This isn%26#39;t particularly Las Vegas-specific, but this topic is still definitely of interest to many of us who travel to Vegas and rent a car. In another post, I got back a lot of responses whereby a lot of people indicate they decline the CDW/LDW insurance at the rental car agencies, and I wanted to share some of my experience with this, and also hear from anyone else who has some thoughts on this.
For starters, this does not address the issue of Liability insurance (your liability for anything/anyone you are at fault for hitting, God forbid). Typically your liability insurance from your own auto insurance policy covers this. If you do not have a car and therefore no auto insurance, you are required in some states to buy this. But that%26#39;s a different topic.
I%26#39;m talking about the CDW/LDW which covers the car you%26#39;re renting if it is in an accident, damaged (even in a parking lot or what have you), or stolen while you are renting it.
Typically, your own insurance will cover your rental car if you have ';collision'; on your policy. However, I don%26#39;t like this for several reasons:
- There is still a deductible to be paid out of pocket
- Above the deductible, the rental car company will charge you for ';loss of use';, meaning they will charge you for every day the vehicle is being repaired and they can%26#39;t rent it out and make money off it. That could be anywhere from a day to months, and could get costly.
- If I go through my own insurance, my premiums will go up accordingly. That%26#39;s one thing if it%26#39;s my own car being fixed, but I don%26#39;t want to pay high premiums for years to get a rental car company%26#39;s car fixed.
- Peace of mind: Knowing that an accident can affect me for months and even years after the vacation is over gives me a very uneasy feeling. I don%26#39;t want to be paying hundreds or thousands of $$$ down the road. I don%26#39;t want my trip to Vegas to end up costing me thousands more than I paid during the trip.
I used to get the rental car company%26#39;s insurance always. It would cost me $10 to $15 a day, usually for a week or so that would be minimum of $70, often more like over $100, especially when tax is added.
So not too long ago I sought out alternatives. I came up with a few:
Currently I use one of two sources for my insurance:
CSA Travel Insurance http://www.csatravelprotection.com/
AIG Rental Car Insurance http://buy.travelguard.com/ (choose ';Car Rental'; at the drop-down for ';Get a quote';)
CSA%26#39;s ';Freestyle'; policy typically covers me for about $40-something to around $60 for up to about 3 weeks, and it covers Rental Car up to $25,000 CDW. In addition to saving money on the CDW, I get other coverages as well, such as trip cancellation, flight cancellation, lost or stolen baggage, medical/dental coverages, and other stuff. I wouldn%26#39;t need those usually, but they%26#39;re just a bonus on top of a great savings for the CDW. If I might rent a car worth more than $25K, I go with their ';Freestyle Luxe'; plan which is usually around $70 to $80 but covers the vehicle up to $50K. Still better than the car rental companies rate, plus with bonus coverages!
AIG is more straightforward but more pricey. It%26#39;s $9 a day, with a one-time fee of about $3. So if a car rental company%26#39;s rate on CDW is $15 a day, this will still save me $5 to $6 a day. In a week that%26#39;s a savings of about $40 - not bad!
This kind of coverage requires you to take care of it and buy it BEFORE you rent the car, but you can do it last-minute the day or night before, by internet or by toll-free number. They usually e-mail a policy with policy # and then I keep that in my e-mail and I print a copy to take with me in case I need it.
It%26#39;s definitely worth the peace of mind!
BTW, in looking up websites for this post, I came across a couple other things which I may try next time - it%26#39;s Travelex%26#39;s CDW and it came out to $45 for up to 31 days! That was after I punched in a made-up trip cost and my age, so that may vary when you punch in your info, but should be about the same. Here is the website: totaltravelinsurance.com/…
The other thing has to do with AMEX cards. I know many people feel their credit cards cover them for CDW, but I wanted to address this also...
If you know for sure that your credit card covers the CDW as primary insurance (won%26#39;t affect your personal auto insurance) and covers ';loss of use';, then you%26#39;re in great shape. But many people I know think their AMEX card covers these things, when in fact it does not. Most of the non-';high end'; AMEX cards are SECONDARY insurance, which means they cover your deductible AFTER your own insurance pays the bulk of the cost, which means your premiums will be affected.
However, AMEX offers what they call ';Premium Car Rental Protection Plan';, which looks like a good deal. From their own website, this is what they say about it:
The difference between the Premium Car Rental Protection (PCRP) and Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance (CRLDI)
PCRP differs from the CRLDI plan included with most Cards in four key ways:
-------------------------------------
• This Plan offers excess coverage for medical expenses, damage or theft of personal property, and Accidental death %26amp; dismemberment benefits. With the exception of the coverage on some premium American Express Cards, CRLDI only covers damage to or theft of the rental car.
• PCRP provides primary coverage for damage or theft of the rental car. CRLDI offers coverage in excess of other sources of insurance.
• PCRP covers many types of vehicles that CRLDI does not, including full-sized SUVs, expensive and exotic cars, and others.
• CRLDI only covers vehicles rented in the United States, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. PCRP offers worldwide coverage, except for vehicles rented in Australia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, and New Zealand.
Determining coverage of personal car insurance or business insurance
It’s possible that a Cardmember’s personal car insurance or business insurance might cover these types of losses. However, here are a few things to keep in mind:
• PCRP is primary insurance of theft and damage to the rented vehicle, which means enrollees won’t have to dip into their own insurance first, or pay a deductible.
Also, insurance policies often vary in their coverage of rental cars, or out-of-state or international driving. Cardmembers should check personal policies carefully to see whether they’re covered for rental cars. But this Plan covers enrollees almost anywhere in the world.
---------------------------------------
From AMEX website: https:/…coverage.do
Anyway, their Premium plan might be the best deal yet. For a flat rate of $24.95 or $19.95 (both less for CA drivers) which is automatically charged when you rent a car, they cover you for up to 42 days, primary coverage. That%26#39;s the best deal yet, especially if you rent for more than a week! If you want additional travel insurance coverages, they don%26#39;t come with this, but it%26#39;s a great CDW option, and WAY better than the ';coverage'; they include with most of their cards.
Other websites to check into travel insurance (w/ or w/out CDW%26#39;s):
http://insuremytrip.com/
http://www.totaltravelinsurance.com/
http://tripinsurancestore.com/
I WELCOME ANY AND ALL THOUGHTS ON THIS... Please let me know if I%26#39;m wrong about anything or if I%26#39;m not making sense, or if you gained something from this. I know it%26#39;s a long post, but I wanted to cover the issue. Thanks! :)
Rental Car Insurance
Johnny, great information and thanks for posting this but one thing that needs to be said in order to avoid possible confusion is that what you say basically only applies to US residents.
Visitors from overseas will not be covered for anything on their own insurance and should always ensure they take out the rental company%26#39;s insurance. It%26#39;s invariably cheaper to do this in advance than when picking up the car.
Rental Car Insurance
Blagger, thanks so much for highlighting that. With apologies to my non-USA citizen friends, I have no experience or knowledge to share with you on how you would obtain insurance.
I would like to also point out to US residents that even though my auto policy and most people%26#39;s policies cover collision on a rental car, that is not ALWAYS the case. Please check your policy and call your insurer to find out if you are unsure. Also, please investigate everything for yourself. The information I provided is meant to be a help, I%26#39;m not an expert or professional with insurance - I%26#39;m just another traveler sharing what my experience has been. I provided links to help you investigate any sources for yourself.
Blagger, thanks again! :)
Thanks for taking the time to write all this and provide all those links. It%26#39;s definitely something to think about.
This topic has been discussed many times on this forum and it seems even with such a comprehensive explanation there are still questions.
I think people are best advised to check with their insurance agent to figure out what%26#39;s right for them.
When you were discussing alternative insurance plans you specifically mentioned CDW. Unless those plans offer loss of use in addition to CDW there is still a gap in that coverage. That%26#39;s where most personal auto insurance plans have a gap.
I don%26#39;t worry too much about the deductible on my personal policy. Sure, if I had an accident with a rental and relied on my personal insurance I would have to pay the deductible just like I would if I had an accident with my personal car.
If I am comfortable with the deductible on my policy (as opposed to paying a higher premium for a lower deductible) why should I worry about the deductible while driving a rental. My insurance is good enough for me at home.
we use the amex insurance 25 bucks per rental cant be beat and it covers 4 wheel drives etc
Thanks for the info. I always check with my credit card companies and my own insurance to make sure nothing has changed since the last time I rented a car.
I am not sure how many people have actually had an accident or returned a damaged car. Unfortunately-I did have that experience. I ended up with a huge dent on the hood. I still can%26#39;t figure out how that happened. I made out the paperwork for Thrifty, my own insurance and my credit card. I expected a lot of grief but surprisingly enough it went very smoothly. Once the paperwork was in everything was taken care of and I never had any problems with any of them. Maybe I was just lucky.
We had a wreck two years ago in an Avis rental. We had taken out the insurance through Avis and there was no problem when we returned the car. Didn%26#39;t pay one penny and not on our driving record.
Sher
Great info!
I too use the Amex coverage for $25 per rental and it%26#39;s great. I had an accident in Vegas last year (car was hit in a parking lot). It was soooooo easy. I called Amex and gave them a report and the rental info. I filled out a report at Hertz and put down Amex for the contact info. In total it took about ten minutes, I paid NOTHING, and two months later I got letters from Amex and Hertz saying the claim had been processed and closed.
The only other thing I would clarify is the ';loss of use';. I believe the loss of use can only be charged it the location has sold out of every vehicle. It%26#39;s not loss of use unless they actually could have rented out the vehicle.
We also use the AMex card to rent and it covers just about everything with no problems. It covers you up to a 30 day rental. When you consider all the possible legal entanglements you could face and the possible costs, $25 is really a bargain!
Sandy
So what is this AMEX card? Do you have to have an American Express Credit Card?
Sher
No comments:
Post a Comment