The truth is that you do not have to get your rental car insurance from the rental car company. When you own a car, the insurance policy you have might actually extend to the rental vehicle. At the same time, it is possible that you will be covered through the credit card or even through your health insurance. However, there are situations in which car rental insurance is necessary and you have to take it from the rental car company. For instance, with rental car in Ukraine, when you travel from the US, your policy will surely not apply and you need insurance on the road.
Expanding On Rental Car Insurance Need
The rental car company usually offers an insurance policy through a collision damage waiver (CDW) or a loss damage waiver (LDW). Such insurance will cover the client in the event that the rental vehicle is damaged, vandalized, or stolen. The waiver practically means that the rental car firm will not want you to pay for losses and repairs.
The problem is that in so many cases car insurance for rental vehicles is redundant. This is because regular insurance policies might already include certain coverages. With this in mind, let’s think about the advantages of using your own car insurance versus the one from the rental company.
Advantages Of Own Car Insurance
When you use your policy, it is cheaper than the regular rental insurance. When you have rental cars covered, you save money and you do not need to buy the additional rental insurance. Just drive and be covered without an extra fee.
Then, you are aware of the reputation of your provider. There is already a relationship established and you fully know if reliability is high. As you go for the rental car insurance policy, you work with an organization that you simply do not know.
The last advantage is that you do not need to deal with extra paperwork. You go to the rental counter and you surely want the car as soon as possible. It takes time to fill out car insurance forms and quite a bit of effort. You can simply bypass the entire part when you are covered through your car policy.
Advantages of Using Rental Car Insurance
The insurance offered by the renter is adequate and you are 100% sure that you are covered. When you do not know if your personal insurance has things taken care of, it is better to be safe. For instance, it is possible that you just have minimum liability insurance that does not cover the rental vehicles.
Another thing to be aware of is that personal auto insurance could be prohibited. There are many policies that are limited based on geographical location. Traveling abroad almost always means that the regular auto insurance policy does not cover claims.
Lastly, when you have to file an insurance claim with your policy, it is possible that you will be faced with approval issues. This is because you were driving a car you do not own. Always carefully check insurance policy declaration details to see if such an issue could appear.