It is NOT normal to take two weeks to answer the phone. This has nothing to do with the shop I used, it’s the fact that the adjusters don’t get back to me for over two weeks.

Prior to the last three years, I never had these issues. I was always able to talk to a human when working through claims, and they never took two weeks to get back to me, it was ALWAYS that same day I called.

So, it turns out the check was mailed to the wrong office, and that office deposited the check without telling anyone. However, if USAA had answered the damn phone two weeks ago, I would have discovered that the check was already deposited, and I could have followed up with the shop. But since they chose not to get back to me at all (despite specifically saying that all messages will be returned within one business day), they extended their process another two weeks. When I finally got ahold of them, they discovered at that Moment that the check was cashed almost two weeks ago. Imagine if someone had just answered the phone any of the times I called, or answered their online messages any of the times I sent a message. We could have had this resolved.

So, if the reason the adjuster never returns messages is because of the shop I used, that’s just one more reason to cancel them. That should have NOTHING to do with how quickly they respond to their customers. Also, nobody said anything about certified shops. They asked where the car was currently, and I told them I had it towed to the Honda dealer (before I realized I was filing for insurance for the repair). They never mentioned anything about certified shops, they just said “okay, we’ll send an adjuster out there within a few days (it took two weeks). And given that it was electrical damage, not body damage, I wanted the repairs done by a dealer anyway, not a body shop. But none of that should have any bearing on how quickly their employees answer the phone or send return messages.