Do most Platinum Charge holders rely on just the AmEx rental car cover?

[dsotm]

Just going to book a rental in Queensland. Just a bit of a straw poll, but I'm wondering if most Platinum Charge Card holders just rely on the card's cover for car rentals. Adding the additional cover at the rental desk adds a fair bit to the hire costs, but I wonder if all the theft, breakdown and other costs are covered fully by the AmEx card. I used just the AmEx cover on a recent rental in London, but I'm not sure if I was fully covered. It's hard to find a definitive answer, even from AmEx.

 

[Bell21]

I'm not sure if in fact all those potentials are covered by amex Plat cover but like you, I'm currently just relying on its cover for car rental - part of my rationale is that when I had a look at separate travel insurance cover that I've traditionally had for car rental (covermore), I thought amex Plat cover was as good, if not better. I also thought amex Plat cover for car hire was better than some of the banks premium cards cover too

 

[djchuckles]

I haven’t checked the details thoroughly but yes I always rely just on the card

 

[benjy]

I remember when I hired a car earlier this year, hire car place offered insurance and I said all good have amex plat charge... employee's response "oh that's good, you all covered then"

I didn't need to use it and YMMV but it was just my experience and you should always read the PDS

 

[dsotm]

Thanks everyone. I will go with the AmEx cover I think. It's not like I'm renting a Lambo!

 

[andye]

Charge cover seems equivalent to standalone or travel insurance products.
It does differ from the hire firm's own in that you would be obliged to pay then claim back from Amex.

 

[Oliver Brown]

My Westpac Altitude Black card did well when the Hertz rental got damaged by a roo in WA near Monkey Mia. They covered the claim without any hassle. They use QBE for their cover.
The damage was $1800 but all I had was a $300 excess.

 

[WendyFFF]

My Westpac Altitude Black card did well when the Hertz rental got damaged by a roo in WA near Monkey Mia. They covered the claim without any hassle. They use QBE for their cover.
The damage was $1800 but all I had was a $300 excess.

Was it only after the claim was settled or straight after Hertz took their own excess after seeing claim from another party?

Sometimes claims take months to settle and this is seen as normal in the industry.

Note AmEx uses Chubb and QBE seems the standard with most bank issued cards.

 

[Oliver Brown]

Sometimes claims take months to settle and this is seen as normal in the industry.

Note AmEx uses Chubb and QBE seems the standard with most bank issued cards.

I was dreading the whole thing TBH.

I was falsely accused of a scratch by Avis several years ago and they took 4 grand to cover it and months to sort.

Even though Hertz have had issues in the past with gouging ( they got into trouble big time) I think they have acted on it.

They only took the quote amount from the card and then refunded it all quickly when QBE came through

It was all done in about a month and I was very relieved. And pleasantly surprised/impressed.

Don't know if I got lucky but I got the impression QBE were running the show

 

[Franky]

I was dreading the whole thing TBH.

I was falsely accused of a scratch by Avis several years ago and they took 4 grand to cover it and months to sort.

Even though Hertz have had issues in the past with gouging ( they got into trouble big time) I think they have acted on it.

They only took the quote amount from the card and then refunded it all quickly when QBE came through

It was all done in about a month and I was very relieved. And pleasantly surprised/impressed.

Don't know if I got lucky but I got the impression QBE were running the show

Perhaps they might be getting the message from the Banking RC re overbearing behavour towards customers they are supposed to be servicing, not screwing...

 

[baldman]

Check the rental car cover on the PDS for the insurance with your amex plat charge and you will see that you are NOT covered for the rental ins excess if the rental occurs within 150km of your residential address. Hence if you rent a car from anywhere near where you live , you are exposed to the excess, unless you take the LDW cover from the rental car company.

My westpac black MasterCard doesn’t have the same exclusion.

The amex exclusion is ridiculous and outrageous for a card that costs as much as what it does.

 

[Bell21]

That exclusion doesn't impact me but it makes me wonder why they would exclude it, given there's greater risk (ie unfamiliarity) to conditions when further from 'home'

 

[baldman]

That exclusion doesn't impact me but it makes me wonder why they would exclude it, given there's greater risk (ie unfamiliarity) to conditions when further from 'home'

Yes, I completely agree. The inscrutable reasoning seems to be something along the lines of the card insurance is for “travel and travellers” and not for “at home” rentals....

Beats the hell out of me....would be fascinated to hear from other members what response they got/get if they take this up w amex. I will certainly be raising the issue when the (increased) annual fee charge hits at the end of this month.

 

[Bell21]

Actually that's probably their logic - insurance is focused on 'travelling'

 

[auflier]

Check the rental car cover on the PDS for the insurance with your amex plat charge and you will see that you are NOT covered for the rental ins excess if the rental occurs within 150km of your residential address. Hence if you rent a car from anywhere near where you live , you are exposed to the excess, unless you take the LDW cover from the rental car company.

My westpac black MasterCard doesn’t have the same exclusion.

The amex exclusion is ridiculous and outrageous for a card that costs as much as what it does.

Not only Chubb exclusion is bothersome, claim experience with them can be dreadful.
I guess the best case is when you assume you do not need any insurance while paying rental on amex card. If accidents happen and you happen to be eligible for benefit payment, you will feel real good.

 

[mew]

I would only rely on the amex card for all cover if you have a good cash flow. The amount of damage is immediately charged to your card, but the insurance claim you submit to amex insurers can take 2-3 months to be refunded. You will have had to pay the monthly card balance well before then. I tend to accept the base insurance from the hire company and use the amex to cover the excess, generally $2000-3000 depending on the car. Only decline all insurance if you can carry say $70 000 for a few months in case you write the car off.