USAA loans are available to Coast Guard members as well as employees with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Corps. Most federal workers are not permitted to get this kind of loan.
With the USAA’s decision to charge interest rate on loans, its 12.8 million members are not happy with it. In fact, a good number of them have gone to social media and the agency’s website to vent their frustrations.
One person wrote that he is a longtime USAA member and former Army Officer that’s currently working at the Environmental Protection Agency but furloughed. When he requested a loan, he was told he wasn’t eligible for relief with the agency.
Another person said the agency changed but not for better. They wrote the company was watching out for its profits, not its members.
USAA serves military members, veterans and families
According to one federal agent who is working during the shutdown, his wife was told that agencies such as his could get a loan but at the standard rate.
USAA’s special loans eligible person have a 0.26 percent interest rate but drops a 0.01 percent if on the auto-payment plan.
However, Matt Hartwig, a spokesman for USAA, said the product was redesigned with the difference in flexibility for its members. He said the loans were set up to held NOAA Corps and Coast Guard through the extended shutdown as well as future shutdowns.
USAA is offering them 12 months to repay the loan; where in times past, the loan had to be paid back once the government was open and employees were paid. Hartwig said members could borrow more than they make in a single paycheck if they want.
Due to the change, many USAA members have sworn they would not do business with the company again.
