Car Hire Excess Insurance

Car Hire Excess

Just as likely is the fact that the insurance cover you buy may carry an excess – or a deductible if you are renting in North America – amounting to as much as £2,000. With so much financial responsibility at stake, many drivers consider car hire excess insurance a prudent precaution.

What Is It?

• Car hire excess protection is very much as it says – it is a separate or add-on piece of insurance, specifically indemnifying you against the need to pay the whole of or part of the excess or deductible otherwise applied in the event of any claim.
• A Guide to Waivers, Excess and Insurance published by the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (BVRLA), explains that a form of excess insurance is commonly sold by vehicle rental companies – and may sometimes be described as excess reduction.

The Cover

Use of the term excess reduction for the protection commonly sold by rental companies may be significant given the limited scope it may sometimes have – including, for example, exclusion of damage to areas of the vehicle such as the roof, underside, windows, wheels and tyres.

The Expense

Although rental companies may commonly sell such cover by taking advantage of customers’ concerns about a potentially very expensive excess payment, the broader concern may be the high price of such cover when bought from these companies – according to the Money Saving Expert (to cite just one critic.

 
The Alternative

- There is an alternative to buying excess cover from the car rental company and that is to buy it from an entirely independent specialist provider – such as us here at Bettersafe.

- Not only is this source likely to lead to more affordable cover, but also excess insurance that is typically somewhat more comprehensive.

- Such cover may be purchased online upon payment of a single premium and the immediate issue of the necessary documents.

- Typically, such cover indemnifies you against any excess that may be levied by the car rental company following theft or damage to the vehicle – you simply pay the excess demanded and then seek immediate reimbursement from the excess insurer.

 
Annual Cover

- A further advantage in buying your car hire excess insurance this way is that you may choose between cover for a single trip (normally up to a maximum hire duration of, say, 60 days).

- Annual cover, which provides the same excess protection for the whole year however many trips you make and hire cars you may need to rent.

Car hire excess insurance – or excess reduction as your rental company may also describe it – has the potential for a good deal of confusion which is to the ultimate detriment of the hiring customer. Taking on board the above tips and considering the purchase of standalone cover from a UK based specialist before you set out on your journey may save you further worry – and expense.