The United Services Automobile A-sociation (USAA) is a San Antonio-based Fortune 500 diversified financial services group of companies including a Texas Department of Insurance-regulated reciprocal inter-insurance exchange and subsidiaries offering banking, investing, and insurance to people and families who serve, or served, in the United States Armed Forces.[7][8] At the end of 2020, it had more than 13 million members.[9]
USAA was founded in 1922 in San Antonio by a group of 25 U.S. Army officers as a mechanism for mutual self-insurance when they were unable to secure auto insurance because of the perception that they, as military officers, were a high-risk group.[10][11] USAA has since expanded to offer banking and insurance services to past and present members of the Armed Forces, officers and enlisted, and their families. The company ranked No. 96th in the 2020 Fortune 500 list of the largest United States corporations by total revenue[12] and appeared on Fortune's 2021 Blue Ribbon list of companies, placing No. 355 on the Fortune Global 500, No. 94 on the Fortune 500, No. 55 on the 100 Best Companies to Work For and World’s Most Admired Companies.[13]
The organization was originally called the United States Army Automobile A-sociation. In 1924, the name was changed to United Services Automobile A-sociation, when commissioned officers of other U.S. military services became eligible for membership. The company was formed based on a meeting of twenty-five United States Army Officers on June 20, 1922, at the Gunter Hotel in San Antonio, Texas, to discuss the procurement of reliable and economical auto insurance. Despite initial success, by the late 1920s a dispute between competing factions for control of the company threatened its long term viability.[14] The issue was resolved when feuding members agreed to hire a leader from outside, resulting in the 1928 appointment of Major General Ernest Hinds as general manager and secretary-treasurer.[14] Hinds provided stability and remained in the position until his 1941 death.[14]
USAA is a pioneer of the concept of direct marketing; most of its business is conducted over the Internet or telephone using employees instead of agents. Until the 1960s, the bulk of its business was conducted via mail. In the late 1960s, USAA began a transition from mail to phone-based sales and service. It launched a toll-free number in 1978, and Internet sales and service in June 1999 via its website.[17]
USAA offered restricted membership to civilians between September 2009 and August 2013. This membership provided access to USAA's investment products, most bank deposit products, and life insurance. Auto and property insurance policies were not included for non-military members due to eligibility restrictions.[18]
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