We're renting a car in Frankfurt in April, and driving to a small town on the eastern edge of Germany. We'll be there for two days, and then back to Frankfurt. The rental car agency wants nearly $30 a day for the collision damage waiver, but as my US auto insurance policy will not cover rentals in Europe, there's really no way around that. But what bugs me is that Avis wants another 8.5 Euros a day for "theft insurance". I realize that about $23 for the two days is not much money, but I'm sure I could find something else to spend it on.
The small town we're going to is only about 12 miles from the Czech border, but I haven't heard a lot of talk about Czech car-theft rings, and would just as soon not buy some "protection" that I don't need. Any thoughts, fellow travelers?
Posted by
NYC area
2910 posts
Hi Morris, If you have an American Express Card you could "sign up" for their "Premium Car Rental Protection" plan. It's a one time charge of $24.99 and covers CDW, theft, and much more. We went this policy for our trip 2 months ago renting a car in Germany. You must use the AmEX card to reserve/pay for the car and sign up (we did this by phone) for the "Premium Car Rental Protection". You must then decline the rental co. CDW coverage. Hope this helps. Paul
Posted by
clayton, ga, usa
19 posts
Renting your car using VISA should be all the coverage you need. Check with VISA. They provide coverage as part of your regular plan. I even had a flat tire in Great Britain and though I had to pay for it to Hertz prior to leaving Engloand I filed with VISA once I returned to the US and they reimbursed me.
Posted by
OP
Loudoun County, Va., USA
211 posts
I contacted AmEx, and for $19.95 I got $75K insurance that covers everything from accidents to theft. The cost is per rental, not per day, and saves me over a hundred bucks.
Many thanks!
Posted by
NYC area
2910 posts
Glad to be of help. I forgot to mention the price is per rental period, not per day.
Posted by
Michigan
78 posts
As Pat mentioned, this coverage is completely free if you pay with Visa. MasterCard also covers CDW in most European countries. If you have one of these cards there is no need to pay anything additional.
Posted by
Germany, Germany
813 posts
I have been in Germany 4 years and am familiar with the Czech republic. Get the theft insurance. Sometimes they take the whole car, sometimes just parts of it. Your VISA or other insurance option may cover the theft of the whole car, but make sure it also covers other types of theft, like just the tires, etc. My parents rented a car in Stuttgart to then drive to Prague. Since it's Mercedes HQ, the first car offered was a Mercedes, then the guy found out they were going to Prague and he only would let them take a no-name basic sedan.
Posted by
Austin
973 posts
Kathy's right. I realize you aren't going into the Czech Republic, only near it, but theft's an issue. Rented a car in Prague 2 summers ago cause the rentacar in Amsterdam wouldnt allow me to drive to Prague. The insurance on the VW Passat rented in Prague and driven to Budapest and back was about the same as the rental rate. How about trying another car company?
Posted by
Mansfield, GA
850 posts
The American Express basic plan will cover your CDW for free also. However, for the preumium coverage of $17.95 the coverage is increased and the $24.95 increases the limits even more. Also, the premium plans adds coverage to you and any passengers in your car in the event of injury or accidental death. There are other benefits with the premium plans that the basic plans offered by credit card companies will not cover.
Be sure to charge all rental charges to the card. If you don't the coverage will become invalid. Also, decline the cdw offered by the rental company when you sign the agreement.