I'm back from my trip to Dallas. It was a whirlwind of friends and family and I had a lot of fun catching up with people I haven't seen in over a year. The only down part of the trip was the rental car. I hate renting cars. It's next to impossible to get a good deal on one. Even the price they quote you on the web usually doesn't take into account extra fees and taxes and there is always the question of getting add ons and insurance.
I ended up renting a car for 3 days to go visit my grandparents in Houston. As I was driving the car back to my parents house the night before I was leaving for Houston, I was blessed with two flat tires on the passenger side. Talk about crazy bad luck. I called the rental company assistance line and they sent out a tow truck and brought me back to the rental agency, and the rental agency set me up with a new car at no additional charge (for the rental). I am, however, stuck with the fees for towing and tire replacement because I didn't have any kind of insurance on the vehicle except my own ordinary policy. Since then I've done a little research and in general you have three options:
Rental Company Provided
The Rental companies love to sell you additional insurance. The company I was renting from had offers ranging from $20-$50 per day. PER DAY! For three days that would be at least sixty dollars. I'm getting ready to rent for two weeks. That would be an additional $280-$700. The rental itself is only $300! That is kind of hard to swallow. For my little blow out incident, if I had taken the $20 a day coverage then I would have come out ahead overall on. However, if something similar happens during the two weeks I'm renting the resulting repair cost would be about even. How cost effective it is to buy the extra insurance really comes down to how often you rent, and what your normal insurance covers.
Your Regular Insurance Provider
I talked to my insurance company about what would be covered during a rental. Pretty much all the same coverages apply to the rental car as to my regular car. In terms of accident and personal liability I'm covered exactly the same, as well as for road side assistance. (which I didn't have at the time, but that's another story). Something as minor as tire repairs won't even meet my deductible.
Third Party Insurance (ie credit card benefits)
I have a number of credit cards for various reasons, and my American Express card has the benefit of offering additional insurance for rental cars (among other things). If I had used this card, I might have been covered for the tire repairs ( but not roadside assistance). I don't normally use it for anything, so I didn't have it with me at the time. This benefit is a secondary insurance, which means it only pays for things after your other means of insurance has paid out. A representative I spoke to said that would cover my deductible from my regular insurance. There is also an option from Amex to sign up for a primary insurance with greater coverage. For $25 a rental they will cover theft or damage up to $100,000 for 42 days after you rent. If you sign up it is automatically charged at the time of rental. That sure beats $20 per day!
Which is best for you?
That depends on a number of factors, but I think the biggest would be how often you rent. If you only rent a car once or twice a year for a few days at a time, the piece of mind offered by the rental company's policy is probably best.
If you rent frequently then all those insurance fees are going to add up pretty quickly and you would be better off finding another option.
If your regular insurance is spectacular, then you may never need to buy additional insurance. Just be sure you know what coverages you have before you go declining the rental companies offer.
