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Chart that Compares Credit Card Rental Car Insurance Coverage

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Compare Credit Card Rental Car Insurance Coverage: Policies vary widely

http://www.creditcards.com/credit-card-news/rental-car-insurance...

Quick Summary is created and edited by users like you... Add FAQ's, Links and other Relevant Information by clicking the edit button in the lower right hand corner of this message.


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GREEN. Good for reference; hopefully they will keep the info up to date.

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The chart is wrong WRT CC coverage for rentals in Mexico.

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I think this is good starting pt for reference...
to add to this, business MC offers primary protection covering any regular non commercial vehicles (I can clarify if necessary)

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Confirmed, Chase MasterCard Platinum business will be the primary insurance on a car up to $50,000. The only hook I believe is that it only covers the car, but you should have medical insurance because according to the president elect it is a right, not a responsibility of the person who wants the insurance...

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Nice Start, but too broad brush. It does not cover key items:

Primary vs. Secondary coverage? ( most are secondary except for Diners Club and some business cards)
Also for some business cards, if primary, must rental be for business use? ( most exclude primary coverage for non-business use).
Loss of Use charges? ( many exclude loss of use charges which can be substantial if the car is out of service for a long time due to an accident. Also for those that do cover loss of use, the cc wants proof, such as use logs, to verify rental company claim. Some rental companies refuse to provide that info.)

Also see Beware gaps in credit card coverage for rental cars

and Gaps in credit card coverage for rental cars: Part II

Message edited by: skibum43 on 2008-11-26 15:27:06 CST
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I have State Farm Insurance and when I called my agent to double check coverage to rental cars, I was advised that they offered Loss of Use Insurance to cover the possiblity that they might not be able to get the vehicle rental logs. I was told that for approx. $30 (for six months) I would be covered. I could cancel at anytime and I could add it on again should I need it. Since I am renting in December and my personal policy expires in February, I had my agent add it to my insurance policy begining in December. If I am able to cancel upon my return it should only cost $5. If I cannot cancel until the end of my policy, it would only cost $15. Good deal to be safe.

I called AMEX as they are the credit card I chose to use. American Express also offers Premium Car Rental Protection which, if you sign up for it, costs between $18 to $25 per rental period (up to 30 days at a time coverage) depending on the amount of coverage you want. I chose the $25 policy. This policy covers the rental car as the primary insurance (no need to dip into your on personal insurance). The policy is activated only when you rent a car and the price ($25) is per rental period, not per day. Check their site for information
https://www152.americanexpress.com/fsea/travel/car_rental/produc...

While nothing is fool proof, I do feel much better with the coverages I have and I know that they cost a lot less than if I used the rental car company insurances.

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Thanks for starting this thread- it's something we really need and I'd like to see it get stickied to the top. Invaluable info and hopefully will become even more so with more discussion.

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anyone have any suggestions for someone who does not own a car thus does not have any primary insurance but wants to rent for a week- mid-size suv- I am looking at renting with my am ex hhonors plat card.....

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Great thread. Thanks for posting.

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Beware, just because Chase will often give you the wrong information on what each cc's coverage is. For instance I was told that cc UA gld milage plus rewards has no limit on the number of days for the rental but when I talked to VISA who administers the program they told me the limit was 15 days and that Chase should not be answering those call or questions. When I called Chase back I got the wrong information again! Beware!

Also, AMEX can be very sneaky and try to get out of paying for tires/wheel damage etc...

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I think this is good starting pt for reference...

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FYI, I was told the Mastercard World does cover in Israel...

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Kcitsme said:

I called AMEX as they are the credit card I chose to use. American Express also offers Premium Car Rental Protection which, if you sign up for it, costs between $18 to $25 per rental period (up to 30 days at a time coverage) depending on the amount of coverage you want. I chose the $25 policy. This policy covers the rental car as the primary insurance (no need to dip into your on personal insurance). The policy is activated only when you rent a car and the price ($25) is per rental period, not per day. Check their site for information
https://www152.americanexpress.com/fsea/travel/car_rental/produc...

If you want good coverage for free, enroll in the $25 program that Kcitsme mentioned above. Every time you rent, make and secure your reservation with your AMEX. If your rental is incident free, pay your reservation with a non-AMEX when you return the car and you will not be charged the $25 insurance fee. Of course, if you had an incident you will pay with the AMEX. If you do this, be aware that the AMEX program is for all your AMEX cards; you cannot apply the program to a specific AMEX.

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JrcWy said: If you want good coverage for free, enroll in the $25 program that Kcitsme mentioned above. Every time you rent, make and secure your reservation with your AMEX. If your rental is incident free, pay your reservation with a non-AMEX when you return the car and you will not be charged the $25 insurance fee. Of course, if you had an incident you will pay with the AMEX. If you do this, be aware that the AMEX program is for all your AMEX cards; you cannot apply the program to a specific AMEX.
OMG, it's positively diabolical! Brilliant! Can this really work?

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impoverished said:JrcWy said: If you want good coverage for free, enroll in the $25 program that Kcitsme mentioned above. Every time you rent, make and secure your reservation with your AMEX. If your rental is incident free, pay your reservation with a non-AMEX when you return the car and you will not be charged the $25 insurance fee. Of course, if you had an incident you will pay with the AMEX. If you do this, be aware that the AMEX program is for all your AMEX cards; you cannot apply the program to a specific AMEX.
OMG, it's positively diabolical! Brilliant! Can this really work?

I have this plan for $20.
I thought about it many times but I haven't tried it.
Most of the time when I return the car, I'm always in a hurry to leave and I don't have the time to return to the counter and give them a different CC.
Most of the rentals these days, when you return, they look over the car real quick and give you a slip and you're on your way.
I think once you get that slip, the charges are going through so I have no idea if you can even change your CC information.

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BTW, lets say you only have liability on your auto insurance.
So if you get into an accident, since your insurance won't be doing anything, do you just go straight to your CC ???

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Does anyone know if the credit card insurance coverage will work if you are not paying the car rental company directly like if you rented using Priceline or Hotwire?

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ctrain said:[I have this plan for $20.
I thought about it many times but I haven't tried it.
Most of the time when I return the car, I'm always in a hurry to leave and I don't have the time to return to the counter and give them a different CC.
Most of the rentals these days, when you return, they look over the car real quick and give you a slip and you're on your way.
I think once you get that slip, the charges are going through so I have no idea if you can even change your CC information.

Yes, it can work but I didn't intend to abuse it. I forgot to change my credit card to my mastercard (most of my rentals are company and the insurance is covered) before renting. When you return the car (I had Avis but same for Herz or others) tell the person that walks to your car that you need to change the credit card. They give you a little slip and you walk to the counter and ask them to finish the check out process after updating your credit card. Avis (Herz is the same) usually has a little booth even in the area you return the car.
It did happen twice to me already (had my Avis account changed to AMEX for a private rental and forgot to change it back).

Message edited by: GermanExpat on 2008-12-16 22:59:37 CST
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