On a business trip, I used my Amex to rent at Hertz. I received a complimentary upgrade because I was using the Amex. (Actually, I just learned "complimentary upgrade" really means "we ran out of compact cars" majority of the time it's offered--they usually try to charge a nominal fee). Apparently, there was a dent on the passenger side of the car. When I tried filing a claim with Amex, they informed me they only cover compact cars (how ironic). The cost to repair the car was only a couple of hundred dollars, so I paid out of pocket. Oh well, one less pair of shoes this year... :)

Now I know I only have to pay $19 when I rent next time. Thank you!

Out of curiosity, I searched for other cards that offer discounts, upgrades, insurance, etc. and found this site called CardOffers.com. They actually have every card listed by reward programs, benefits; however, it doesn't list the extra details/features/exclusions, but it was totally convenient.

1) Called police
2) While waiting for police to arrive, I called Amex, they took my info, and gave me a claim number to give Hertz
3) I called Hertz after about 30 minutes of hunting for the damn correct number. Turns out you have to call the roadside assistance number.

The car was still drivable so I took it back to the airport to swap for another car.

WARNING -- the checkin agent closed out my rental and the agent at the counter had a helluva time reopening it. At first they tried to tell me I would have to rerent at walk-up rates for the rest of the rental period and lose whatever I had left on the turned-in rental. Be sure to tell the check-in agent NOT to close out your rental.

WARNING - I had to fill out a huge amount of paperwork. Took about two hours before I got a new car. If you're turning in a damaged car before a flight, allow a lot of time for the paperwork. And this was at 5am when there were no customers at the counter.

After that it was pretty easy. Hertz and Amex dealt directly with each other. I didn't have to get my own insurance company involved. I got occasional status updates in the mail. Finally about three months later I got a letter from Amex saying they sent Hertz a check for ~$800 for damages but would not cover $161 in administrative fees plus $53 for loss of us unless I could get Hertz to confirm the administrative fees were above and beyond their normal cost of doing business and they had more than 80% cars rented at the time the vehicle was out. I just paid it.

@theodicey: Mexico is the same way - and if you have an accident in Mexico, and you're found to not have the local insurance ... well, hope you enjoy prison!

Plus, they have primo customer service.

Any more "real life" experiences with rental car damage?

I'd love to understand how things were actually handled by the CC's companies, personal insurance companies or the rental car insurance companies. How was the cost of the damage assessed? How long did it take? Did you have to get a police report? etc.

I have a discover card and I thought I was covered, until I saw this. Discover even sent me information about how they cover trip insurance and rental insurance. Too bad they didn't mention it wasn't available on the card I had. Luckily nothing happened to the car that I denied coverage on since I thought discover had my back.

I was also frequently miffed by idiots who would go without any coverage b/c they were overconfident, invincible, etc. only to come back crying (or, more often, screaming) when crap went down. You CAN and WILL eat it for thousands of dollars, even IF everyone at the office is 100% honest and not vindictive (not always true). The crap that renters tried to pull on us to conceal or purposefully damage cars was the saddest part, though.

How many of you want a quality rental experience and then always "drive it like a rental"? The next person is just as deserving of a good experience as you, and it is not I who has to drive it once you've destroyed the thing.

Finally, my regular car insurance does not cover me if I rent a car overseas. Therefore, and this is verified by a Visa specialist, my Visa card will be my Primary car insurance when I rent a car in France in a few weeks.

I would certainly call the card issuer to confirm before relying on the coverage for any foreign trip, and probably ask for a copy of the info in writing.

@theodicey: I was in NZ two months after this article was published, and I was not required to take out any extra insurance, nor was any such requirement mentioned. YMMV.

It's funny because it's true!

Except for the 5 1/2-foot-wide two-way country roads with 8-foot brambly hedges on both sides, with periodic cuts in the hedges where one of you us meant to back up and pull off to let the other by ....

I loved driving in Ireland. There's no road rage there! People are really nice about your inability to back down a bramble path in a Nissan Micra!

My understanding has always been that the card insurance kicks in after your normal insurance. If you don't have normal insurance, then the card insurance kicks in instantly.

However, it's probably more prudent to clear this with the credit card company in question. OTOH, I rented tens of times with no incidents.

As for Italy and Jamaica, it really is car theft.

So what's the issue with excluding certain countries (and virtually all the same ones too)?

Italy: car will be stolen

Ireland: two lane country roads are 12 feet wide with immobile stone walls on both sides

Jamaica: your car will be wrecked by joyriding carjackers

Israel: Hamas terrorists will blow your car into a flaming wreck. Or, the IDF will bulldoze it because you've parked in front of a Palestinian house

Australia and New Zealand: sheep on road

Actually, any benefits programs offered for debit cards are administered by Visa/MasterCard, not the bank/CU they are issued by.

Additionally, many rental car agencies will accept debit cards - I know this because there are a high number of check card disputes on rental car charges (dispute success for consumers and merchants is about 50/50; there are many invalid disputes filed by consumers and many abuses surrounding authorizations by merchants). Companies that accept debit cards usually have restrictions attached, like for local residents only (not typically for travelers renting at the airport, etc).

Visa check (debit) cards DO NO offer rental car insurance. Most of their debit coverage programs were discontinued in 2006 or 2007 I believe.

[usa.visa.com]

It does appear that MasterCard Gold and Platinum debit cards offer rental car protection according to their website:

[www.mastercard.com]
(click on Learn More About Debit Card Benefits)

I would contact your bank to verify coverage! As someone who works in the finance industry, the bank I worked at when Visa discontinued coverage never notified its employees and we were referring people to Visa 911 until a three way call to Visa uncovered the discontinuation of coverage...

Also, most if not all rental companies refuse to let you use a debit card for transactions because of their need to put a hold on the cost of the rental in your credit account.

I just checked the American Express website - their standard automobile coverage Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance (CRLDI) is "secondary" but their Premium Car Rental Protection coverage is "primary".

The Premium is a great policy and it does cover exotics. "from smaller economy sizes to large luxury sedans, convertibles, exotic cars (worth more than $50,000), minivans, vans, pickup trucks, and full-sized SUVs."

It does have some exclusions but not a many as the the CRLDI. It does cost (about $20 or so), but you pay only once per rental, regardless of duration, as opposed to a daily fee like the rental car waivers.

@Jevia:

I've wondered about it too. Italy has high auto theft rates, ditto Jamaica; Israelis drive like lunatics, but I really don't understand Australia and NZ, unless they're worried about people going off road (on, in NZ, off cliffs).

@pixiegirl1:

Hate to break it to you, but accident rates for under-25s are a lot higher than for older. Simple as that. It's not some great conspiracy, it's just that younger people are poorer insurance risks (on the whole).

Add Grand Cayman (perhaps all 3 Cayman Islands) to the list of countries in which NO credit card insurance is allowed. If you rent a car in Grand Cayman and get into an accident without their rental insurance, you have to pay on the spot or you won't be allowed to leave the country.

Last year, I rented a car which got damaged when something flew off a truck driving in front of me. The only damage was a scratch and broken plastic around the fog light.

I had use my Amex Blue Card knowing that there was coverage. Turns out they use your personal coverage as 'primary' and Amex's coverage kicks in after that. But, if the damage is less than your deductible, the Amex card will pay***.

The damage was only $365, so Amex paid it and I got back to my regularly scheduled life. No 'loss of use' or 'loss of value' as far as I know. My rental was through Enterprise and they could not have been nicer.

***My personal auto policy is actually written through Amex's insurance company (Ameriprise), so in reality Amex was paying either way.

@Consumerist-Moderator-Roz: Well, Roz, it wasn't disemvoweled. As stated previously, I disemvoweled it myself. And I understand that this post isn't the "let's bitch about Consumerist design changes thread", but Ben isn't allowing us to do that where it'd be appropriate, so I hijacked this discussion since it was just above where I wanted to post my disemvoweled disapporval of the new design. I guess it would matter if I cared if I was banned, which you're free to do. But I think I've actually been a pretty good contributor to consumerist in my time perhaps despite my flame wars with Bladefist. If you disagree, ban me or disemvowel me. But I think most people would agree that the orignial comment is pretty funny, even if way off topic.

Hmmm...Had a long discussion with American Express about a rental in Calgary where the windshield was damaged by a rock...The coverage through the Platinum card did *not* cover those damages in Canada...

As someone who has worked for Enterprise in their rental branches I can say I've seen the good and bad of credit card coverages.

- Some of them used to not pay claims unless they were called at the time of rental and informed that you would be needing their coverage.

- Some wouldn't pay the claim if the vehicle was on a truck axle

- All of them denied claims if you paid with a different credit card at the end. Nothing sadder than a guy hearing his claim's been denied because he let us run his AMEX at the time of rental, but when he came back he wanted to pay with a Mastercard to "get more points."

- Even if they do cover the claim, some don't do it for free. Sure VISA may pay your deductible, but the next month you'll see a charge on your account that is them asking for it back. And like it has been stated before, most of these cards are secondary coverage, and most don't cover the loss of revenue while the rental is being fixed.

Bottom line is buyer beware and know what the specific rules/exceptions are.

Shit, I even redeemed my Discover Rewards to get a $40 off coupon at Alamo, where I was planning on renting. But... Nowhere in any of the fine print Terms & Conditions of the coupon does it say that I have to use my Discover card for the remainder of the rental price... maybe I can use the coupon then rent the car with my Visa? I hope so.

@stevejust: Well played, sir.

The warnings my wife and I got while renting a car in England were pretty bowel moistening.

The credit-card-coverage vs. personal-auto-insurance-coverage question has plagued me personally for a while -- maybe someone here can answer definitively. I have an AmEx co-branded credit card, and since I live in New York and have no car of my own, I have no personal auto insurance. The FAQ for my card on the AmEx website contains the following language: "The Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance Plan provides secondary coverage."

So, when I use my AmEx to rent a car, can I decline the LDW and count on the Amex coverage, or can I count on the card's coverage IF AND ONLY IF I already have personal insurance? Is this what "secondary coverage" means? Is my having a credit card, and not a traditional AmEx charge card, the catch here?

@Roy Hobbs:

Just for the record, I disemvoweled myself. I thought it'd be a bit funnier that way.

Thanks for the hat tip, Meg, and yes, Timmus, you're quite right. As our story points out: "Your credit card company provides secondary coverage. It covers whatever your primary auto insurance doesn't, paying whatever is left and going toward your deductible."

Actually the point in our story I found most interesting are the country exclusions. Yeah, New Zealand, Australia and Ireland -- they're so much more dangerous than, say, Iraq!

@stevejust: I don't get it. A Customer (reader) of the Consumerist, a customer-friendly blog, indicates that he is not in favor of the new design, and he is threatened with being banned?

Is it better to use the credit card rental car insurance or your own car insurance's rental car insurance?

I would think that the former would be better since won't increase your rates should you have an accident.

Amex gold is $250 I believe, and none for platinum/centurion cards. I don't know about any others.

@blackmage439: Yes, Visa wrote me a check for $100 and covered all claims. I have no idea why they wrote me $100 check too.

Anyone have any REAL experience with this credit card-provided insurance?

i.am.a.consumer.whore...♠

So what's the issue with excluding certain countries (and virtually all the same ones too)? Why are those countries excluded, are they more dangerous to drive in?

I liked visa's exclusion of "expensive" vehicles. What's considered "expensive?"

I have the AMEX premium insurance but I have never had to use it. But before I signed up for it, I rented a big red convertible from Budget in L.A. for a weekend, and purchased Budget's daily liability waiver. Unbeknownst to me the passenger side was damaged (by one of the valet parking attendants, I suspect). It was sure nice to be able to shrug my shoulders at it when the rental check-in guy pointed it out. That and sign his check-in form. No time or hassle at all.

The folks at AMEX say it would only involve a phone call to get something taken care of, but I'm not sure I believe them.

Sweet... California pays off every now and then...

@stevejust: Agreed site looks like shit now

@startertan:

Yeah, I believe that the clause of no trucks is in there specifically for that reason, moving trucks are substantially more expense than a sedan

Coverage is secondary to any other applicable insurance or coverage available to you

So looks like you'll be fighting it out with your own insurance company, and you'll get a rate hike to boot. With my last rental I just sucked it up and got the LDW rather than play those games.

Don't forget that your regular auto insurance might also cover you. And check with the auto rental company- they might have a sweet deal for customers of your insurance. If I book my rental using my insurance company's special code, the price is less than the lowest discounted rate I could find, I don't have to pay CDW, and the insurance covers 100% of incurred costs if I have an accident.

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