Rental car insurance - would a Gold/Platinum card cover it?

[Warks]

I've seen this raised before but I was never quite sure what the answer was. Reading the T&C of my Gold MC is about as enjoyable as James Joyce's Ulysses and about as comprehensible.

Anyway, with the insurance costs on hiring/renting a car through the majors being almost as much as the daily hire charge it's tempting to go without and take the chance. If you booked and paid for the car using a Gold or Platinum card with its included travel insurance would you be covered to any extent in the event of an accident? Would there be a difference between local and international travel?

I would assume your own car insurance wouldn't cover you.

 

[AdMEL]

More details are required to provide an accurate answer, as coverage depends on the specific card and the country the car is being hired in.

 

[drewbles]

You really need to read the PDS to see what's covered.

I know my Earth Gold card covers it, but my Amex Platinum CC and my Amex QF Ultimate card did not. The Amex Platinum Charge Card does, but it varies from card to card.

Probably best to speak to someone in the insurance section of your card provider and ask them what page of the PDS it's referenced on, so you can have some peace of mind.

 

[sr81]

I have an Earth Plat card and it includes rental excess insurance. This means that if you have an accident and do not have anything other than the base (meaning included in the rental price, not an added extra) then you need to pay the excess.

Usually this seems to be around the $4k mark.

Earth Plat, according to the PDS, will then reimburse you for the excess.

I do this when I get a hire car in Australia only. When overseas I make sure the travel insurance has rental car excess and return clauses.

I know that there is a risk that the insurance company will default but I have made sure my understanding of the PDS is clear. I have talked to Earth and their underwriters to ensure there are no little hiccups like not paying in the case of a single vehicle accident.
If you are looking to hire a car for a week or so then consider a domestic travel insurance policy. They can often be much cheaper than paying the hire car insurance.

 

[cymbolz]

You need to read the PDS or call and ask.

For example, my CBA Gold Card covers up to $2,250 for excess cover. So I would want to ensure the car I hire has an excess less of this, or be prepared to pay the difference. I'd have to read more into this but don't necessarily have to pay for the hire on this CC...just ensure I meet the criteria for this travel insurance on that particular trip/holiday.

Where are you renting the car? I'm off to the US in May and am still researching the best options to keep costs down but have the insurance I need. It's very different over there...no insurance/excess like we have, just full liability or partial/full waiver. They (US citizens) are usually covered by their own car rental policy when renting.

Do lots more research, especially if renting overseas. Or ask here and I'll try to help (on the US part) but I'm no expert, just discovering it myself.

 

[Warks]

Thanks for all the replies - I've got a CBA Gold MC. Looking at Tasmania later in the year or perhaps NZ. I was interested to find out whether it was a straight 'no'. I will chase it up further.

As I'm a member of Avis (which I use for work hires) it seems to have maximum insurance locked into my profile. Whenever I make a booking any option to alter insurance cover is greyed out. As Avis never respond to anything via email I've not got an answer for this. Could try calling them but I've got an aversion to talking to corporations over the phone - the time I've spent on hold with Optus and Telstra is time lost forever...

 

[AdMEL]

From my read of the PDS, CBA Gold and Platinum cards provide rental care excess cover of $2,250 overseas but not in Australia, so you would have some cover in NZ (probably not for the whole excess though) and no cover in Tas.

There aren't too many cards that provide domestic cover. Some that do:

- all Westpac platinum cards (incl. Earth) - $5,500 with no excess. Note that additional drivers are not cover unless they are additional cardholders on the same account.
- all ANZ cards - $2,400 with $350 excess. A couple of notes with this: although this is available on all cards, for the majority of cards, it requires an additonal payment of $24 per year. Cover does not apply where rental car company has an additonal single vehicle accident excess (i.e. Hertz and Thrifty) and you are involved in a single vehcile accident. Covers additional drivers.
- Amex Platinum Charge Card - up to $50,000, but only when more than 250k, from home and only for cars worth less than $50,000.

With regard to Avis insurance cover options, you can delete the excess reduction in your profile when logged in. You can akso re-add if required.

 

[Moopere]

From my read of the PDS, CBA Gold and Platinum cards provide rental care excess cover of $2,250 overseas but not in Australia

Are you sure? I only skimmed over the PDS today I must admit, but this snippet makes the CBA Gold look pretty all encompassing:


"6. Rental vehicle insurance excess cover
We will reimburse you for any insurance excess or
deductible which you become legally liable to pay in
respect of loss of or damage to a rental vehicle during
the rental period provided:
• the rental vehicle is rented from a licensed rental
agency; and
Part C – Cover we provide
47
• as part of the rental agreement you have taken
comprehensive motor insurance against loss of or
damage to the rental vehicle; and
• you have complied with all requirements of the rental
organisation under the hiring agreement and of the
rental vehicle insurer.
But we will not pay for…
We will not pay for your costs arising from loss or
damage resulting from the operation of the rental
vehicle in violation of the terms of the rental agreement."

The way I read that is that there is effectively no limit to the excess cover. Comprehensive insurance is usually part of the up-front price of cars hired in Australia at least. Always worth checking, but I've not found one yet that isn't this way.

 

[AdMEL]

Are you sure? I only skimmed over the PDS today I must admit, but this snippet makes the CBA Gold look pretty all encompassing:


"6. Rental vehicle insurance excess cover
We will reimburse you for any insurance excess or
deductible which you become legally liable to pay in
respect of loss of or damage to a rental vehicle during
the rental period provided:
• the rental vehicle is rented from a licensed rental
agency; and
Part C – Cover we provide
47
• as part of the rental agreement you have taken
comprehensive motor insurance against loss of or
damage to the rental vehicle; and
• you have complied with all requirements of the rental
organisation under the hiring agreement and of the
rental vehicle insurer.
But we will not pay for…
We will not pay for your costs arising from loss or
damage resulting from the operation of the rental
vehicle in violation of the terms of the rental agreement."

The way I read that is that there is effectively no limit to the excess cover. Comprehensive insurance is usually part of the up-front price of cars hired in Australia at least. Always worth checking, but I've not found one yet that isn't this way.

Positive. From PDS:

Part A - Cover limits and summary of cover we provide, pages 32 and 33:

Rental Vehicle Insurance Excess Cover - Limit of $2,250.

As this is in the International Travel Insurance section, it would only apply when overseas.

Also, the definition of a rental vehicle on page 14 only includes sedans and wagons and specifically excludes all other types of vehicle - very limited!

With regard to your final point, I don't think it is legal to provide a rental car in Australia without comprehensive insurance (excess is not legislated however) - the USA is whole other story though!

 

[AdMEL]

You need to read the PDS or call and ask.

For example, my CBA Gold Card covers up to $2,250 for excess cover. So I would want to ensure the car I hire has an excess less of this, or be prepared to pay the difference. I'd have to read more into this but don't necessarily have to pay for the hire on this CC...just ensure I meet the criteria for this travel insurance on that particular trip/holiday.

Where are you renting the car? I'm off to the US in May and am still researching the best options to keep costs down but have the insurance I need. It's very different over there...no insurance/excess like we have, just full liability or partial/full waiver. They (US citizens) are usually covered by their own car rental policy when renting.

Do lots more research, especially if renting overseas. Or ask here and I'll try to help (on the US part) but I'm no expert, just discovering it myself.

There are a number of very helpful threads on this forum which will assist with regard to car hire in the USA.

 

[trooper]

For the USA I rent through (mainly) European based consolidators that offer "all inclusive" rates..

Far cheaper than "USA rate + CDW/LDW"...

 

[JohnK]

I don't know much about credit card travel insurance as I have an annual travel insurance policy and I am not locked into paying everything with one particular credit card and I can also pay with cash when I want.

Before I took out annual travel insurance policies I used to get travel insurance from OnlineTravelInsurance which covers car rental excess of ~$4000. The policy used to cost $20 for ~2 weeks cover and I did not need to pay the surcharge to the car rental company.

 

[trooper]

Be careful with that... for the USA at least. Having cover for the excess is AFAIK.. just that. Excess reduction/removal.

To the best of my knowledge it does not provide CDW/LDW type coverage....