should i purchase car insurance for a rental car from the car rental comany if i have my own car insurace?

Question

is it a good idea or is it just a waist of money?

Answer 1

One of the biggest rip-offs of all time, they make more money from the insurance than they do from the daily rentals.

Be sure to have a credit card which offers full rental car protection, likewise, be sure your own policy provides the coverage.

I've been renting cars ever since the industry started and have never bought their coverage.

Answer 2

I get asked this question all the time. I tell my insureds to buy it & here's why: You have a contract with the rental car company & you have to abide by it, your insurance company does not. Your insurance company will only pay actual cash value of the vehicle, less your deductible listed on your policy. The rental car company may want replacement value. Your company reserves the right to inspect the vehicle & if the rental car company just fixes the car immediately, your company can deny coverage based on this. Your company will not pay excessive labor rates. Your company will not pay administrative fees or excess towing charges. Your company will only pay loss of use if the rental car company can prove all the vehicles of that type were rented off their lot while the car was being repaired & the rental car company will want loss of use for the whole time. The rental car company may just charge your credit card for the damages & you have to contact your insurance company to try to collect. Then, if all works out & your company pays for the damages, if your company pays over a certain amount, it is a CHARGEABLE accident on your policy which could increase your rates (for 3 years usually) & if you have other claims on your policy, could result in nonrenewal. Is it worth the chance to be out all that money to save a few dollars when you rent the car???
Also, to have any coverage on your own policy for a rental, you MUST be the named insured, you cannot just be a listed driver.
Now, word of advice, DO NOT let ANYONE drive the car that is not listed on the rental agreement. ONLY the owner of the vehicle can give someone permission to drive & the owner is the rental car company. We recently had a rental car claim that was denied because the person that rented the car let someone else drive that was not on the contract. He has to pay the entire damages out of his pocket, collision, liability, everything.
Also, inspect the vehicle with a fine toothed comb with the rental car agent. Write down EVERY scratch, EVERY ding on the car & both of you sign this. I have seen rental car companies try to blame damage on one of my insureds that they are positive they didn't do, so, this is in your best interest to be sure the car is in the same condition when you return it as when you got it. If everything is written down before you get the car, you have the proof.

Answer 3

If you have full coverage,and not just liabillity,call your insurance company and ask them,they may require you to fax,acopy of your paper work,and may charge you 5 or 10 dollars,but it's a lot cheeper.Also ask the rental service what the tax rate is on the rental,in some tourist areas it can be 40 to 60 % of the rental fee,and you may want to go to the next town.Walk around the car with the rental place and note every scratch on the car if any.

Answer 4

The safest answer is to check with your insurance companies claims dept for the right answer.

Even if you have collision coverage some policies (like high risk policies) won't pay for damages to the rental car.

When renting a car for whatever reason you should always check with your own company first so you know exactly where you stand as far damage to the rental car.

Answer 5

If you have full coverage on your vehicle that coverage will extend over and cover that rental car. You will want to check will the rental car place to make sure that if you wreck their vehicle they will accept repairs and not a replacement. Some rental car companies will require you to replace their vehicle if you wreck it. it doesn't have to be totaled just a simple wreck and they will require you to provide them with a new vehicle. Your insurance company will not pay for that. They will pay for repair only, or market value if you total it out. So if the company that you are renting from only requires repairs be made to the car, and you have full coverage on our insurance, you will be fine. if not, you should purchase the insurance from the rental car company.

Answer 6

I am happy to answer this Question! the answer is yes cause One time awhile back something told me to use their insurance instead of mine in one of my rentals and somebody broke my driver's door where it would not open and when I took it back there was no questions asked. But after that everytime i tried to rent from them they just say that all they cars was rented out when I'm outside the place looking at a bunch of cars that say rent me.

Answer 7

continually purchase assurance whilst renting a motor vehicle or domicile for holiday. you may never prefer it,yet once you do it is going to likely be a godsend. working occasion we renting a coastline domicile for a week, final day solving breakfast we ended up putting a warm skillet on the counter that when held a potholder which had slipped to the floor. We took photographs of the wear and called the condo workplace immediately. The $one hundred we paid in assurance stored us a 3000 value for a sparkling slab of counter good.

Answer 8

some actually have rental car insurance coverage when u rent cars.. if u are traveling local in the area where u are renting from, then it may be okay but if ua re traveling, it may be best to go ahead and get their coeverage jus in case
everyone isnt always thinkn of the other driver!

Answer 9

It's a waste of money. It's like those yahoos that try to sell you a 10K life insurance policy. It's a gamble in their favor you'll never collect. They're playing the odds in their favor.

Answer 10

If you feel unlucky? Have a wreck your fault you can pay up to your deductable $1000 to fix a rent car that is not your's. Up to you?