Car rental insurance question

yoda_615,
Enter "car rental insurance" in the search box for threads that may answer your queries. Also, travel tips section on this site. There is lots of information to be had.

Check with your credit card insurance. I use a credit card that is primary they would have covered the cost. So I would not be taking this

The fear mongering you experienced is a standard technique by rental car companies worldwide to try to scare you into paying for their overpriced pathetically bad insurance. A coworkers used to work for enterprise. You won’t believe how much of a bonus they got for selling this insurance. He said they would tell you anything, they would make up lies. It didn’t matter. They just wanted to get the money.

My other solution has been to stick with auto Europe. That way they agreement is sent to me in advance and I can look at it and deal with it so when they say it says ABC I can just look at them and laugh

Insurance as a credit card perq is a US thing. Not surprising that in other countries, where non-US customers are the majority, they would be skeptical that such a thing exists.

It's important to read your insurance coverage carefully and not assume anything. For example I assumed my personal car insurance and/or my CC would cover me, however both only cover me in Canada and the US. I also read the insurance coverage offered by the rental companies in advance so when I get to the counter I'm somewhat informed. That helped so when we rented a car in Bordeaux for a week trip to the Dordogne region a couple of weeks ago I was already comfortable knowing I was going to accept the no-deductible option. While I brought the car back in the same condition as I took it, it was a good feeling while driving on those narrow, twisty roads that I had it. Well worth the extra €150.

The fear mongering you experienced is a standard technique by rental
car companies worldwide to try to scare you into paying for their
overpriced pathetically bad insurance.

Exactly why I posted the above. An example at the Avis counter in Tampa last March: the guy didn't want to give up insisting that my "Canadian" coverage was no good there. I wonder how many sales he's made to the uninformed with that blatant lie.

Yes you need to read your policy. I have a card that has incredibly good insurance coverage.

And yes, I’ve had to use it in Europe because I backed into a post. Before i returned the car, I called the credit card companies insurance and they handled everything from that point on. They told me if I got anything from the car company to let them know, but they would be working with them to handle it directly and I never saw a thing and I’m sure it was probably $1000 for the damage considering how much bumpers cost. (Somebody backed into my car last week and it’s going to be $1000 to replace the bumper.).

Carol, your experience is good to know. When I was researching insurance on a couple of companies websites, something new I noticed is strongly worded suggestions that even if you have outside insurance you're still responsible for upfront costs and then it's up to you to be reimbursed by your insurance company.

You might want to check on this additional insurance from American Express. For a modest fee, if you enroll in the plan and charge it on your enrolled Amex card, you get excellent coverage.

$1500 is a standard deposit hold on your credit card. What happened when you got a nail in your tire? Did you get it fixed yourself or call the car company?

Definitely research what your car insurance and/or credit card or travel insurance will cover. Will they handle any claims or will you have to pay upfront and they will reimburse? What do they need for reimbursement? Is there a deductible?
Several years ago we rented a car domestically, and I didn’t take the rental insurance because our car insurance covers rentals. We incurred a chip in the windshield, and because it was a smart windshield, it cost us just under $500 to replace. Our insurance has a $500 deductible. I’m sure if we had taken the no-deductible from the insurance, they would have just patched the chip. Now I calculate the cost of the rental insurance against our deductible.

I’ll be honest I keep this credit card just for the rental car insurance. All the other benefits that it had have disappeared over the years, but they still have the best rental car insurance in the. unfortunately you cannot get this credit card anymore. They don’t take US applications.

We just rented in France in the spring. I don't think you are ever going to "win" the car insurance issue. All the car companies are the same. They are going to find every reason to make the renter pay for things. And yes there was a big focus on glass/tire damage as a separate coverage. That's how they make more money. I just paid for all the insurance because frankly, I just wanted to return the car and never look back, no matter what happened. I sure didn't want to deal with an international car issue. That's how I found peace of mind and a better experience. There's no getting away from the scammed feeling with car rental insurance. Maybe not savvy, but I just don't want to pay upfront costs and get reimbursed and deal with insurance claims, in this kind of situation.

Thank you all for the information! I will still use my full coverage card (JIC) but I am going to plan on paying the no deductible rate and just be done with it. It will be a less stressful experience at the pickup to just know the coverage is there and I'm not questioning anything.

I did call the company with the tire - as I was in the middle of the Cotswolds and had no clue where to go for assistance - but still seemed crazy that they would want that much on a repair (I had to pay OOP at the garage it was 20 pounds and they reimbursed me as I did buy the insurance).

The insurance is the same in France: no tire or windshield coverage on a standard policy. We had a leased car for a couple of months in France one summer. The windshield was covered when it was cracked by gravel due to roadwork.