Renting a car using our credit card insurance coverage, but...

You should read the car rental policy. It should have third party liability insurance to cover you and the rental company against claims for damage or injury to other car or other driver.

What you are talking about is known as third party liability which is mandatory and is included in the rental charge . What I am not certain of , is by refusing the provider offered insurance in favor of that provided by the credit card , whether that then invalidates the third party insurance provided with the rental . Just as a point of personal preference - when I rent a car , I purchase all the necessary insurance directly from the rental agency including the excess buydown ( Zero deductible for Americans ) This costs more , but the peace of mind is worth every penny to me . I'll have a car for a month this coming Autumn in The UK ( PS - I remember talking to you back around 2019 when you were heading to The Dolomites - Regards , and I hope all is well with you

Liability insurance is mandatory in Europe and should be included in the cost of the rental. CDW through the rental company, CC, or 3rd party vendor is a personal preference. Use whichever you’re comfortable with.

Have you carefully read the details of the rental car coverage provision for your specific credit card? Many credit cards exclude Ireland for some reason. I know all of our credit cards have that exclusion. It is important to check if you haven’t already done so.

Read your credit card company's insurance coverage carefully before using it. I haven't read my card company's coverage recently because I use public transportation exclusively in Germany because it is so good, and I have absolutely no liability with it. When I did read the policy I was concerned because it said I had to pay any damages first, and then they might reimburse me, provided that I submitted to them any and all documentation that they might request.

I thought that that clause gave them too much opportunity to decline reimbursement, particularly because I might be having to request documents from foreign police departments in an unfamiliar language.

Remember, credit card companies are not in the business of paying insurance claims.

I will reinforce what others here have said. It depends. I pay for the additional automobile insurance through Amex. Amex offers insurance with a 1 time charge for the length of the rental period. I have driven through England, Scotland, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Italy. The one caveat being that the Amex automobile insurance was not available in Italy. However, If I rented the vehicle in Germany and drove through Italy (which I did) I had coverage. Having driven over roads in Scotland that would be similar to what you will find in Ireland, I would make absolutely sure your CC covers the vehicle. Personally, I would look at AutoEurope or similar agencies and see what their all inclusive coverage costs and be done with it. I will be doing that for an upcoming trip to Italy.
Good luck!

We traveled to NW Italy and Alpine France last summer and rented a car at MXP. Though we had car rental insurance through our credit card, we opted to rent through AutoEurope - Hertz was the provider - and purchased full insurance (walk-away) with the rental through AutoEurope. The car rental insurance through our credit card is a 3rd party insurance and from everything we have read, you are on your own getting any claim resolved. Meaning that you have to pay for damage upfront and get reimbursement on your own. Documentation (photos, police reports, paperwork from car rental agency, etc) is key from what I've read. All your ducks have to be in a row in any hopes of getting reimbursed.

Initially, in chatting with an AutoEurope rep, I found out that the insurance purchased through them is also 3rd party. But, I was assured that it was walk-away insurance if there was any damage. I was a bit skeptical. But Auto Europe has a good reputation. So we went with them.

Sure enough, the last day of our trip, we had an incident. No other car involved. But I damaged a tire and the rim of the wheel - probably $500-1000 to replace both if needed. When we pulled into the Hertz return area at MXP, I explained what happened. The agent looked at our contract and said we were fully covered and not to worry about it. He wished us safe travels and we were on on way home. Again, I felt some trepidation. But, after getting photos and his name......we were on our way home.

We heard nothing further from Hertz or AutoEurope. Nothing further charged to my credit card. I am sold on AutoEurope and buying walk away coverage. Rental cars are outrageously priced these days. Honestly, the full coverage wasn't that much more. Certainly worth it not to have to deal with claims and paperwork once we got home.

Thank you all for your input! Steven, I DO remember you and our very enlightening discussion about the Dolomites!! Our trip was cancelled due to COVID, so we never got to take advantage of all the wonderful info you gave us, but we still plan to go, hopefully next year!
I did some further research online regarding the 3rd party insurance coverage in Ireland. This is what I found repeatedly:

"In Ireland, unlimited Third Party Liability Insurance is a legal requirement as included in the pre-paid price of all car rentals in Ireland. Third Party Liability Insurance protects you from liability resulting from property damage, injury, or death caused to anyone or anything outside of your rental car." Does anyone have any info to support this or contradict it, assuming we use our credit card for our insurance??

We always travel by public transit when in Europe, but Ireland doesn't work well for that, so we need a car this time. I believe there are only 2 cards that can be used for insurance in Ireland - Sapphire and Capitol One. We will use one of those.

Thanks!!
Shirley

We used our CC coverage in 2016, and managed to have an incident that put a pretty severe scratch in the side of the car. Enterprise rang up what I thought was a inflated estimate of $4500, and took it off our card. After about 30 days, all the charges were reversed by our card company (Citi). No issues whatsoever. Back then, the CCW cost was close to the daily rental fee, and the choice seemed obvious. Now that basic prices have exploded, the CCW doesn't seem so bad, but I'll always opt for the CC coverage. IF you do opt for your CC coverage, make sure you take "proof" of coverage to avoid the high-pressure sales tactics at the counter.

OK, so Ireland is not excluded from the coverage provided by your Chase Sapphire. Here is a good article on what that means and what is and is not covered:

https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/travel/chase-sapphire-preferred-rental-car-insurance-guide

Note that you must decline the CDW (Collision Damage Waiver) insurance offered by the rental company in order to have your credit card insurance apply. And you must use the credit card to fully pay the cost of the rental ( which is sounds like you plan to do).

This coverage is for damage you might cause to the rental car only. It has nothing to do with liability insurance for damage you might cause to others or their property, such as bodily injury, or even injury to yourselves. But according to others who posted above, the mandatory liability insurance is included in the cost of the rental car.

So you should be “good to go”, but you might want to confirm that with an insurance expert, or your own liability insurance provider.

Scheduled to pick up our Europcar rental (booked through Auto Europe) in Dublin on April 27. Received email today from Auto Europe saying to be sure we have the PIN number for our Chase Sapphire Preferred Visa card to pay rental car security deposit. Problem is I don’t have a PIN number since I never use the card for a cash advance. Chase said they will mail a PIN number to me in 7-10 business days. I used the same card for a rental in Verona Italy this past September and in Palermo Sicily in 2021 and in both cases never needed a PIN for the security deposit. Is the needing PIN number specific to rentals in Ireland or is Auto Europe’s statement to have the PIN number simply boilerplate language to cover their butts?

TX Travelers - thank you SO MUCH for posting this!!! I didn't know anything about needing a pin either!!! And we're using Enterprise as well. Please post an update on how your rental goes, since we are leaving here in mid May...

Thank you!
Shirley

We used our Chase Sapphire CC for our coverage for 4 weeks in Ireland (and N. Ireland)last April- 3rd time we've done this. We are also going in September and will use it for the 4 weeks in Ireland. Never have had a problem and just made sure that we had a letter stating coverage from Chase. They will only cover up to 28 days which is how long we travel for. We've never had a PIN nor have been asked for one, so I don't know what that's all about. Fortunately, we've never had to make a claim but the amount it's saved us by using Chase has been huge.

Update… received my PIN from Chase in the mail today. Good timing since our flight departs in five hours! Will post a follow-up after we pick up the rental car in DUB on whether they required the PIN after all.

Last night’s Monday Night Travels was on transportation hacks. RS staff person Lisa presented on renting cars in Europe. She said that she prefers to buy 100% insurance coverage from the rental car company even though it might be an extra $30/day. She said that for her the peace of mind is worth it.

The recording should be available soon at https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/travel-classes/monday-night-travel

Picked up our rental car from Europcar yesterday without any issues regarding needing a PIN for our Chase Visa card. The rental agent never asked for the PIN. The rental agent did try to upsell us to a larger “more comfortable” vehicle, but we stayed with our economy sized Peugeot 208, which I’m glad we did because of the narrower roads we encountered as we neared Kinsale. We did however opt for the extra insurance protection, which was surprisingly affordable (168 Euro) for our 7 day rental, since the rental car protection with Chase is somewhat limited in what’s covered.

Lola, thanks for the Nerd Wallet article - very helpful! I'm getting ready for my Scotland trip, where I will have a 17 day rental car, so I wanted to make sure that my Chase Sapphire card would cover everything, and it looks like it does. I have all that info in my benefits statement but it's handy to have a plainly written article to refer to.

Shirley, FWIW, the article states that the Chase card insurance coverage covers all countries at this time.

Regarding TX Traveler stating they ended up buying extra insurance at the counter......I have no idea how Chase Sapphire car rental insurance works. However, I do know that when we contemplated using Costco Citi Visa's car rental protection last summer, we were specifically told that we must decline all optional insurance offered by the car rental company in order for the Costco Citi Visa insurance to be valid. Just read and re-read your plan literature to make sure that you understand all the ins and outs. Make a call if unsure.

Hi from Wisconsin,
You are probably tired of reading replies. I would be remiss if I didn't tell you to carefully photograph the outside of the car. For Pete's sake even the hub caps. Photos are free these days and come with a date stamp. Do this before you move the car from its pickup spot. It wouldn't hurt to photograph the interior.. Do the same once you drop the car off. All the way around. Minimum of six exterior photos. Oh, and a shot of the license. You might want that if you can't find your car or recognize it in a parking lot.

I put a substantial scratch in a rental one time and the people just waved me away with their hands. Nothing. Also...I have had the smallest danged thing brought to my attention as damage and I was to be charged for it. My photos ended that. The best thing, is not be in a hurry take your photos, and then do a really careful examination of all panels of the car plus, I must mention again, the wheel coverings. If there is the slightest scratch of dent, go back to the desk and report it and make them mark it on your rental agreement. Also check the front window for any crack. Any crack.

In some places you drop the car off and their is no attendant, just a key drop box. If they later claim you damaged the car, if you don't have photos, what are you going to do?
Sorry to put the fear ofGod into renting...but a simple set of photos can save a real hassle.

wayne iNWI

wayner - thank you! We do plan to photo it all, but your reiteration of this is very helpful and we'll take a ton of pics.

Shirley, we just picked up our rental car 4 days ago at the Cork airport. We brought a physical letter from our Visa issuer specifically listing the Republic of Ireland (as well as Northern Ireland, Israel, and Jamaica, all of which were previously excluded from coverage) being covered by the card for damage/theft, and the agent took a copy of that letter at his desk. Having the letter made it smoother and faster to get the car checked out, without any further discussion about being able to use our Visa for the insurance protection.

We took several photos of existing minor chips in the paint all around, and of a tiny ding in the sheet metal in front of one rear wheel opening - maybe a half inch long and a millimeter deep. The 4 hubcaps had all been attached to the wheels with zip ties. I guess we won’t be losing those, although if we have to change a tire, it might require some extra work to get them off.

If you still have time to get a confirmation letter from Chase, it’ll make your car pickup process easier.

READ EVERYTHING INVOLVING CAR RENTALS for Ireland- Our experience

Rental companies: Use Enterprise (excellent selection, and terms, no "Northern Ireland" restrictions, added fees/surcharges.

Automatic vs Manual shift: For 12 days an Automatic is about $400 more than manual shift.

Credit Card CDW coverage: American Express - IF YOU HAVE the PREMIUM UPGRADED Rental and CDW coverage, Ireland (32 Counties) is NOT covered, excluded. Do not purchase the upgrade or cancel it because with the regular AMEX CDW coverage Ireland is NOT excluded. You must purchase car rental in entirety with your AmEX card, AND REJECT THE RENTAL CO. CDW purchase or complementary option or AMEX will not cover you. NOT ALL AMEX cards provide CDW coverage.
For other credit cards, YOU MUST READ EVERYTHING AND CALL COMPANY. DO NOT RELY ON WHAT YOU THINK YOU UNDERSTAND FROM THEIR WEBSITE. Ask the agent to show you exactly where what they said is IN WRITING.

Age Restrictions: Some rental companies have UPPER age restrictions,-- typically age 75.

I'm a "read the fine print" kind of guy. I wrote Federal Government regulations, and worked in Regulatory Compliance.

THIS STATEMENT IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY BASED SOLEY ON MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE AND SHOULD NOT BE CONSTRUED AS ADVICE. See your insurance professional about your situation.