Rental Car Help!

Just go to the consolidators:
www.autoeurope.com
or their affiliate www.kemwel.com (check prices in both as they vary although part of the same company).
I rent it through them all the time and always select full insurance with zero deductible. $200-250/wk (all included) should get you on a compact car. If you don't select the zero deductible option it's a bit cheaper but the deductible is a stiff 1000€. Your credit card might cover that but many cards specifically exclude Italy, so read the fine print of your credit card agreement.

This is one of many links that may be helpful for you -- http://www.reidsitaly.com/planning/getaround/carhome.html. Be sure to read it all.

This one about Italian road signs should be helpful -- https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roadsignsin_Italy.

We've driven in Italy, but not rented a car there. There are lots of discussions about both renting and driving on the Italy forum and on the transportation one. Be sure to take a look at those, including the ones about the dreaded ZTLs and about about getting tickets.

I understand that you must get the insurance when renting a car in Italy, just like you must have an IDP for driving there. The first link has good explanations about that.

If you know you want Zero Deductible / walk away insurance than it solves the issue of the thread getting technical and makes it easy.
There is no way to get that coverage with any credit card currently in existence for an Italian Rental.
Your best option is to use AutoEurope.com and select a car with what they call
"NO DEDUCTIBLE WITH EXTENDED COVER"
For a week rental it probably adds between $60 - $100 and you can drive without worries and no need to check for existing damage and all of that other stuff.

Insurance at the agent desk or through other places always costs much more OR is the type where you pay first and then they reimburse you requiring you to document everything. For Italy the AutoEurope coverage is all you need and not very high priced.

I would stick to Europcar, Hertz or Avis if I were you ; you can choose when using AutoEurope and if you have any questions there customer service is in the US (Maine) ; they will charge you a little higher rate over the phone.

Definitely go with AutoEurope or Kemwel (same company and work the same).
AutoEurope has also thei affiliate in Italy with their Italian toll free number, which I used a few years back when I had trouble getting the right size car with Europcar.
http://www.autoeurope.it

I also recommend the zero deductible (aka "no insurance excess"). To see the pricing on those only simply click the zero deductible box option under "filters" menu. It doesn't cost a whole lot more, and it gives you peace of mind.

Check your own car insurance. Ours covers rental cars in Europe. Check with travel insurance and see if you can get one with collision insurance for your car. The policy we had last year included this as I recall.

Tom, what I like about the AutoEurope coverage at least for Europcar is it specifically mentions it includes
damage to wheels, glass, underside and roof of vehicle with zero deductible ; these are areas other rental plans often exclude.
There may be other exclusions but it seems to offer the highest coverage.

Janet: What you state may be the case, BUT there is no way that plan does not require you to pay out of pocket first, document everything and then later you be reimbursed by your home insurance company or travel insurance policy ; the OP specifically stated she did not want that so was hoping the post would not deviate to all of the uniqueness of Italy rental cars.

Thank you for all your responses! I used autoeurope and paid for the extra coverage. They were the most affordable!!!! Say a prayer it all works out when we get there!

Nicole, we are using autoeurope with full coverage for our trip this April. Never rented with them before but they come well rated and I have to say customer service was great when I called with a few questions. I'm hoping it will all work out for us both! 😊

My personal opinion, for short trips, is that comprehensive no deductible insurance is well worth the peace of mind of not having to deal with the usual downers of car rental, such as alleged scratches, supposed bumpers and what else. Comprehensive no deductible insurance will still leave you out of coverage in the most egregious situations like putting wrong fuel, taking the car through closed roads or rough unmarked terrain, reckless speeding causing crashes etc. but it does give peace of mind.

I know it is expensive, and that is part of the bait-and-switch game of car rental companies, but well worth for the occasional traveler.

Andre, I agree - we've so far always paid for the full coverage and I find it to be worth it for the peace of mind. I absolutely do not want to get caught up in some kind of international dispute. So far we have been fortunate and have nothing happen to any rental, but I prefer not to worry about it and pay more for that coverage.

I want to reply to what mreynolds wrote: "If you know you want Zero Deductible / walk away insurance than it solves the issue of the thread getting technical and makes it easy.There is no way to get that coverage with any credit card currently in existence for an Italian Rental."

We have booked our rental cars in Italy by working with an American agency in Ashland, OR. The website is Gemut.com. They've been so helpful in advising me and answering my questions. We went with EuropCar because rates were better than the other choices. The rental price includes the insurance that cannot be waived because it is mandated by Italian law. There are large deductibles but the optional extra coverage to reduce those to zero is expensive, apparently especially if you wait until you are at the rental counter to add it. We used our VISA credit card account to pay the rental charges. The agency advised that VISA has a collision damage waiver for rental cars that will reimburse us for any deductible we have to pay, so long as we waive the zero deductible option offered by the rental car company. The agency suggested I not rely solely on their advise but call the card benefits division of customer service at VISA to hear this from them directly. When I asked VISA, "If our rental car in Italy is involved in an accident and we have a deductible to pay, will this benefit reimburse us for it?" the answer was yes. I am a little less certain that the CDW benefit will kick in if we are required to pay damage that is excluded by the Italian insurance, like broken glass or damage to tires, roof, interior. The agency we're working assured me they've had customers in the past who've submitted successful claims to VISA to be reimbursed for such payments.

Vickie: to clarify since I do not disagree with what you stated but it is all how I worded my statement.

With any Visa or any other US credit card (has to have Primary rental not Secondary and only few of the main issued credit cards actually include Italy) ; but for sake of discussion let's say you have one of those cards.
You give them your Visa and don't pay to reduce the deductible, just getting what is provided in Italy at no extra charge.

They charge to your Visa the rental rate and a deductible (anywhere from 600 - 1200 euro either as charge or a hold).
When you return the car ; if no damage they refund/take off hold to your Visa back that deductible so you don't really have any affect unless that amount affects your credit limit while traveling and needing to put other deposits on it like hotel security deposits and the like,
if when you return the car and there is damage, they will deduct the amount of damage from your paid deductible so you pay for it with your Visa. The max they can charge you is that deductible amount. You then have to document everything yourself, paperwork from the rental company and then when you get home file a claim with your Visa card and then your card holder if your claim is approved will reverse any charges on your account so you don't actually have to pay for anything yourself.
For some this is perfectly fine and saves some money.
The point is that requires extra work, it is not handled between the bank and the car rental company, you are in the middle.
The agent even mentions this in your own comments, we have customers that have successfully submitted claims to Visa.
Would be the same if you bought travel insurance that had auto coverage for Italy or if your home insurance covered an Italian rental, etc... You pay and then get reimbursed.

Going with a policy through AutoEurope, Gemut or from Hertz, Avis, Europcar avoids that aspect, if there is damage and you paid for zero deductible you turn it in and walk away (provided you didn't do something outside of the contract as you mentioned that caused the issue). In addition that deductible amount is never on hold with your credit card.
Many renters I think would prefer to pay for this level of extra convenience assuming the cost is not too high.
That is the difference, hope it makes sense. Walk away vs. you pay and get reimbursed later.

Nicole,

It's good to hear that you've opted for a top level CDW package. I assume you've read this recent thread.....

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/unsatisfied-judgment

It's important to note that for driving in Italy, each driver listed on the rental form must have the compulsory International Driver's Permit, which is used in conjunction with your home D.L. (so you must carry both). These are valid for one year, and easily obtained at any CAA/AAA office (two Passport-sized photos required, which may be provided by the issuing office).

You may also want to have a look at some of the posts on the forum concerning the dreaded Zona Traffico Limitato (limited traffic) areas that are becoming increasingly prevalent in many Italian towns & cities (especially Florence!). Some of these are enforced by automated cameras and some by local police. Each pass through one of the automated Cameras will result in a €100+ ticket and visitors often don’t know of these violations until several months after they’ve returned home. In addition to the actual fines, renters will also be charged by the rental agencies for providing information to the authorities. You may find this website helpful - http://www.slowtrav.com/italy/driving/traffic_cameras_speeding.htm

There’s also the possibility of fines for driving in bus lanes, parking tickets, tolls and speed cameras including the devious Traffic Tutor system which not only monitors instantaneous speeds but also average between two points. Violate either or both parameter and expensive tickets will follow!

Happy motoring!

mreynolds, it was explained to us by Gemut that purchasing zero deductible insurance from the rental car company is not really guaranteeing "walk away." I'm quoting here from the email that was sent to me when I suggested that we might just want to purchase the optional zero deductible for peace of mind: the ability to "walk away" and avoid the hassle of having to file a claim with the credit card co:

Whether the insurance is provided by your credit card’s insurer or the rental company’s insurer, there will be paperwork. In both cases the rental company will likely not release the security hold ($300 to $1200 depending on a variety of factors) on your credit card until the rental company has been reimbursed for the damage, either by you or by their own insurance company. If you rely on your credit card it is likely you will be invoiced or your card charged for the damage a week or two after the rental. You will then have to provide damage documents to the credit card company to obtain reimbursement. As part of our full service we can contact the rental company and obtain that paperwork for you….though some customers prefer to do it on their own

After seeing that advice, I decided not to pay for something that my credit card company provides for free. I'm meticulous about paperwork and records when I travel and don't anticipate that I'd have difficulty compiling the documentation needed for a claim under our credit card benefit.