Car Hire Insurance - Sometimes a Little Complex!
Car hire insurance is one of those things that should be routine and straightforward - but sadly it isn't always quite so.
In theory, in many (though not all) countries of the world, your car hire insurance is included in the rental price.
So, what's the big deal? Falling down the gaps Unfortunately, the car rental companies' typical hire insurance contains a couple of potentially dangerous holes you may fall into.
These are called: - the excess; - excluded areas.
The excess You may be familiar with this from other forms of insurance.
It's essentially an amount of money that the insurance company (or car rental company in this case) will expect you to contribute as the first part of any claim.
In car rentals it may be up to £1600 or so - something that may hurt your credit card badly when the charge arrives.
Excluded areas Although it may sound like a sci-fi film title, it in fact refers to a number of parts of the rental car that are not covered by the standard policy.
If they're damaged while you have the car on hire, then once again your credit card may feel the pain of being charged for their repair or replacement.
Your choices You can choose to live with all this and just feel sorry for yourself when something goes wrong.
The alternatives are: - to pay the car rental company extra - for that they may agree to waive the excess option and also protect all areas of their vehicle; - purchase a car hire excess insurance policy from an online provider.
The pros and cons You may find that the policies purchasable directly online are more cost-effective than simply paying extra cash to the rental company.
Typically, they'll also offer a range of additional benefits and advantages that you may not find with the car rental companies.
That may include: - you can insure up to 6 drivers on one policy; - annual policies are available - and that may save you money if you're planning to rent more than once in the period.
Of course, you should note that terms and conditions will apply and within these will be.
You should therefore read these carefully and ensure you understand them So, having a think about excess insurance as part of your car rental selection process might be a clever idea.
It may improve the level of overall car hire insurance you have and help keep a little more of your cash in your pocket.
In theory, in many (though not all) countries of the world, your car hire insurance is included in the rental price.
So, what's the big deal? Falling down the gaps Unfortunately, the car rental companies' typical hire insurance contains a couple of potentially dangerous holes you may fall into.
These are called: - the excess; - excluded areas.
The excess You may be familiar with this from other forms of insurance.
It's essentially an amount of money that the insurance company (or car rental company in this case) will expect you to contribute as the first part of any claim.
In car rentals it may be up to £1600 or so - something that may hurt your credit card badly when the charge arrives.
Excluded areas Although it may sound like a sci-fi film title, it in fact refers to a number of parts of the rental car that are not covered by the standard policy.
If they're damaged while you have the car on hire, then once again your credit card may feel the pain of being charged for their repair or replacement.
Your choices You can choose to live with all this and just feel sorry for yourself when something goes wrong.
The alternatives are: - to pay the car rental company extra - for that they may agree to waive the excess option and also protect all areas of their vehicle; - purchase a car hire excess insurance policy from an online provider.
The pros and cons You may find that the policies purchasable directly online are more cost-effective than simply paying extra cash to the rental company.
Typically, they'll also offer a range of additional benefits and advantages that you may not find with the car rental companies.
That may include: - you can insure up to 6 drivers on one policy; - annual policies are available - and that may save you money if you're planning to rent more than once in the period.
Of course, you should note that terms and conditions will apply and within these will be.
You should therefore read these carefully and ensure you understand them So, having a think about excess insurance as part of your car rental selection process might be a clever idea.
It may improve the level of overall car hire insurance you have and help keep a little more of your cash in your pocket.
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