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Ava Lynch

Insurance Analyst

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  • 7+ years of Experience in the Insurance Industry

Ava joined The Zebra as a writer and licensed insurance agent in 2016. She now works as a senior insurance contributor, providing insights and data a…

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Renata Balasco

Senior Content Strategist

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  • Licensed Insurance Agent — Property and Casualty

Renata joined The Zebra in 2020 as a Customer Experience Agent. Since 2021, she has worked as licensed insurance professional and content strategist.…

Who has the cheapest auto insurance for the Air Force?

While you might be contractually obligated to the Air Force, you’re not with your car insurance companies. You’re free to leave your current insurance company if you find a better rate elsewhere. So, in order to see which company is actually the cheapest for car insurance, we created a user profile in which the insured individual was in the Air Force. Let’s see the results.
Cheap Car Insurance for the Air Force
Company Annual Premium for the Air Force Annual Premium for Other Occupation
Allstate $1,532 $1,574
GEICO $1,362 $1,420
Farmers $1,334 $1,358
Nationwide $1,246 $1,286
Progressive $1,402 $1,456
State Farm $1,414 $1,496
USAA $1,426 $1,480

Being an Airman or Airwoman can save you $50 annually (the greatest discount available based solely on your occupation). Although a discount is always nice to have, it’s important to focus on the bigger picture. While Nationwide offers the smallest discount for Air Force personnel, the company's overall premium is the cheapest. While discounts are nice, be sure to look at the overall premium when shopping for Air Force car insurance.

Get auto insurance for Air Force members today!

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Handling auto insurance during deployment

Deployment in the air force can lead to some unique car insurance situations. If you’re living away from your vehicle and no one is using it, you may be tempted to cancel your car insurance policy. But it’s a little more complicated than that. Let’s break down your auto insurance and vehicle registration options.

 

Registration

Most states require two things when it comes to your vehicle: registration with the DMV and state-minimum car insurance coverage. While it makes sense to cancel your auto insurance when you won't be using your vehicle, you actually run the risk of having your registration suspended. This could result in a fine.

If you’re going to be deployed for a long period of time and want to cancel your auto insurance, you either need to cancel your registration or, if your state allows, “suspend” it. You can suspend coverage by submitting an Affidavit of Non-Use or a Planned Non-Operation (PNO) to your state’s department of motor vehicles. If you agree to an Affidavit of Non-Use, you’re basically agreeing that the vehicle won’t be driven on public roadways, and stating its insurance has been canceled. The latter means you will not be using your vehicle during the next renewal year. For more information on this, refer to your state's DMV.

If you don’t want to totally cancel your insurance coverage and registration, a second option is storage coverage.

contract

Storage coverage

If your insurance company allows it, you can change your insurance coverage to "storage." This will drop all your insurance coverage except for your comprehensive coverage, which protects you against damage caused by vandalism, theft, and weather-caused damage. Because it doesn’t offer any protection against collision claims, you’re going to want to store your vehicle in a secured location like an air force base or a garage.

Because this type of coverage may not comply with your state’s registration and insurance laws, be wary of registration-related deadlines. If your registration is up for renewal soon, you should wait until it passes to add this coverage. However, if your state actively monitors registration — looking at you, Texas — you might not be able to do this.

 

Where to buy cheap car insurance for Air Force personnel

There are a lot of insurance companies that offer special accommodations for those in the Air Force. Some have programs built entirely around past and present military members, and others reward your service with discounted rates.
usaa
USAA

The most notable provider of car insurance for Air Force members is USAA. The insurance company's clientele consists exclusively of active or retired military members as well as adult children or surviving spouses of USAA members. USAA is ranked pretty high in customer satisfaction, earning second in the JP Power Insurance Shopping Rating Survey for 2017 overall satisfaction rate. Available nationwide, USAA offers a few additional discounts. If you garage your vehicle on a secured military base, USAA offers 15% off. If you’re deployed and storing your vehicle in a secured location, you can receive up to 90% off your rate.

GEICO
GEICO

Many insurance companies offer special accommodations for those in the Air Force. Some have programs built entirely around past and present military members, and others recognize your Air Force status and reward these customers with a discounted rate.


Additional resources and ways to save

No matter what your job is, you’re probably paying more for auto insurance than you’d like. Below are some additional ways to save on auto insurance.

  • Double check for multi-policy: keep all your insurance policies within one insurance company can help reduce the number of insurance companies you have to do with as well as give you a discount. Consider this if you have a renters/homeowners/or life policy.
  • Get life insurance: Some auto insurers offer life insurance either through them or a subsidiary. If they do, this will usually give you multi-policy as well.
  • Shop around: The very best way to make sure you're getting the cheapest rate is to double check for these types of discounts, but also to shop around every six months. Only with us can you shop hundreds of companies at once to find the best rate and coverage for you.

If you're in the market for homeowners insurance, check out our guide to homeowners insurance for military and veterans.

Save an average of $440 a year by comparing your options.

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About The Zebra

The Zebra is not an insurance company. We publish data-backed, expert-reviewed resources to help consumers make more informed insurance decisions.

  • The Zebra’s insurance content is written and reviewed for accuracy by licensed insurance agents.
  • The Zebra’s insurance editorial content is not subject to review or alteration by insurance companies or partners.
  • The Zebra’s editorial team operates independently of the company’s partnerships and commercialization interests, publishing unbiased information for consumer benefit.
  • The auto insurance rates published on The Zebra’s pages are based on a comprehensive analysis of car insurance pricing data, evaluating more than 83 million insurance rates from across the United States.