Europcar basic protection and residency proof

Hmmm. We've rented from Europcar several times in several countries (including just this past July, at the Marseille Airport), and were allowed to simply check the box that we were waiving their insurance and using that provided under our credit card. The only issues have been sometimes having a tough time trying to their car drop-off area when we were ready to turn it in. A printout (which would be in English legalese of course) off of your credit card issuer's Website that details the insurance coverage they provide (with all the procedures you must follow in order to have them cover you) could be proof, if someone actually needed to see it at the time you pick up your rental car.

Your passport should suffice as proof of residency, and you'll also have your drivers license as additional proof. When driving a rental in France, don't forget to have an International Driver's Permit (available in the USA at AAA locations, even if you're not a member), which isn't necessarily additional proof of residency, but it's a translation of your local driver's license.

I personally would not rely on credit card insurance. (American Express's optional insurance would be the exception.) Too many stories here of the credit card not coming to the table when required. And a little personal experience with that subject in the US. Second, I don't see what the problem is with showing proof of your residency? Your international driving permit would show residency.

Thanks for the timely replies. I have a better idea of this company and what to expect. It is good to hear about other folk's experiences. I would still like to hear if anyone has been asked to furnish some proof of CDW or residency, as well as what documents they brought. It just seems like an odd stipulation to make since everyone from the US who rents a car is legally obligated to have both a passport and a DL. As was pointed out, the credit card option is not so good. I may go with an independent insurance company.

They need confirmation of residency because you are getting a non-EU resident rate, which is lower. Some of the taxes are waived. If you rent there over the counter, you pay EU rates. If you rent in advance in dollars, it's lower.

Having had a bad experience with credit card insurance, I will never again trust it (and yes, I had everything in writing before my trip). You will have to have an International Driving Permit and your passport. That is all you need to show.

If you have an AMEX card, their Premium Rental Car insurance is one of the best deals around. Once you sign up, it kicks in any time you use your card to rent a car. The price is $18 - 25, for up to 42 days (flat, not per day). I've had occasion to use it and can report my claim was handled very effiuciently. Unlike some of the previous posters, I've also made claims on my cc insurance (AMEX and Chase) and have no complaints about either one.

Hi Slave01,

I rented at Europcar in France at Gare du Nord last month. They really put on the hard sell that I buy the extra coverage. He kept saying that if anything, even a scratch and I will have to "buy whole car."

The fine print where I declined coverage said that I could be charged any and all repairs, not to exceed €16000.

They took a big deposit on my credit card. Hertz in Norway does this, so I was used to it.

Good luck,
Nordheim

Nordheim,

Thanks. You raise an important and unforeseen point. If you don't mind my asking, how much was the hold on your credit card for and what price level was the car? I don't have a very high limit on my credit card but, in accordance with my general financial status as a student, I will be renting the cheapest car. I am a little worried that they may refuse to rent to me if I don't have enough of a credit limit.

We rented with Europcar and used our Amex for the coverage. Just the basic - I didn't know about the premium coverage offered by Amex but would def use that next time.

The hold put on our card was 1200 euro.

We did end up getting scratches on the car in a parking garage, and I am having issues. The big thing is I rented via AutoEurope. I need an invoice showing how much the damages were to send to Amex (there is a charge on our Amex of course, but it included the final drop off fees and doesn't break down the final fees and the damage charges - we know how much they charged, but we need a separate invoice showing those charges) - and I have sent at least 3-4 emails to Europcar - the only response I got on the first one was we will forward your request to AutoEurope and no responses at all to my other emails (not sure how they can help me with the damage charges?). So it is ongoing.

But my biggest lesson (and Amex is working with me here but not sure what will happen)...make sure you use the card of the person who will be the primary driver. I used my card even tho it was my husband doing the driving - I generally do since I do all the booking of airline tickets and accoms when we travel. Even tho we are on the same account (cards have diff numbers of course), the lady on the phone (who tried her best to be helpful) told me that the card used needs to be the card of the primary driver. We did use his card for the hold on pickup and for the drop off fees, so that may be working to our advantage.

We had no issue declining the insurance offered by Europcar - no upselling or anything. We rented at the Avignon TGV and dropped in Nice.

I'm sure hubby just showed his driver's license. He didn't get an IDP - it isn't a hard and fast requirement if you are from Canada (according to the government of Canada website one is 'recommended'). My DL is already in English and French, so perhaps that is why...

Umm.... if I am renting a car in France why would I check the US website? (Same thing for Canada) You need to check for the country you are going to, not coming from!

And actually I am pretty sure the local authorities can require you to have a "translation" of your driver's license in some places so... I have NEVER understsood the "we won't spend $20 on this" argument, having had to use it, it was well worth it just for the reduced stress!

I use my credit card insurance with Diner's Club and my one claim (See above) was a breeze. Sadly if you don't have a Diner's Club they are hard to get, but if you do I would recommend using their insurance. Mine is primary and they dealt directly with Auto Europe and the car rental agency once I contacted them. I never got involved at all!

It seems that when renting a car in Europe from Europcar or any other company, we've just showed our passports. I just figured that was proof of our identity, but it likely was also proof of nationality as well. The desk personnel have never asked us directly for "proof of residency" anywhere, but things change, and you could always get that one clerk who presents things that way. Same thing regarding CDW; we've been given the option to either sign off on the waiver portion of the contract, or to purchase the insurance, but no documentation was ever requested if we waived their insurance. Fortunately, we've never needed to make a claim in Europe.

As for the International Drivers Permit, no one's ever asked us for it. We carry it just in case a cop asks to see it, but, fortunately again, we've never been in that situation either. It's cheap $15 insurance against if we ever needed to show it and faced a bigger fine for not having one.

Note also that some companies limit renting cars to drivers within certain age ranges. Students under a certain age might not be able to rent a car from some companies.

Nicole (above) raises a super important point about the use of cc coverage for rental car insurance, namely that the card has to be in the name of the main driver. To complicate matters, some cards issue the same account # to all card holders on that account, like our Capitol 1 and Chase Visas. Others, like AMEX, issue a different number; but the statement shows the charges for both. Just reminding everyone to be very careful when making their arrangements. No sense in creating unnecessary difficulties for yourself.

I rented a compact with manual transmission. The actual car I received was a Fiat 500L. I'm sorry I don't remember what the deposit was exactly, however Nicole's charge of €1200 sounds like it would be in the ballpark.

I prepaid for my rental, two days for $61.82 through AutoEurope. EuropeCar charged me an additional $60.47. I'm not sure exactly why, but I'm used to having those extra charges here and there. My guess is some kind of taxes.

A couple of other notes, Diesel was prepay at the motorway gas station I stopped at. I kept trying to use my card to prepay, I even backed up and moved to a different pump, but finally asked someone and they helped me out that you pump and then pay. Also I've heard from people on this forum and elsewhere that speed cameras are everywhere in France and have a very low tolerance, like 2kph over the limit and you'll get a ticket.

Also, be very very careful to check your mirrors as you make turns, so that you won't scratch the side of your car, especially in parking garages.

Yeah - we will avoid indoor parking garages next time we rent - outdoors only for us if possible.

Our car was an SUV/Crossover type (Citroen Cactus) - as we needed automatic. Bigger than say a Dodge Dart or Chev Malibu, but smaller than what we usually drive at home (Ford Escape). I'm not sure if the hold depends on how many days you will have it. We had it 9 days. I think when we rented in 2012 for 3 days there was an 800 euro hold, but not 100% sure.

The extra fees we were charged at pickup were as follows (and some of this is French and my translating not very good)...all prices in euros
there was an ecological fee at 4.44/day
another fee which I can't translate at 2.70/day (frais immat PFI)
fee for picking up at the TGV station - 34.00 (and you can also incur a fee for picking up/dropping at airports)
and two other fees of 1.74 and 15.60.
All these fees added after dropping the car off (well, we had a print out showing what they were at drop off). AutoEurope lets you know there could be additional fees.