Renting a vehicle can indeed be stressful. When getting a rental at the airport shortly after arrival, you need to decide upon the insurance options, check the contract, and carefully consider the deal. And, as the personnel in the rental corner can be persuasive, you can easily overlook things and, thus, end up with a lousy coverage plan.
To avoid that, it’s always best to come prepared and learn about coverage. Especially if you already have insurance and want to know if it works with a rented car.
Rental car insurance is a temporary policy that protects you and your vehicle during the rental period. It is always an option you cap extra for at the car rental point. The standard insurance is usually split into several blocks:
- Liability coverage. This coverage ensures you won’t pay the damages or medical bills in an at-fault scenario.
- Personal accident insurance. Reimbursement for any accidental injuries you may acquire on the road.
- Collision/loss damage waiver. It transfers the responsibility for the damage or theft of the vehicle from you to the rental company.
- Personal effects coverage. It covers the loss or theft of personal items of all drivers and passengers in the vehicle.
Personal Auto Policy is an obligatory insurance type in most U.S. states. It covers personal vehicles, pickup trucks, or less than 10 000 pounds vans. It is also split into several blocks:
- Liability coverage. This particular block is necessary for most states and is considered a primary essential option for PAP. There are limits to how much your insurance company will pay to the second driver in case of at-fault injuries and vehicle damages. Standard minimum amounts are obligatory, but you can always upgrade.
- Medical Payments Coverage. Covers the medical bills of the insured person and any passengers.
- Uninsured Motorist coverage. If an uninsured or underinsured driver hits you, this option protects you and your car. In some states, this is also obligatory coverage.
- Physical Damage Coverage. It consists of two parts: collision and noncollision damage. Collision damage coverage protects your vehicle in an accident with another driver, and non-collision damage coverage is used in other cases like natural cataclysms, vandalism, or robbery. These points are optional and are included in Comprehensive or Collision Policies.
Generally, your personal insurance should cover rentals comprehensively, with the same limits and deductibles. You could only try to find overlaps in your PAP and rental insurance and exclude these options. Alternatively, if you have extensive coverage, you could just add personal belongings protection on top of what you have.
If you have only liability coverage in your PAP, don’t include the liability option in the rental insurance, but consider a collision/loss damage waiver. Medical coverage also applies to you and your passengers inside the rental car. You could raise limits for those if you feel like you’ll need that.
Suppose your collision or comprehensive policy coverage limits are enough for your middle-class vehicle, but you decide to rent an expensive ride for the weekend. In this case, getting a waiver with additional coverage makes sense. Also, if your personal policy deductibles are high, you could protect yourself better and look at non-deductible options for your rental.
Remember that most policies apply to inside-the-country rentals (U.S. and Canada). If you travel to another country, your PAP doesn’t have legal force, and rental car insurance is essential.
Some banks provide insurance if you pay for the car rental with a credit card. This is an incredibly convenient option, so check in with your bank to see if it applies in your case, so you wouldn’t have to pay for additional insurance.
Your Personal Auto Policy typically covers the rental car with the same options, limits, and deductibles, but there are things you might want to add to maximize your protection. In this case, just check the current policy and ensure there are no overlaps, while checking the limits set by the company.
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