CSAA Insurance Group

CSAA Insurance Group (CSAA) is a member-focused personal lines insurer based in Walnut Creek, California. The company underwrites auto, home, and other personal insurance for AAA Members through AAA clubs in 23 states and the District of Columbia. It traces its roots to 1914 and has grown from a single auto insurance program into a multi-state personal lines carrier.

Website: csaa-insurance.aaa.com

Head office address: 3055 Oak Road, Walnut Creek, California 94597

Founded: 1914

Company type: member-focused insurer; not publicly traded; policies underwritten through CSAA Insurance Exchange

Regions served: 23 states and the District of Columbia

History of CSAA Insurance Group

CSAA got its start before it sold a single policy. The Automobile Club of California formed in San Francisco in 1900, and members incorporated the California State Automobile Association in 1907 to push for better roads and fairer traffic laws.

The insurance side of the business came later and grew from there. Key milestones include:

• 1914: the Inter-Insurance Bureau, CSAA’s insurance predecessor, begins offering auto policies to members
• 1974: the insurer adds homeowners coverage
• 1999: it acquires Western United Insurance Company, extending coverage into Nevada and Utah
• 2000: the company marks its centennial and adds renters insurance
• 2011: CSAA separates from the AAA club serving Northern California, Nevada, and Utah, and acquires the AAA Mid-Atlantic Insurance Group
• 2013: the group adopts the CSAA Insurance Group name
• 2014: the firm reaches $3 billion in direct written premium
• 2019: the company launches Avanta Ventures, its venture capital arm
• 2020: Mobilitas Insurance launches under CSAA as a commercial line for the rideshare and mobility sector

These changes turned a regional auto club program into a broader personal lines carrier. The shift from one state to a network of AAA-affiliated coverage areas still shapes how the group operates today.

What does CSAA Insurance Group insure?

The firm writes the coverage most AAA Members ask for first. Its core personal lines include:

• auto insurance, often paired with AAA’s roadside assistance
• homeowners insurance
• renters insurance
• Mobilitas Insurance, a commercial line built for rideshare and mobility-sector businesses

CSAA Insurance Group covers most of the situations a typical AAA Member brings to the table across these lines, from a fender bender to a house fire.

How the company operates

The insurer runs as a member-focused organization rather than a stockholder-driven company. CSAA says that structure lets it focus on AAA Members instead of shareholder returns, and it points to that independence as a reason it can set its own pace on claims and underwriting decisions.

The company also frames its claims team as an early point of support during storms and wildfires. CSAA Insurance Group describes this role as central to its relationship with AAA and its members, particularly in states where weather-related claims are common.

The firm has held an A.M. Best financial strength rating of A or better for more than 90 years, and it points to that record as evidence of its stability. That history, combined with its AAA affiliation, remains a core part of how it positions itself among personal lines carriers.