received excellent auto insurance coverage when we drive friends or family vehicles or rental cars back in the US.
You should get auto insurance in the country you live locally, whether that's Germany, Japan, South Korea, the United Kingdom, or any of the other countries US servicemembers are stationed in.
The biggest savings of the US touring auto policy is on rental car insurance. Rather than paying for overpriced rental car insurance that can exceed $24 per day, you can safely decline the insurance at the rental car counter.
This can save you hundreds of dollars in just a few days of renting a car in the US.
What does the US touring auto policy cover?
| Coverage | Amount Covered | Deductible | Annual Premium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Uninsured/Underinsured Motorists Property Damage | Up to $100,000 per accident | $250 | $4 |
| Bodily Injury Liability | $300,000/$500,000 per person/per accident | $0 | $6 |
| Property Damage Liability | $100,000 per accident | $0 | $7 |
| Uninsured/Underinsured Motorists Bodily Injury | $300,000/$500,000 per person/per accident | $0 | $4 |
| Personal Injury Protection | $2,500 per person | $0 | $3 |
| Total Premium | $24 |
As you can see, you get a tremendous amount of coverage for only $24 per year. This is an awesome deal that USAA offers their members.
The USAA US Touring Auto Policy also allows you to keep your USAA umbrella insurance continue while you live overseas. Umbrella insurance is a cheap way to insure your assets once you reach a high net worth of $1 million or more.
One of the best points of this policy is that it prevents a gap in coverage. The US insurance is insane, and simply being overseas a few years will cost your lots of money, multiples on the plans, just because you have a gap in coverage. By maintaining this plan you never have a gap in coverage and maintain a near perfect driving record.
Please update your blog to note that the USAA US Touring Policy does not include comprehensive coverage. If your rental car has theft or vandalism – as mine did when a catalytic converter was stolen from my rental car – USAA will immediately deny the claim because theft is not covered. Anyone purchasing this policy needs to know they are not fully covered.
Thank you for clarifying that. I wonder if it covers damages to the rental vehicle. As it reads it seems to be like a liability policy meaning it’ll cover the third-party vehicle/property but not the rental itself. If you stack it with an AMEX platinum or Chase Sapphire Reserve, you’ll cover yourself but just curious as to if the UST will cover damages to the rental car…