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News Car Rentals Check Before Buying Travel Insurance for Rental Cars
News Car Rentals Check Before Buying Travel Insurance for Rental Cars
| Check Before Buying Travel Insurance for Rental Cars |
| Tuesday, 16 August 2011 | |
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Buying travel insurance to cover a rental car is an additional expense that many can avoid. Before making a purchase, travelers should first check with their car insurance and credit card provider to see if coverage is available. “Many travelers buy additional coverage because they don’t know they already have protection,” says Sarah Byrne, Marketing Manager at Squaremouth.com, a site for comparing and purchasing travel insurance. “Checking your options first could save you money and prevent over insuring.” When traveling within the U.S., many rental car drivers do not need to buy additional rental car insurance. Many car insurance plans from companies including State Farm, Allstate and Progressive, offer their policy holders protection when driving a rental car. However, additional coverage may be needed to cover “loss of use” charges if the rental car requires repairs. Travelers should also check what coverage is available through their credit card company. American Express, MasterCard and Visa offer rental car coverage with many of their cards, however, it’s important to remember that the benefit is only available if travelers pay for the rental car on the card. f travelers do not have the option to receive coverage through their car insurance or credit card provider, rental car insurance is available with many travel insurance plans. Most plans range from $25,000 to $50,000 in rental car coverage and will also include cancellation, interruption, medical and medical evacuation. “Since the amount of rental car coverage can vary from one policy to the next, its important for travelers to read the fine print,” says Chris Harvey, CEO of Squaremouth. For example, Travel Guard offers primary coverage with a $250 deductible, while CSA Travel Protection and HTH Worldwide offer primary rental car insurance without a deductible. “Since CSA provides primary coverage for rental car damage, travelers in most instances never need to inform their car insurance company that a problem occurred, saving them time, frustration and potential rate increases,” explains Kathy Townend, CSA Travel Protection’s Marketing Manager. Other plans from Seven Corners, Travelex and Travel Insured offer secondary rental car coverage, yet travelers are required to first collect from any existing insurance they may have before the travel insurance will pay a claim. If a comprehensive travel insurance plan is not needed, Travel Guard and American Express both offer alternatives. Travel Guard offers only rental car collision insurance for $7 a day, and American Express offers primary car rental insurance to non-card members for $9 a day. |
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