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USAA SafePilot® driving scores and discounts

Learn how we calculate your driving score and discount.

What determines my discount?

Your discount is based on a driving score and whether all eligible drivers on your policy are participating in USAA SafePilot.

Driving score

Your driving score shows how safe you’re driving, with 100 being the best. The USAA DriveSafeTM App automatically tracks your trips, mileage and infractions to calculate your score.

If multiple drivers are participating, everyone’s scores are averaged together to calculate a discount.

Eligible drivers

To earn the maximum 30% discount, all eligible drivers on your policy must participate.

For example, If only 1 driver participates on a policy with 2 eligible drivers, the maximum discount is 15% instead of 30%.

Driving scores and their discounts

Discounts can vary. But here are some estimates to give you an idea of what you might save based on your driving score.

Driving score range

87 to 100

Policy discount range

30%

Driving score range

73 to 86

Policy discount range

14% to 29%

Driving score range

65 to 72

Policy discount range

3% to 13%

Driving score range

Below 64

Policy discount range

1%

Driving scores and their discounts

Discounts can vary. But here are some estimates to give you an idea of what you might save based on your driving score.

Driving score range
Policy discount range

87 to 100

30%

73 to 86

14% to 29%

65 to 72

3% to 13%

Below 64

1%

Discounts can vary. But here are some estimates to give you an idea of what you might save based on your driving score.

Driving score range

87 to 100

Policy discount range

30%

Driving score range

73 to 86

Policy discount range

14% to 29%

Driving score range

65 to 72

Policy discount range

3% to 13%

Driving score range

Below 64

Policy discount range

1%

Things that affect your driving score

Score requirement

Each participant needs to drive at least 325 miles and 16 hours before the lock period starts. This is when we process your discount before renewal.

The lock period usually starts 50 days before your policy renews, but it varies by state.

Phone handling

This is any time you touch the screen, send a text, or use your phone for apps, music or directions. A passenger using your phone will show as phone handling too.

Making and answering calls

This includes handheld and hands-free calls using your speaker or Bluetooth®. These are tracked separately as Handheld Calling and Hands-Free Calling in the USAA DriveSafe App.

Harsh braking

This is a sharp decrease in speed over a short distance. It’s common and sometimes out of your control.

Policy renewal

Your driving score resets to 100 at the start of each new auto policy period.

How infractions and annualized hours make up your driving score

The USAA DriveSafe App automatically captures distracted and unsafe driving infractions, which lower your score the more you have.

Your score is based on trends over hundreds of miles, so one infraction shouldn’t dramatically affect it.

34% is all phone infractions

These infractions include any phone-handling distractions, like texting, using apps, and both hands-free and handheld calls.

33% is harsh braking infractions

Slowing down too quickly or going over speed bumps or potholes can force you to brake harshly.

33% is annualized hours driven

This is a projection of how much you’d drive in a year based on your current policy term.

Tips for improving your score

Your score updates after most trips within a few minutes, but it can take up to a day to reflect changes.

Secure your phone.

Your phone can move around in a cup holder or glove box and trigger phone handling. Put it where it won’t shift and set up apps like Apple CarPlay or Android Auto before you start driving.

Put your phone on do-not-disturb mode.

Some things may require you to answer a call, but keep them to a minimum to get the highest possible driving score.

Try to avoid harsh braking.

Slow down earlier and over a longer distance. Leave more space between you and the other cars. Going over speed bumps or potholes too fast can also show as harsh braking.

Drive less when you can.

In general, driving less could help increase your score, but don’t worry if you can’t do that. As long as your score is at least 87, you qualify for the maximum discount.

Change your trip status if the app got it wrong.

If you were a passenger but the app thought you were driving, you may find infractions that could affect your score. Check your trips and correct them if needed within 14 days in the app’s Trip History.

SafePilot driving scores and discounts FAQ

After you enroll in the USAA SafePilot program, we’ll apply a participation discount of up to 10% to your auto insurance policy.

If you’re new to the program, you must have driven at least 325 miles and 16 hours before your first score and discount will show in the app.

We’ll apply the earned discount from qualified drivers to your policy’s next term at renewal and remove their participation discount. You can find the policy term’s effective date in the USAA DriveSafe App on the Policy Discount tab.

No. Your driving score won’t have any negative impact on your auto insurance rate. We’ll only use it to calculate your discount.

Your rate could change based on other things not related to your participation in USAA SafePilot.

It could be. Your discount depends on 2 factors:

  1. The number of eligible drivers on your policy who are enrolled in the USAA SafePilot program. If eligible drivers aren’t enrolled, your participation discount will reflect that.
  2. The scores of the drivers enrolled in the SafePilot program. If you add an eligible driver, we’ll factor their driving score into the overall score.

Participation discount:

  • You can get up to a 10% discount just by enrolling and participating in the program.
  • If everyone on your policy joins, you get the full 10%.
  • If some drivers don’t join, the discount is less.
  • This discount lasts for 365 days or until we gather enough info to calculate your earned discount, whichever comes first. 

Earned discount: 

  • With the USAA SafePilot program, you can earn up to a 30% total policy discount.
  • A few weeks before your policy renews, we lock your score to calculate the earned discount for the next policy period.
  • We start this process early to meet state requirements.
  • To get the largest possible earned discount, each participating driver needs to have driven at least 325 miles and 16 hours by the score lock date.

If you don’t meet the minimum driving requirements for the earned discount but haven’t been in the program for 365 days, you still get the participation discount.