“Would you like extra insurance coverage on your rental car?”
If you’ve rented a car, you most certainly have been faced with this dilemma:
Do I need the additional liability, personal injury and personal property coverage offered at the counter by the rental rep who, by the way, is doing a pretty decent job of convincing you such coverage is absolutely necessary?
First off, if you own a car and you aren’t insured, well, that’s a problem right there, and you need to get that fixed.
So stop here and call Dana Morrison at Morrison Insurance Services for a free quote. If you’re visiting Reno, Tahoe, or anywhere in Northern Nevada, call him at (775) 473-9300 before you sign that rental agreement. And if you’re looking for fun things to do on vacation, visit Reno.com and make the most out of your trip.
Of course, most car owners do have insurance. The question is, are they sufficiently covered and protected against bodily injury, property damage liability, collision and comprehensive coverage and is their personal property covered when renting a car. Do you need to spend that extra money and check “yes” to insurance on those rental forms?
For starters, if you have auto insurance, you have already purchased at least the state minimum liability coverage, that may protect you from a potential lawsuit, granted that the minimum is not very much coverage. So, getting that car rental liability insurance could be a redundant coverage. But to be safe, make sure to double check with your auto insurer that you have adequate limits for your particular situation.
Personal property coverage would cover your “stuff” that you are bringing along in your rental car, be it a laptop computer, iPod or fancy coat. If you already have homeowner’s or rental insurance, that “stuff” you are taking into the car with you is already covered, up to a certain dollar amount. Once again, this could be a redundant coverage.
Finally, if you have health insurance and/or medical payments on your current auto policy, it probably already covers accident related injuries. So getting the personal injury insurance over the counter at the rental place could be redundant in more ways than one.
This is where if you happen to be in an accident while renting a car, the rental car company will charge you for the days that the rental is in the body shop being repaired. Therefore resulting in a loss of use to the company. In most cases this is NOT covered by your auto insurance. Does this mean you should sign up for that extra coverage with that person behind the counter? The answer is, MAYBE! If you have a credit card, many credit card companies offer loss of use coverage as one of their benefits, as long as that is the card you used to rent the vehicle. Be sure to call your credit card company and ask!
Hey, that rental car insurance pitch can be pretty tantalizing, right? Some of us have enough disposable income that we just say, “Sure, go ahead!” and get that extra, redundant insurance. Good thing that income is disposable, because you are probably throwing your money away.
Can supplemental rental insurance make sense? If your current personal auto insurance has a large deductible, maybe. If you wish to make sure you are protected from raised insurance premiums on your personal insurance as a result of an accident in a rental car, the rental supplemental coverage might not be a bad idea.
Do you have questions related to the rental car insurance issue? Contact Dana Morrison, at Morrison Insurance Services for a consultation and free quote. He’ll answer your questions, and look into your current insurance to make sure you have the provisions to protect you when renting a car.
photo credit: thepointsguy.com