How To Save Money Purchasing Car Hire Excess Insurance

Car hire excess insurance indemnifies you against such a potential expense. There are two principal ways of arranging this type of insurance cover – and one is likely to offer greater potential for saving money than the other:

Buying From The Car Rental Company

• Many car rental companies fail to mention at the time you are booking or reserving your vehicle that there is a hefty excess attached to the insurance package included in the rental price.
• Only when it comes to checking out your hire car, therefore, do you discover that if it is stolen or damaged, you may be liable for the whole of any excess charge.
• It is at the checkout desk that the car rental agent is almost certain to offer excess insurance – and, according to some reports, with some rental companies even claiming that such excess insurance is in some way “obligatory”.
• If you had been unaware of the likely amount of any excess, or previously overlooked the need to arranged excess insurance, the rental company’s offer to provide that protection might seem tempting.
• But it is an expensive solution, says the Money Saving Expert and a “scare trick” on the part of the rental company you might want to avoid.

Buying From An Independent Provider

• The money-saving solution is in fact quite simple and straightforward.
• Buy your car hire excess insurance from an entirely independent provider – such as us at Bettersafe – and you are likely to pay considerably less for the protection you need.
• Not only do you have the satisfaction of knowing that your standalone excess insurance is entirely independent of any connection with the car rental company, but you also enjoy the reassurance of knowing that the excess is protected by a UK-based company – letting you discuss in your own language any queries you might have in the event of an excess charge having been made and you need to claim reimbursement.
• Excess insurance from such an independent provider might also represent better value for money because of the level of protection afforded.
• The cover provided by car rental companies, for example, typically excludes damage to such areas of the vehicle as its roof, undercarriage, windows, wheels and tyres.
• Independently arranged car hire excess insurance, on the other hand, is unlikely to involve any such exclusions.
• You may arrange excess insurance for a single trip, but at Bettersafe you might want to take advantage of still further money-saving opportunities by purchasing annual, multi-trip excess insurance.
• If you are a frequent traveller – hiring a car abroad on anything more than a couple of occasions each year – annual cover is cheaper and gives you the reassurance of keeping any excess safely protected no matter how often you need to hire a car during the next 12 months.
• By avoiding any last-minute offers from the hire car company and buying your excess insurance from an independent, UK-based provider before you set out on your travels may lead to significant money savings.