“Car Hire Excess Waiver” is a dreadful phrase that won’t immediately ring a bell for most people. This is actually a technical term that describes a part of rental car insurance.
You might want to pause before you rush to click the “NEXT” button when you think about insurance. You can save a lot on car hire insurance.
The position regarding insurance included or not in the rental price of a car can vary greatly when you rent it. It is common for basic insurance to be included in rental prices in certain countries, such as the UK. According to UK law, a car rental must include at least unlimited third party liability. This is insurance that covers claims by other people if you cause injury to their property or personal property.
Coverage of rented cars
If you rent from a major rental agency in the UK or other European countries, the rental price might also include CDW (Collision Damage Waiver). This insurance covers any damage to the rented vehicle.
In some countries, like the USA, the rental price does not include insurance. The renter will have to purchase insurance separately from the rental company, or from a specialist insurer. It is important to remember that the renter doesn’t have to buy insurance from the car rental agency. The insurance provided by the rental company is usually more expensive than insurance purchased directly over the internet.
You may discover that excess insurance is available if you have had rental company insurance. The rental company will refer to the excess as a mandatory contribution you would need to pay towards the accident costs. The excess is typically between 500 and 1500 pounds. This means that if the amount is set at 750 pounds, and there is an accident that results in 1500 pounds worth of damage to your vehicle, the rental company will charge your credit card for 750 dollars of it as “the excess”. You would be responsible for the full 400 pounds if the damage was $400 and there were 750 extra pounds.
Cover
You can get car rental excess waiver insurance if you don’t like the idea of taking on this risk. This can be handled by the rental company. They will reduce (or eliminate) the excess by charging you an extra amount. The excess can be waived by paying an additional amount of money. The car rental excess waiver is not insurance. However, the rental company might call it “top-up” insurance. This excess is likely to be extremely expensive, and there are cheaper options.
You can buy a policy for excess waiver car rental insurance from direct insurance companies via the internet. This insurance is simple and efficient. If you are involved in an accident, and the rental company charges more than your credit card, you may be able to claim your excess from your specialist car-hire insurance company.
These types of directly purchased car rental excess waiver policies offer many other benefits, including the ability to be purchased daily or annually and can cover any vehicle rented during that time period (subjects to terms and conditions). If you are looking for savings, it might be worth considering.
