Beware: Credit card rental car insurance: it's not what you think!!

[stinkynuts]

So all these years I've rented dozens of cars for maybe a a total of at least 200 days. Luckily, I never got into an accident, but if I had I would have been paying through the nose!

I always declined purchasing the insurance offered by the credit card company, but it turns out that by doing so I was driving without insurance! That insurance offered by the credit card company does not cover accidents. If you get injured, or if you injure someone else and damage their car or property, you're not covered. The only thing that is covered is the rental car itself.

What's more, your own insurance will not pay for any damages or injuries either, since it is a rental car, and they do not cover them.

Please be aware!

I was doing research on the benefits of my RBC Avion card, and it has lots of great benefits, but you have to read the fine print. For example, if you are injured while traveling, you need to contact the RBC insurance before you get treatment, otherwise coverage will be limited.

 

[Twister]

So all these years I've rented dozens of cars for maybe a a total of at least 200 days. Luckily, I never got into an accident, but if I had I would have been paying through the nose!

I always declined purchasing the insurance offered by the credit card company, but it turns out that by doing so I was driving without insurance! That insurance offered by the credit card company does not cover accidents. If you get injured, or if you injure someone else and damage their car or property, you're not covered. The only thing that is covered is the rental car itself.

What's more, your own insurance will not pay for any damages or injuries either, since it is a rental car, and they do not cover them.

Please be aware!

I was doing research on the benefits of my RBC Avion card, and it has lots of great benefits, but you have to read the fine print. For example, if you are injured while traveling, you need to contact the RBC insurance before you get treatment, otherwise coverage will be limited.

You declined the insurance from the rental company or the credit card company? I never heard that the credit company offers you insurance on the spot. I know some credit cards do provide car insurance but the rental company says it doesn't cover much.

 

[stinkynuts]

You declined the insurance from the rental company or the credit card company? I never heard that the credit company offers you insurance on the spot. I know some credit cards do provide car insurance but the rental company says it doesn't cover much.

From the rental car company. I always thought my credit card would cover me if I got into an accident, or my own car insurance. Unfortunately, neither does.

I only had the very basic coverage with TD. You need to upgrade to the higher level to get rental car coverage:

It's good to know that most rental car companies will offer additional coverage, but it’s up to you if you want to make that purchase. If you didn't purchase an endorsement that includes coverage, your TD Insurance policy would not cover the rental, and you would need to purchase private insurance through the rental company at your own cost.

 

[Twister]

From the rental car company. I always thought my credit card would cover me if I got into an accident, or my own car insurance. Unfortunately, neither does.

I think you can buy extra insurance from your insurance company for rentals...

 

[stinkynuts]

I think you can buy extra insurance from your insurance company for rentals...

Yes, you can upgrade the insurance policy, and one of the upgrades is that it will cover you in a rental as if you were driving your own car. But the barebones policy does not have this benefit.

 

[xix]

One time in BC while renting I had some doubts about the CC and kept hearing this voice "buy the rental company insurance" ( the price was half the cost of rental per day). I bought it.
Two kilometers away from the rental company when I was returning the car, I get a flat tire couldn't avoid debris on road. I see a gas station two buildings over and filled it with air. At the rental I tell then what happen and the manager swore but the sales person who sold me and signed off the agreement said I paid for the insurance.

I have known this the CC don't even cover the basics or rentals. So paying extra to your personal auto insurance compared to how many times you travel, you have to do the math to see which is cheaper and convenient.

So as long as you are not at fault and didn't go / drive where they told you not - "BTW rentals have GPS tracking so don't bother lying"- then paying the rental is more convenient. One time in Calgary I got scared because no employee was there and people /renters were parking the car and I swear I almost witness a guy hit another rental car. How do you defend that? That is why I went back to the car and took a video of my rental.

 

[fall]

So all these years I've rented dozens of cars for maybe a a total of at least 200 days. Luckily, I never got into an accident, but if I had I would have been paying through the nose!

I always declined purchasing the insurance offered by the credit card company, but it turns out that by doing so I was driving without insurance! That insurance offered by the credit card company does not cover accidents. If you get injured, or if you injure someone else and damage their car or property, you're not covered. The only thing that is covered is the rental car itself.

What's more, your own insurance will not pay for any damages or injuries either, since it is a rental car, and they do not cover them.

Please be aware!

I was doing research on the benefits of my RBC Avion card, and it has lots of great benefits, but you have to read the fine print. For example, if you are injured while traveling, you need to contact the RBC insurance before you get treatment, otherwise coverage will be limited.

In US and Canada all rental cars are covered by minimal required liability insurance. Even if you decline he additional insurance offered by them and have no credit card insurance, you are still covered for everything except the car you drive and yourself. The insurance limits may be low, but buying insurance from the credit company will not increase them - it will only cover the damage to the car you drive, which is already covered by your credit card. Your own medical bills will be covered by your health insurance (or your own car insurance if you have it).

 

[stinkynuts]

In US and Canada all rental cars are covered by minimal required liability insurance. Even if you decline he additional insurance offered by them and have no credit card insurance, you are still covered for everything except the car you drive and yourself. The insurance limits may be low, but buying insurance from the credit company will not increase them - it will only cover the damage to the car you drive, which is already covered by your credit card. Your own medical bills will be covered by your health insurance (or your own car insurance if you have it).

If you do not have health insurance (besides basic provincial coverage), and get into an accident in the US without insurance, it will be very expensive. Medical bills in the US can reach hundreds of thousands of dollars, and even tens of thousands for very basic treatment. OHIP may cover a few thousand, but that's it.

 

[NotADcotor]

In US and Canada all rental cars are covered by minimal required liability insurance. Even if you decline he additional insurance offered by them and have no credit card insurance, you are still covered for everything except the car you drive and yourself. The insurance limits may be low, but buying insurance from the credit company will not increase them - it will only cover the damage to the car you drive, which is already covered by your credit card. Your own medical bills will be covered by your health insurance (or your own car insurance if you have it).

This reflects my understanding about it also.

I think the only real downside of using credit card insurance is that they put the charge on your CC where it stays until things get sorted out. Not sure about that.
It's illegal to put a car on the road without liability insurance.

 

[Bobzilla]

One thing I learned from the law firm I worked at collecting for Enterprise years ago: ALWAYS, ALWAYS GET THE DAMAGE WAIVER. We sued people who used the night key drop, & their rental got hit overnight in the lot: on the hook for the damage. We sued people who took a rental car off-roading, tried to smuggle drugs across the border, you name it, they tried it. All of them left on the hook for damages.

 

[NotADcotor]

One thing I learned from the law firm I worked at collecting for Enterprise years ago: ALWAYS, ALWAYS GET THE DAMAGE WAIVER. We sued people who used the night key drop, & their rental got hit overnight in the lot: on the hook for the damage. We sued people who took a rental car off-roading, tried to smuggle drugs across the border, you name it, they tried it. All of them left on the hook for damages.

I am not up on Ape Law but
1: If your credit card covers the car it would cover it if the rental company tried to make you responsible after you returned the car.
2: If you use the car in ways you are not supposed to [off roading/out of area/criminal activity] I'd guess the damage waiver wouldn't apply, nor would your CC coverage. Fine print.

Sometimes I think I might be better off dealing with a rental once in a blue moon when I leave town instead of owning but I really hate dealing with rental companies. So far it's been the spit on my cupcake and call it frosting type of them insisting that I am better off not getting a full take of gas because I get the joy of filling it more than I got it [because how can you tell, you can't leave the car on while filling] and giving them free gas or having to pay inflated prices for not filling it back to the level you got it. Insurance fuckery just makes it worse. Also those insurance rates are way to high. I have a free card from RBC that covers it, so it shouldn't cost that much.

 

[fall]

If you do not have health insurance (besides basic provincial coverage), and get into an accident in the US without insurance, it will be very expensive. Medical bills in the US can reach hundreds of thousands of dollars, and even tens of thousands for very basic treatment. OHIP may cover a few thousand, but that's it.

If you do not have health insurance other than OHIP and plan to go to the USA - buy health insurance regardless of whether you rent a car or not (unless you have a premium credit card that offer it for free for 7-21 days). Buying insurance from car rental company and getting hit by a car when you cross the road by foot will not help you, and minimum required medical liability insurance in some states are low (and some people drive without insurance).

 

[y2kmark]

I think you can buy extra insurance from your insurance company for rentals...

Yes, a rider available on most policies, as long as you have collision coverage...

 

[Bobzilla]

I am not up on Ape Law but
1: If your credit card covers the car it would cover it if the rental company tried to make you responsible after you returned the car.
2: If you use the car in ways you are not supposed to [off roading/out of area/criminal activity] I'd guess the damage waiver wouldn't apply, nor would your CC coverage. Fine print.

Sometimes I think I might be better off dealing with a rental once in a blue moon when I leave town instead of owning but I really hate dealing with rental companies. So far it's been the spit on my cupcake and call it frosting type of them insisting that I am better off not getting a full take of gas because I get the joy of filling it more than I got it [because how can you tell, you can't leave the car on while filling] and giving them free gas or having to pay inflated prices for not filling it back to the level you got it. Insurance fuckery just makes it worse. Also those insurance rates are way to high. I have a free card from RBC that covers it, so it shouldn't cost that much.

1. Nope. The rental contracts usually specifically state that you're liable until the car has been checked over by one of their employees. That's been grounds for some sketchy behaviour by the rental companies as well.
2. Yep. Using the vehicle for any reason other than driving it on well maintained roads and/or for an extralegal purpose results in voiding the damage waiver. Cc would not cover you in these events either.

The other thing is, any insurance does not necessarily cover the car, it covers the insured person. If you already have vehicle insurance & are renting a car because say, yours is in the shop, your regular car insurance covers you for the rental car. If you don't have comprehensive insurance normally, they wouldn't cover it if someone smashed the rental car's windshield. This is where the damage waiver comes in handy. Anyone renting a car and expecting cc coverage should really carefully read what is actually covered. You should also really closely read the rental contract, although no one ever does. Car rental places are pretty slimy IMO. I've seen some repairs that were crazy excessive, but because people can't be bothered to read contracts or go over the return checklist with the rental agency, they get hit for a bill.