# AARP Membership- worth it? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 28, 2014, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756 "2014-08-28T15:43:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2014, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/21 "2014-08-28T21:21:21Z")
Happy birthday, in addition to the AARP stuff, I started getting Sexy Senior Singles spam in my email the day after my birthday. Assholes. ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2014, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/22 "2014-08-28T23:03:07Z")
> [@outlierrn](#): > > Happy birthday, in addition to the AARP stuff, I started getting Sexy Senior Singles spam in my email the day after my birthday. Assholes. The assholes are the bastards who require you to provide date of birth (like maybe car insurance) who then sell your name and address to AARP. ---
**Author:** ![jasg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f0a364/32.png) [@jasg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jasg)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2014, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/23 "2014-08-29T00:51:37Z")
> [@susan](#): > > I joined because they’re a very powerful lobby with politics I generally agree with. The discounts are about comparable to AAA’s. > [@shiftless](#): > > I refuse to join because they are an extremely powerful lobby and I don’t agree with their politics. They are not just a clearing house for discounts for old people, they are first and foremost a lobby. I too refuse to join and I don’t care what their politics are - I just don’t like the “powerful lobby” aspect. As my fellow boomers age, I shudder about what could happen when I remember “We want the world and we want it NOW!”. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2014, 10:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/24 "2014-08-29T10:19:22Z")
I looked at their offer seriously once when some friends told me how much the discounts saved them. (But many of these were discounts on things I didn’t buy.) But I noticed how vague most of their come-ons in the invitations were. Lots of talk of discounts, special rates, but hardly any details or names of the companies who gave these discounts. Also lots of seeming urgency to act quickly before this special rate ends (but I seem to get another invitation every few months, with similar rates). And strong encouragement to authorize them to automatically renew me every year and take the money from my bank account or credit card. I was amused to note that those were things that were mentioned as warning signs of fraud companies that prey on seniors – in an article from AARP! ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2014, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/25 "2014-08-29T12:18:41Z")
Thanks for the replies! Sounds pretty much like what I had expected, that it’s mostly not worth it. I do like the idea to subscribe just for the first cheap year and have a membership card that will be useful afterward because places don’t usually check the expiration date. But I’m concerned that I’d be pestered constantly to re-up after I let the membership lapse. Also, as a couple posters mentioned, I’m not so sure I want to associate myself with a powerful organization whose politics I’m not so comfortable with. Maybe when I’m older. The ‘R’ in ‘AARP’ stands for ‘Retired’, right? I’m a long way away from there. I just wanted to see if there were any really great unknown benefits I’d be missing out on, like discount access to secret black magic potions for maintaining health and restoring youth. You know, that sort of thing. Sounds like no on that 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2014, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/26 "2014-08-29T12:20:18Z")
> [@outlierrn](#): > > Happy birthday, in addition to the AARP stuff, I started getting Sexy Senior Singles spam in my email the day after my birthday. Assholes. Thanks! Alright, something else to look forward to after turning 50, great! :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Beelzebubba](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ed8c4c/32.png) [@Beelzebubba](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beelzebubba)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2014, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/27 "2014-08-29T13:07:43Z")
I know with Auto-Owners Insurance (based in Lansing, MI and they operate in 26 states) gives a 5% Mature Driver Discount for AAA Members. It saved my parents $105/year. The Hartford also offers specific AARP policies to members, often as substantial savings. You can get a quote prior to signing up for AARP to see how much it would save. It’s also good for last minute discounts on hotels, usually 10% or more. ---
**Author:** ![HipGnosis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/76d3ee/32.png) [@HipGnosis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HipGnosis)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2014, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/28 "2014-08-29T13:37:20Z")
Think you know AARP? > **[We Didn't Leave AARP...AARP Left Us](https://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2012/09/we_didnt_leave_aarp.html)** > > The report of the AARP convention booing Paul Ryan the other day made me just shake my head and smile wryly.  These are the kind of fools who'd boo the man trying to save their bacon while they remain content to blindly follow a leftist... ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2014, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/29 "2014-08-29T13:40:17Z")
Just be sure that whatever your political inclinations, you don’t have any that will conflict with the economic interests of the insurance companies that back AARP. Because you will lose. ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2014, 1:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/30 "2014-08-29T13:44:44Z")
I use mine to get 20% off at Denny’s. Otherwise, I throw their insurance promotions into the recycle bin. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2014, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/31 "2014-08-29T16:08:38Z")
> [@HipGnosis](#): > > Think you know AARP? > [http://www.americanthinker.com/2012/09/we\_didnt\_leave\_aarp.html](http://www.americanthinker.com/2012/09/we_didnt_leave_aarp.html) AARP infiltrated by leftists! As bad as Newsweek! Taken over by the Democrat party! Scary indeed. ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2014, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/32 "2014-08-29T16:13:44Z")
They start bugging you when you’re 49, but if you apply and get the ‘travel bag’ (piece of crap about the size (but not the thickness) of a Chivas Regal bottle), you get some kind of bullshit not-really-a-member-please-try-again-when-you’re-55 pretend-o membership. Certainly not worth it at 49. ---
**Author:** ![Ulfreida](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ulfreida/32/8014_2.png) [@Ulfreida](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulfreida)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2014, 4:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/33 "2014-08-29T16:15:12Z")
When I tried to google AARP political views the whole first page, saving links to its own website, consisted of rants and warnings against it by the reactionary right. This of course does not prove that AARP lobbying leans left, because the American Right has fallen off the right edge of the earth, but it’s a data point I guess. Still looking for a dispassionate assessment . . . ---
**Author:** ![bup](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6bbea6/32.png) [@bup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bup)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2014, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/34 "2014-08-29T16:16:52Z")
> [@HipGnosis](#): > > Think you know AARP? > [http://www.americanthinker.com/2012/09/we\_didnt\_leave\_aarp.html](http://www.americanthinker.com/2012/09/we_didnt_leave_aarp.html) > [@crotchety old dude](#): > > Just as we had to do with TIME, Newsweek, National Geographic, ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, and the Democrat Party, many conservative seniors had to accept the reality that AARP no longer made even token efforts to represent their views. Ha ha!\ ---
**Author:** ![Lare](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/53a042/32.png) [@Lare](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lare)\ **Post date:** [August 31, 2014, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/35 "2014-08-31T04:13:44Z")
> [@t-bonham@scc.net](#): > > But I noticed how vague most of their come-ons in the invitations were. Lots of talk of discounts, special rates, but hardly any details or names of the companies who gave these discounts. List of AARP [http://www.aarp.org/content/dam/aarp/benefits\_discounts/membership\_services/2013-06/mb-guide-01.pdf](http://www.aarp.org/content/dam/aarp/benefits_discounts/membership_services/2013-06/mb-guide-01.pdf) I belong, but don’t use it a lot. I find the AARP hotel discount to be the most useful for me. Anecdotally, I went to Disneyland once and they only offered a $2 discount for AARP. I was bummed, but took it. ---
**Author:** ![JohnGalt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johngalt/32/184_2.png) [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/36 "2014-09-01T03:06:21Z")
> [@Ulfreida](#): > > AARP infiltrated by leftists! As bad as Newsweek! Taken over by the Democrat party! > > Scary indeed. It’s not just _Newsweek_ (is that around any more), but what political position does _National Geographic_ have that AARP members would oppose? ALSO - does Denny’s make you show the card for the discount? I don’t want to join but it’d be nice to save a bit. I belong to AAA, mostly because I put lots of highway miles on my car and I can see some value in towing insurance. ---
**Author:** ![LurkerInNJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ed655f/32.png) [@LurkerInNJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LurkerInNJ)\ **Post date:** [September 1, 2014, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/37 "2014-09-01T03:46:53Z")
This is the year I can get the glorious 55+ IHOP Special Senior Meal. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2017, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/39 "2017-08-02T18:46:45Z")
Reported post by **cvishal585** for homepage spam. ---
**Author:** ![xizor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/xizor/32/102_2.png) [@xizor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xizor)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2017, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/40 "2017-08-02T21:41:41Z")
My Dad just asks for the “senior discount” everywhere he goes without joining AARP. Most restaurants just give him 5-10% off or a free beverage just for asking and he doesn’t have to show any kind of ID. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [August 2, 2017, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756/41 "2017-08-02T23:55:14Z")
I haven’t joined the AARP for the same reason I haven’t joined the local chapter of the HAM radio Operators Club; in addition to not being HAM radio operator, I’m not a retired person. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/aarp-membership-worth-it/696756.md?page=3)