We are renting a car for three weeks to drive from Frankfurt to Croatia and back. We will provide our own insurance through our credit card. Do we really need to pay the $22/day additonal driver charge? My thought is the credit card covers the car, not the driver (as in the US, if your neighbor borrows your car and gets into an accident, the car is still covered). Any thoughts on this?
Posted by
Downers Grove, IL, U.S.
31 posts
When I rented in Germany last year with Europe Car, they did not care who was driving the car and my rental was covered by my CC as well. It may be different based on what company you rent with but the person at the Munich train station did not even ask for my wifes drivers license, he just asked if she had one.
Posted by
Ottawa, Canada
4555 posts
Ask the rental car company why they are charging this rate. You don't want to get into a situation where there might be an accident involving the second driver, and you find yourself without proper insurance coverage. It may be because you are driving into Croatia, which is considered "Eastern Europe" by many rental firms. Also, be aware that your credit card will only cover the collision damage waiver (CDW) and may not cover the so called "insurance excess value" which many companies are charging these days. This involves making you responsible for a portion of the value of the car (say, 1000 Euro) and putting a hold on that amount on your credit card....any damages up to that value are your responsibility. Rental car companies offer further insurance, a sort-of "super CDW" to write down that value to zero. Make sure they aren't levying this charge as well, because it can put quite a dent into your cc if you are unaware. Many rental agencies don't detail this at all well on their websites, so ask a real human being before you leave. Hertz, for example, buries it (along with info on the extra driver charge) at the bottom of one window under the plain-text line "Important Information Rental Qualification and Requirements."
Posted by
Ottawa, Canada
4555 posts
Further to the opacity of regulations regarding second drivers, CDW, super CDW, etc, Europcar's rental site is full of phrases like "Additional Driver; With the consent of the renter, the vehicle may be driven by other persons. Conditions and possible charge available from Europcar Reservation Office," "Insurances: Deductible Collision Damage, C.D.W., Theft Protection and P.A.I.: Charges may vary by station and by car group. Details are available from Europcar Reservation Office," and "Restriction Of Use: Certain driving restrictions may apply for driving into certain countries. Details are available from Europcar Reservation Office." Unfortunately with this firm (and, indeed, many others,) the devil is definitely in the details.