When Does Brand Loyalty Cross Into Corporate Abuse?
We find ourselves wrestling with a question that feels heavier than it should.
When does loyalty stop being mutual and start being exploited?
Because this is not just about a claim. It is about a legacy.
Six Months of Waiting
We are both proud USAA Inc. Kids. We are over six months out from a major pipe burst in our home, six months of waiting, following up, documenting, and trying to get basic clarity on what is actually going to be covered. All from the living room of a VRBO.
Six months. Five different adjustors, two of them reassigned twice.
Six months. Asked to upload the same documents multiple times.
Six months. Told one thing, then told something else.
Six months. Waiting days and sometimes weeks for an answer on a portal that promises a response within 24 hours.
Six months of football games inundated with commercials about how amazing USAA Inc. is. "Members first. Mission Always." A company with the brand promise to empower members to achieve financial security through competitive products, exceptional service, and trusted advice.
And then a few weeks ago, ironically and painfully, when I opened the app to see if there was finally a message from an adjuster, I was greeted with this instead:
"CONGRATULATIONS ON 31 YEARS OF MEMBERSHIP"
(It is actually 35 years, because several of those years were under my parents' policy. Rich is at 43 years.)
That moment landed like a gut punch.
Because what it said was: We remember how long you have been loyal.
What it did not say was: We are taking care of you now.
What Generational Loyalty Actually Looks Like
In our family, loyalty runs deep. We return again and again to the companies we trust. The Container Store. Dillard's. In-N-Out Burger. United Airlines. DICK'S Sporting Goods. Qdoba. And our beloved USAA Inc.
This kind of loyalty is not casual. It is built on values, consistency, and trust. It is generational. It is personal. It was paid for with sacrifice from our fathers and grandfathers.
It is not just measured in years. It is measured in care when it matters most.
When a company celebrates your longevity while leaving you in prolonged uncertainty, something breaks.
When your patience is met with silence. When your friends think you are out of your mind because you have not called an attorney yet.
Something breaks.
The Uncomfortable but Necessary Questions
This is not about canceling brands or burning bridges. It is about integrity and the limits of patience. It raises questions that go far beyond one insurance claim.
At what point does patience become permission?
What responsibility do institutions have to honor long-term customers because of their loyalty, and not simply benefit from it?
What does self-respect require of us when we are being underserved by the very institution we trusted most?
Loyalty without accountability is not noble. It is vulnerable. And vulnerability, when not met with care, becomes harm.
Trust is not proven by how long we endure being underserved.
It is proven by how quickly accountability shows up when something breaks.
What This Has to Do with Leadership
We coach leaders and organizations every day on the gap between brand promise and lived experience. That gap is never neutral. Every day it exists, it erodes something.
The leaders and institutions we trust most are not the ones who never fail us. They are the ones who, when something breaks, show up fast, take ownership, and make it right.
That is the soul line and the goal line working together. A brand promise is a goal line commitment. Showing up for a member of 35 years who is sitting in a rental while their home is being repaired is a soul line obligation.
When those two lines diverge, you do not just lose a customer. You lose a legacy.
A Moment for Your Own Reflection
Whether you lead a team, run an organization, or simply participate in communities of trust, these questions are worth sitting with:
Where in your leadership does your brand promise diverge from the lived experience of the people you serve?
Are the people who have been most loyal to you being treated with proportional care, or are you simply banking on their patience?
What would it look like in your organization for accountability to show up quickly when something breaks?
Loyalty without accountability is not noble. It is vulnerable.
And vulnerability, when not met with care, becomes harm.
If your organization is wrestling with the gap between promise and practice, we would love to help you close it.
