Car rental insurance/usa

[riclag]

Has anybody ever declined car rental companies Insurance  coverage and opted for the Credit Card company loss damage waiver instead!

If so have you ever had the misfortune of having to file a claim?

 

Ive tried to buy non owner’s insurance and get added to my kids policy but that failed!

 

 

Edited May 6, 2023 by riclag

[riclag]

4 minutes ago, andy said:

This is what I always do.  Never had to claim though.  I've also been listed as an "additional driver" on my parents insurance since I became an expat (over 20 years now).  No problem with Geico.  Have been asked for this policy a couple times by the car rental company when declining, but most of the time nothing is mentioned.  Non-owners insurance for short term trips doesn't exist as far as I know.

My daughter suggested that I go on her Insurance but her agent friend would not allow me “ He lives in Thailand” they said .I have a valid CA license, credit cards and a USA address. I suggested not to argue the point!

Correct about the non owners imop . The several ones I contacted wanted a 6 month declaration.

For 15 days Ive decided to bite the bullet and pay for the Avis RENTAL CAR insurance coverage  $1k for crash damage, liability , sickness, roadside assistance .

I spent many hours researching the pros and cons of using my Credit Cards insurance which would take care of crash damage but ive seen some negative  reports and reviews when you have to file a claim!

I dont want to negotiate problems after returning to Thailand .

Thanks for your suggestions.

 

[GinBoy2]

Honestly as horrible as it is, take the rental companies insurance.

 

If you are resident in the US taking a family members insurance might be worth the fight, but if you're a resident in Thailand, you know the insurance company is going to take you for all it's worth.

 

I hate them as much as anyone, but these companies have you by the balls!

[GypsyT]

Can you get Diner's Club card? I had it for 10+ years when I had business and rented cars often.

 

It's the best and covers everything up to $ 75 000. Others offer only secondary damage coverage.

Primary Collision Damage Waiver Insurance

• Receive primary coverage, anywhere in the world (except where prohibited by law), when the entire cost of a car rental is charged to a Diners Club Card.
• For most cardmembers there's usually no need to file a claim with your own insurance company, so your personal insurance premium won't be affected.
• The insurance covers physical damage and theft of the vehicle, reasonable loss of use charges, reasonable towing charges, and includes Secondary Personal Effects insurance.
• Protection applies to rental cars with Manufacturers Suggested Retail Price up to $75,000 for covered damages. For Carte Blanche cardmembers, up to $100,000 for covered damages.
• To qualify, you must decline the rental agency's collision damage waiver (CDW), saving up to $16 per rental day."
•  

[riclag]

50 minutes ago, GypsyT said:

Can you get Diner's Club card? I had it for 10+ years when I had business and rented cars often.

 

It's the best and covers everything up to $ 75 000. Others offer only secondary damage coverage.

Primary Collision Damage Waiver Insurance

• Receive primary coverage, anywhere in the world (except where prohibited by law), when the entire cost of a car rental is charged to a Diners Club Card.
• For most cardmembers there's usually no need to file a claim with your own insurance company, so your personal insurance premium won't be affected.
• The insurance covers physical damage and theft of the vehicle, reasonable loss of use charges, reasonable towing charges, and includes Secondary Personal Effects insurance.
• Protection applies to rental cars with Manufacturers Suggested Retail Price up to $75,000 for covered damages. For Carte Blanche cardmembers, up to $100,000 for covered damages.
• To qualify, you must decline the rental agency's collision damage waiver (CDW), saving up to $16 per rental day."
•  

My trip has concluded!

I ended up using the car rental insurance  from Avis!

$1700+  

included crash waiver, liability,road side assistance an

personal accidental insurance.

I thought long and hard after researching what problems could occur if I had to make a claim and decided to bite the bullet and pay the thieves! I live full time here and I don’t care to carry on with litigation from Thailand to resolve a accident.

Thanks

[EVENKEEL]

17 hours ago, riclag said:

My trip has concluded!

I ended up using the car rental insurance  from Avis!

$1700+  

included crash waiver, liability,road side assistance an

personal accidental insurance.

I thought long and hard after researching what problems could occur if I had to make a claim and decided to bite the bullet and pay the thieves! I live full time here and I don’t care to carry on with litigation from Thailand to resolve a accident.

Thanks

Just a little side note on car insurance. It's OK to reserve a car through a second party like orbitz but don't prepay. If you prepay anything make sure you prepay directly to the car rental Co. I prepaid to Orbitz plus insurance only to have Car rental personnel explain it's not the same and could get messy in case of accident. 

 

 

 

 

[gargamon]

I rent cars quite frequently and always refuse the insurance. I have had a number of claims, mostly for things like chipped windows, unnoticed when I picked up the car scratches, door damage from other cars while parked, etc. The rental companies are thieves. To fix a chipped window they will charge a couple of hundred dollars when the actual repair is $25. The suitcase scrapes in the paint in the trunk(boot) is another big scam. Fail to note it in your inspection and you will pay for the last guy's damage.

 

The credit card insurance is great. They make the rental companies show actual costs for the repairs and only pay that amount. This causes the resolution to be a bit slow which is where most people's complaints lie.

 

I would never buy the insurance from the rental company thieves. 

[EVENKEEL]

2 minutes ago, gargamon said:

I rent cars quite frequently and always refuse the insurance. I have had a number of claims, mostly for things like chipped windows, unnoticed when I picked up the car scratches, door damage from other cars while parked, etc. The rental companies are thieves. To fix a chipped window they will charge a couple of hundred dollars when the actual repair is $25. The suitcase scrapes in the paint in the trunk(boot) is another big scam. Fail to note it in your inspection and you will pay for the last guy's damage.

 

The credit card insurance is great. They make the rental companies show actual costs for the repairs and only pay that amount. This causes the resolution to be a bit slow which is where most people's complaints lie.

 

I would never buy the insurance from the rental company thieves. 

You do understand when you buy the rental car ins. you walk away from all damage, no $$$$

[gargamon]

20 minutes ago, EVENKEEL said:

You do understand when you buy the rental car ins. you walk away from all damage, no $$$$

Yes, of course. In all my claims I never paid for damage at the conclusion of the investigation by the credit card company. There is a temporary hold on the funds but who cares about that. 

 

For example, the chipped window incident I referenced, there was a hold for about $200 on my card. After resolution, the credit card company paid them $25 and the hold was cancelled. 

Edited June 19, 2023 by gargamon

[riclag]

10 minutes ago, EVENKEEL said:

You do understand when you buy the rental car ins. you walk away from all damage, no $$$$

 

1 hour ago, EVENKEEL said:

Just a little side note on car insurance. It's OK to reserve a car through a second party like orbitz but don't prepay. If you prepay anything make sure you prepay directly to the car rental Co. I prepaid to Orbitz plus insurance only to have Car rental personnel explain it's not the same and could get messy in case of accident. 

 

 

 

 

Messy! Thats what i wanted to avoid !

I got a Chevy impala from Avis for 15 days,it cost 100 dollars a day ,

Rental cost and their ins.

[Yellowtail]

When renting a car in the US (on my own dime) I've found that if I use Skyscanner and my Thailand address and driver license I can most always find a rental that includes insurance for less than the rental alone if I book through a US site with my US license. 

[gargamon]

38 minutes ago, riclag said:

 

Messy! Thats what i wanted to avoid !

I got a Chevy impala from Avis for 15 days,it cost 100 dollars a day ,

Rental cost and their ins.

I rented a Camry a couple of months ago for about $200 a week. You do the math. 

[EVENKEEL]

One thing about using credit card for collision, I would rent for one month and found out that with Visa you had to renew contract every 2 weeks or else it was void. I rented month at a time for quite awhile before I was told that one. The rental car folks don't care.

[Etaoin Shrdlu]

While the credit card companies may pick up costs for damage to the vehicle itself, they seldom cover third party liability. Their cover may let you decline the collision damage waiver, but that's not all that you could be on the hook for.

 

Rental car companies often provide only the minimum limits of third party liability that the state of the car's registration require. These limits can be quite low and not at all adequate. Of course, the rental car companies have additional liability insurance, but it will likely only cover their liability and not the renter's.

 

When renting a car in the US, ask how much liability insurance will actually cover your liability if you are held responsible for third party property damage or bodily injury. If it is minimal, consider the optional liability cover that is offered by the rental company.  

Edited June 19, 2023 by Etaoin Shrdlu

[bamnutsak]

I rely on my Chase Sapphire Preferred card, but have never made a claim, nor had any issues.

 

 

How the Chase Sapphire Preferred Rental Car Insurance Works

With a few exceptions, the card's auto collision damage waiver perk will provide coverage for all damage or theft.

 

https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/travel/chase-sapphire-preferred-rental-car-insurance-guide

[gamb00ler]

On 6/19/2023 at 10:05 AM, Yellowtail said:

When renting a car in the US (on my own dime) I've found that if I use Skyscanner and my Thailand address and driver license I can most always find a rental that includes insurance for less than the rental alone if I book through a US site with my US license. 

Exactly this!  I noticed how much cheaper it was to rent a car in US if I booked from Thailand several years ago.  This was before I lived here.  I tried booking one while in Thailand but when I put in my US license info, they boosted the rental charge to what a US resident would pay.