12+ years writing about insurance and personal finance
Emily is a widely recognized expert on personal finance and has authored several personal finance books. She’s a frequent guest on national and regional media.
3+ years producing insurance and personal finance content
Main architect of the Insurify Quality Score
Courtney’s deep personal finance knowledge extends beyond insurance to credit cards, consumer lending, and banking. She thrives on creating actionable content.
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Although USA Underwriters originally started as the Southern Michigan Mutual Insurance Company in 1862 — well before the invention of the automobile — this insurance company is committed to providing quick insurance options to Michigan drivers.
This insurer is only available in Michigan, which means it’s well-situated to help drivers navigate the Wolverine State’s complex and sometimes confusing insurance regulations. Here’s what you need to know about USA Underwriters car insurance to help you decide if it has the right coverage for you.
Quick Facts
The average cost of USA Underwriters car insurance is $239 a month for liability insurance and $330 a month for full coverage.
USA Underwriters offers same-day insurance coverage.
Drivers must call an agent to get a USA Underwriters quote or submit a claim.
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What is USA Underwriters auto insurance?
USA Underwriters offers traditional car insurance coverage. This means you pay premiums to the company in exchange for insurance coverage. If you get into an accident or otherwise need to make a claim for a covered issue, your USA Underwriters policy will pay for the damages, up to your coverage limit.
Despite having a 160-year history in Michigan insurance, USA Underwriters may feel like a new addition to the auto insurance industry since the company has only been operating under that name since 2013.[1] As a small, regional auto insurer, USA Underwriters requires customers to work with an insurance agent or call the company to get a quote, rather than offering free quotes online.
The company aims to offer affordable policies and same-day coverage to price-conscious drivers. In particular, USA Underwriters has coverage options to fit high-risk drivers, who may struggle to find coverage from other insurers.
USA Underwriters pros and cons
Pros
Based in Michigan: As a local insurance company, USA Underwriters can help drivers navigate the state’s insurance rules.
Same-day insurance coverage: Drivers who need insurance quickly can get same-day coverage.
Covers high-risk drivers: If you have a spotty driving record or need an SR-22, USA Underwriters can potentially offer you coverage.
Cons
High premium costs: USA Underwriters’ average premiums are much higher than national averages.
No online quotes: Customers must contact an insurance agent for a quote.
No discounts listed online: To find out if you’re eligible for any discounts, you’ll have to contact an insurance agent.
Average cost of USA Underwriters auto insurance
The average monthly cost of USA Underwriters insurance is $330 for full coverage and $239 for liability-only coverage. This is much higher than the national average monthly cost of $211 for full coverage and $104 for liability-only coverage.
However, considering the high cost of insurance in Michigan, it may be helpful to compare USA Underwriters’ premium costs to the state average rather than the national average. The average cost of car insurance in Michigan is $309 per month for full coverage and $173 for liability coverage.
This means that USA Underwriters auto insurance is significantly more than both the state average and the national average cost of auto insurance.
USA Underwriters car insurance coverage
USA Underwriters offers the standard state-minimum required liability insurance. However, it only offers two other add-ons:
Collision coverage
Collision coverage will pay to repair or replace your vehicle if it’s damaged in an accident, no matter who’s at fault.
Comprehensive coverage
Comprehensive coveragewill pay to repair or replace your vehicle after a non-collision event, such as vandalism, theft, falling objects, and severe weather.
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USA Underwriters auto insurance rates by driving history
Your driving history is one of the major factors that insurers use to determine your premiums. A driver with a clean driving record will generally pay less for auto insurance than a driver with a history of speeding tickets, at-fault accidents, or DUI citations.[2]
USA Underwriters welcomes drivers with less-than-perfect driving histories, but such drivers can still expect to pay more for their monthly auto insurance premiums than drivers with clean records. Here’s the monthly average cost for auto insurance with USA Underwriters for people with different driving histories.
Driving History
▲▼
Average Quote: Full Coverage
▲▼
Average Quote: Liability Only
▲▼
Clean record
$306
$222
With speeding ticket
$411
$297
With at-fault accident
$438
$317
With DUI
$475
$344
Disclaimer: Table data sourced from real-time quotes from Insurify's 50-plus partner insurance providers. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer's unique driver profile.
USA Underwriters car insurance cost by age
Insurance companies have found that age is a factor in the likelihood of a driver making an auto insurance claim. Young drivers, especially teenagers, tend to engage in riskier behavior behind the wheel compared to their older counterparts.[3]
That’s why the average monthly cost of USA Underwriters car insurance will vary depending on the age of the insured driver. Here are the monthly average quotes for USA Underwriters full-coverage insurance by age group.
Age Group
▲▼
Average Monthly Quote
▲▼
Teens
$554
20s
$392
30s
$310
40s
$293
50s
$257
60s
$241
70s
$244
Disclaimer: Table data sourced from real-time quotes from Insurify's 50-plus partner insurance providers. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer's unique driver profile.
How to get a USA Underwriters car insurance quote from Insurify
Though USA Underwriters requires drivers to contact an agent to get a car insurance quote, you can also submit a quote request through Insurify. Requesting quotes through Insurify allows you to compare USA Underwriters insurance with other companies.
Here’s how to submit your quote request:
Navigate to Insurify’s quote tool. Start the process by entering your ZIP code and clicking the “Get my quotes” button. Answer a few questions about yourself, including your age, driving history, and more.
Provide vehicle information. Enter information for the vehicles you want to insure under your policy.
Enter your contact information. Enter your address, email, and phone number.
Compare quotes. Compare real-time quotes from multiple top insurance companies to find the best one for your needs.
USA Underwriters car insurance discounts
The USA Underwriters website doesn’t list the discounts available to customers, but it does encourage consumers to reach out to an authorized independent agent to find out which discounts are available.
USA Underwriters insurance bundling options
Generally, bundling discounts help consumers save money when they purchase both auto insurance and either home insurance or renters insurance from the same company. USA Underwriters only offers auto insurance and doesn’t appear to offer any bundling discounts or options.
USA Underwriters insurance reviews and ratings
Relatively few customer and industry reviews of USA Underwriters are available online, which is unsurprising considering the company only serves Michigan drivers. That makes it all the more important to pay close attention to how third-party agencies rate USA Underwriters.
USA Underwriters customer reviews
Unfortunately, there are no reviews of USA Underwriters on Trustpilot and only four complaints listed on the Better Business Bureau website. Each of the four complaints seems to be concerned about a lack of clarity or communication from the company, particularly about the non-refundable membership fee, which isn’t explained on the website.
Unfortunately, there are no positive reviews available to compare to these four negative reviews.
USA Underwriters ratings
Insurance industry rating agencies can help consumers understand the financial strength of a company, as well as levels of customer satisfaction. Because of the relative size of USA Underwriters, however, three major rating agencies — AM Best, Standard & Poor’s, and Moody’s — haven’t yet rated this insurer’s financial stability.
AM Best: Not rated
Better Business Bureau: A-
Standard & Poor’s: Not rated
Moody’s: Not rated
NAIC Complaint Index: 3.92
USA Underwriters vs. other insurance companies
Consumers have a great deal of choice available to them in the car insurance market, which means it’s always smart to compare options before purchasing a policy. If you’re considering auto insurance coverage from USA Underwriters, make sure you compare quotes with several other insurers, including the following:
Insurance Company
▲▼
Liability Only
▲▼
Full Coverage
▲▼
IQ Score
The Insurify Quality (IQ) Score uses more than 15 criteria to objectively rate insurance companies on a one-to-ten scale. The Insurify editorial team researches insurer data to determine the final scores.
▲▼
USA Underwriters
$239
$330
N/A
Liberty Mutual
$138
$254
7.7
GEICO
$55
$121
9.0
Travelers
$89
$194
9.0
Disclaimer: Table data sourced from real-time quotes from Insurify's 50-plus partner insurance providers and quote estimates from Quadrant Information Services. Actual quotes may vary based on the policy buyer's unique driver profile.
Our editorial team spent more than 350 hours developing the Insurify Quality (IQ) Score and scoring insurance companies. The IQ Score objectively analyzes and calculates a score for insurers using more than 15 crucial criteria. The team weighted criteria by importance to the consumer — factors such as customer reviews and affordability influence the score more than availability and third-party ratings.
We rate each company on a 1 to 10 scale based on five categories: financial ratings, customer satisfaction, affordability, customer support and transparency, and availability. Insurify updates ratings once a year or as more recent information becomes available.
Third-party financial ratings: Insurify uses data from AM Best, S&P, Moody’s, and more to compare insurance companies’ credit and ability to pay out future claims.
Customer satisfaction: To calculate this score, Insurify analyzed more than 28,000 customer reviews across 155 car insurance companies. We also consider third-party ratings from J.D. Power, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, and Trustpilot.
Affordability: Our data scientists analyzed more than 90 million real-time auto insurance rates from our partners across the U.S., as well as available discounts, to calculate an affordability score.
Customer support and transparency: This measures coverage options, ease of claims filing, and the insurer's transparency surrounding discounts, coverages, and claims process.
Availability and reach: Insurify scores availability and reach by identifying the number of states in which insurers offer coverage and company size by market share.
USA Underwriters vs. Liberty Mutual
Based out of Boston, Massachusetts, Liberty Mutual is a national insurer that offers a number of insurance products in addition to auto insurance. This means that Michigan drivers may be able to save money just by bundling their insurance policies with Liberty Mutual.
Liberty Mutual may appear to have a much lower average monthly cost than USA Underwriters — $138 for liability-only coverage and $254 for full coverage. However, the listed monthly premium is a national average. The average monthly premium for Liberty Mutual in Michigan is $${AUTO_CARRIER_LIBERTY-MUTUAL_LIABILITY_STATE_MI_PRICE} for liability coverage and $${AUTO_CARRIER_LIBERTY-MUTUAL_FULL_STATE_MI_PRICE} for full coverage.
This company offers a number of additional coverage options that drivers can’t get from USA Underwriters, including 24-hour roadside assistance, rental car reimbursement, accident forgiveness, and gap coverage. Drivers interested in any of these specialty coverage options may find Liberty Mutual is a better fit than USA Underwriters, which doesn’t offer any specialty coverage.
USA Underwriters vs. GEICO
GEICO is the third-largest private passenger auto insurance company in the United States, making it a much larger company than USA Underwriters. GEICO’s size means it can offer a lot more customer care, including 24/7 access to customer service, as well as an easy-to-use website and highly rated app. Additionally, drivers getting insurance through GEICO can also bundle other policies with their auto insurance.
The national average cost of premiums for GEICO is significantly cheaper than USA Underwriters’ averages. GEICO drivers pay $55 per month for liability-only coverage and $121 per month for full coverage, on average.
Drivers with a clean driving record may find GEICO is a better option for them than USA Underwriters. GEICO’s prices are lower for such drivers, and it has many discounts and other ways to save.
USA Underwriters vs. Travelers
At more than 165 years old, Travelers has been around for slightly longer than the 161-year-old USA Underwriters. This large national insurance company offers a huge number of insurance products to choose from, like auto, home, renters, pet, wedding, and umbrella insurance. This makes Travelers much more of a one-stop shop for drivers looking to take care of all their insurance needs under a single roof.
The average national cost of Travelers auto insurance is $89 per month for liability-only coverage and $194 per month for full coverage. This insurer also offers 12 discounts drivers can potentially qualify for to help reduce their premium costs.
If you need a robust selection of coverage options and potential discounts, Travelers may be a better choice for you than USA Underwriters.
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How to file an auto insurance claim with USA Underwriters
If you’re in a car accident, you can file an auto insurance claim to get your insurer to pay for your damages, minus any deductibles. To file a claim with USA Underwriters, you’ll need to follow these steps:
Gather the necessary information. Gather as much information as you can about the incident, including your policy number, dates and times, witness contact information, photos of the damage, names of involved parties, and more.
Call 1 (855) 230-1656. You’ll need to start the claim process over the phone with a USA Underwriter representative.
Work with the claims adjuster. Once you submit your claim, USA Underwriters assigns a claims adjuster to your case to resolve your claim, guide you through the process, and answer any questions you might have.
USA Underwriters insurance FAQs
Still not sure if USA Underwriters is the right auto insurance company for you? Check out the answers to these frequently asked questions to help you decide.
Is USA Underwriters legitimate?
USA Underwriters is a legitimate auto insurance company with a long history. However, its small size and geographic footprint means it has limited reviews and ratings. That doesn’t mean the company is financially unstable, but there’s no independent third-party rating of its stability.
Additionally, although the company doesn’t appear to be involved in any shady practices, several of the negative reviews about USA Underwriters on the Better Business Bureau website mention a $150 membership fee, which isn’t disclosed anywhere on the website. This may also give potential customers pause.
Is USA Underwriters car insurance worth it?
If you have a clean record, you’ll likely find cheaper premiums from other companies. But if you have a spotty driving history and live in Michigan, USA Underwriters may be a good fit for you.
What is the average cost of USA Underwriters car insurance?
The average monthly cost of liability-only insurance with USA Underwriters is $239. The average monthly cost for full coverage is $330.
Who owns USA Underwriters insurance?
USA Underwriters insurance was founded in 1862 as the Southern Michigan Mutual Insurance Company. It’s a Michigan-based insurer that only serves drivers in its home state.
Who should get USA Underwriters insurance?
USA Underwriters specializes in insurance policies for higher-risk drivers. That means its insurance products may be best suited to drivers with speeding tickets, at-fault accidents, or DUIs rather than drivers with clean records.
Is USA Underwriters good at paying claims?
AM Best hasn’t rated USA Underwriters, and the insurance company has no third-party reviews of its ability to pay claims. Plus, the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) complaint index for USA Underwriters is 3.92, which is much higher than expected for a company its size, suggesting that customers tend to have more complaints.
Methodology
Insurify data scientists analyzed more than 90 million quotes served to car insurance applicants in Insurify’s proprietary database to calculate the premium averages displayed on this page. These premiums are real quotes that come directly from Insurify’s 50+ partner insurance companies in all 50 states and Washington, D.C. Quote averages represent the median price for a quote across the given coverage level, driver subset, and geographic area.
Unless otherwise specified, quoted rates reflect the average cost for drivers between 20 and 70 years old with a clean driving record and average or better credit (a credit score of 600 or higher).
Liability-only premium averages correspond to policies with the following coverage limits:
Bodily injury limits between state-minimum rates and $50,000 per person, $100,000 per accident
Property damage limits between $10,000 and $50,000
No additional coverage
Full-coverage premium averages correspond to the same bodily injury and property damage limits in addition to:
Comprehensive coverage with a $1,000 deductible
Collision coverage with a $1,000 deductible
Quotes for Allstate, Farmers, GEICO, State Farm, and USAA are estimates based on Quadrant Information Services’ database of auto insurance rates.
Emily Guy Birken is a former educator, lifelong money nerd, and a Plutus Award-winning freelance writer who specializes in the scientific research behind irrational money behaviors. Her background in education allows her to make complex financial topics relatable and easily understood by the layperson.
Her work has appeared on The Huffington Post, Business Insider, Kiplinger's, MSN Money, and The Washington Post online.
She is the author of several books, including The 5 Years Before You Retire, End Financial Stress Now, and the brand new book Stacked: Your Super Serious Guide to Modern Money Management, written with Joe Saul-Sehy.
3+ years producing insurance and personal finance content
Main architect of the Insurify Quality Score
Courtney’s deep personal finance knowledge extends beyond insurance to credit cards, consumer lending, and banking. She thrives on creating actionable content.