If you’re in the planning stages of your next vacation and they include a rental car, you may want to talk with your insurance agent about the rental car insurance options that you may have.
When it comes to rental car insurance, the market is extremely competitive for your money. This is because the insurance companies, the rental car agencies and your credit card companies are all competing.
Start by contacting your insurance agent and see if your existing policy includes rental car insurance. Some auto insurance policies cover you in a rental car. Of course, verify this with your agent. Make sure it includes collision and liability insurance (damage to your car and to the other vehicle). Make sure your current insurance covers the type of car you may be planning on renting. For instance, if you drive an older car with minimal coverage, you may be putting yourself at risk if you’re going to rent a newer luxury car.
If you are considering getting your rental car insurance through your credit card call your card company and ask them to fax or mail the details to you. Either way get their coverage in writing. Again, ask specifically about collision and liability coverage and if there are any limitations or stipulations or complete exclusions. Don’t assume that just because they offer you insurance that you will have the coverage that completely protects you.
Thinking about getting your coverage directly from the rental car company? You’ve got some more investigating to do. Insurance coverage's from rental car companies are all over the place and generally can be fraught with all kinds of stipulations and exclusions. Don’t base parts of your decision to go with insurance from the rental car company thinking that if you are at fault in an accident that you can avoid a potential rate hike from your home insurance company.
If you are involved in an accident report this to your insurance company back home because if the credit card insurance or the rental car company insurance doesn’t pay… and you haven’t reported it to your insurance company, you could be paying out of your own pocket. Reporting the accident to your own insurance company will often still be considered an accident on your record even if your insurance compnay does not need to pay out any money. This is called a zero-dollar claim and can still affect your accident record and personal insurance rates.
Make sure you ask a lot of questions and get them answered well before you go on holiday. As a side note, you may want ask your agent with whom you have your homeowner’s policy about what is the coverage in the event you have personal belongings stolen from a rental car. It may sound like a bunch to get done before you go on vacation, but getting yourself the proper hire car insurance can save you thousands when you rent a car and something goes wrong in an accident.