Car Rental, Mandatory CDW, Iceland, while I have useful Credit card, Confused

Call up the credit card you plan to use and ask them this question. When we went to Italy, I checked with Chase Sapphire Reserve and they confirmed they knew about the mandatory CDW, we just needed to decline all optional insurance to be covered by the card.

Same answer as Laura when we rented in Italy. The CDW was mandatory. We were offered zero deductible coverage for an extra fee. I knew from a conversation with customer service at VISA that we had to expressly decline that coverage. Then, if we had an accident and had to pay a deductible, VISA would reimburse us. We actually had the opportunity to see how this works! When we returned the car, they found scratches on the wheel. The charge they put on our card to cover this was 100 Euro -- our deductible amount. I submitted a claim to VISA when we got home, and after gathering the paperwork they wanted, we were reimbursed.

Nobody here can tell you the answer. But all the advice directly above is good.

Call the credit card insurance people. Make sure you understand everything they say. Get it in writing (they will send you details in email if you ask). Be 100% sure you understand all the details, what's covered, what's not, what the limits are, what you need to do when at the rental counter. Be prepared. Then go enjoy your trip.

I second the advice from other people to check with your credit card company.
But I can also tell you that I am going to Iceland next month in April, and the company I am getting a car from (Lotus Car Rentals) gives you the option to decline all insurances when you are adding/deleting the extra options for the rental. So if the stuff that the CDW covers would be covered by your credit card, you could book with a company like Lotus which gives you the option to decline all insurance coverage through them.

Thanking you all for the replies.

I did call CapOne, transferred to their benefits, and they explained I could in fact refuse the otherwise included CDW, and that they could also get me a "Letter of Coverage" to present at the counter. So I am now trying to figure out the most convenient way to do this, as we do not need a car the 3 days in Reykjavik. Our son and d.i.l. will take us around in her mom's car, we do not need to get a rental until we go to her father's guest house in Stykkisholmur, which they will be helping with, and then return to Keflavik. I actually had seen Lotus, but they do not have any office pick-up. Reykjavik Rent-A-Car and My Car look like their offices would easily be reached for the pick-up.

they explained I could in fact refuse the otherwise included CDW

Sorry to sound know-it-all-y but I'm sure this is wrong, and that the person didn't know what he/she was talking about. You can't refuse included CDW but it doesn't matter since included CDW is not a line item on your reservation or receipt, and so as long as you don't have a line item for additional CDW you will be fine.

I'm normally a CapitalOne credit card person, but currently feel the better car rental insurance offered by some Visas (one of which is mentioned above, and none of the CapitalOne Visas) is worth using a different card for, even if it has an annual fee. You get primary coverage with no deductible for domestic rentals, and then no country exclusions like Italy or New Zealand. Also the reps on the phone seem to have a better handle on their insurance product. I used to be a fan of the Amex $20 premium policy but no longer.

Someone above mentioned wheel scratches: no US rental car company would care about these, and I have had them ignored when returning cars in France and New Zealand, but not Mexico where a hubcap scratch was a "big deal." It's stressful to rent in situations where every minor ding could be noted on return and tallying them all up is a profit center for the rental company.