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FAQs

FAQs | Bettersafe.comYour Frequently Asked Questions Answered

CAR HIRE EXCESS INSURANCE

What is Car Hire Excess Insurance?

Most car rental companies will charge an excess on the vehicle in case of damage or theft. This can be hundreds or thousands of pounds. The Bettersafe Car Hire Excess Insurance is a reimbursement product that will cover you up to £7,500 in the event that you are charged for any damage to your rental car.

Can I insure more than one driver?

Yes! As long as they are between the ages of 24- 85 and have a valid driving licence and are listed as an additional driver on your rental agreement.

How do I add additional drivers?

To add an additional driver to your policy, simply make sure the lead driver on the car rental agreement is the person named in or on the Bettersafe policy. You can then add up to 7 additional drivers to the car rental agreement and they will all be covered under your Bettersafe policy in the event of a claim.

Is my spouse or partner covered?

Bettersafe does not provide joint spouse or partner polices, so to insure your spouse or partner you will need to add them to your rental agreement and they will be automatically covered under your policy.

Make sure the lead driver in your rental agreement is the person named as the policy holder in your car hire excess policy.

What is covered under my Car Hire Excess Insurance?

If you are charged for any damage to your rental vehicle, you are covered for up to £7,500 for any one claim or in total during any one Period of Insurance, with a maximum of three claims during each Period of Insurance. This amount covers you for any excess or repair costs you have to pay under the terms of your rental agreement including:

  • Damage to the rental vehicle including damage to the windows, the tyres and wheels, any body panels, doors, door handles and locks, headlights, indicator lights or other exterior lights, wing mirrors, the undercarriage, and the roof.
  • Damage caused by theft or attempted theft, including total loss of the rental vehicle, up to the policy limit.
  • Loss of use of the rental vehicle including due to damage and/or theft.
  • Towing costs relating to damage, or any additional costs incurred by you following a mechanical breakdown of the rental vehicle for you to travel home or to your destination.
  • Administration or damage fees charged by the car rental company or agency for any claim or damage to the rental vehicle.

What sort of damage is covered under my policy?

The Bettersafe policy covers damage to the rental vehicle includes harm, destruction, impairment, or deterioration to the windows, the tyres and wheels, any body panels, doors, door handles and locks, headlights, indicator lights or other exterior lights, wing mirrors, the undercarriage, and the roof.

This includes any damage caused by an accident, fire, vandalism, theft or attempted theft.

What happens if my rental vehicle is stolen?

You will be covered for any damage caused to your rental vehicle by theft or attempted theft.

If the rental vehicle is stolen and not recovered, you will be covered up to the lesser of the amount of the excess under your car rental agreement or £7,500.

If you have purchased Collison Damage Waiver or CDW cover then you will be covered up to the lesser of USD100,000 or the amount the rental firm charges you for the loss.

Are any car rental companies excluded from the Bettersafe policy?

We do not cover any Green Motion car rental branches in the UK. We do cover Green Motion sites outside the UK.

What is Collision Damage Waiver or CDW?

Most hire car rental agreements in the U.S.A., Canada, The Caribbean, South, and Central America only offer limited or no third-party liability insurance, Collision Damage Waiver pays up to USD $100,000 for loss or damage to the rental vehicle under a car hire rental agreement.

What is Supplemental Liability Insurance or SLI

Most car rental agreements in U.S.A., Canada, The Caribbean, South and Central America only offer limited or no third-party liability insurance, SLI pays up to US$1,000,000 for third party bodily injury and damage to material property but only for sums in excess of amounts recoverable under the primary liability insurance offered by your car rental agency. There is no primary coverage for SLI. This policy also covers you for the insurance excess, which is the amount you are responsible to pay towards repair costs if the rental vehicle suffers any damage.

Do you cover car-sharing or peer-to-peer rentals?

No we do not cover any rental of a private vehicle or a vehicle that is not both owned and operated by a car rental company or agency. This includes car-sharing or peer-to- peer firms e.g. Hiyacar, Turo, Getaround.

We do cover car clubs like Zipcar or the Enterprise Car Club.

Can I Insure a 4x4 or Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV)

Yes, providing it has a maximum of 9 seats.

Can I insure a Minibus?

You can insure any vehicle up to a maximum of 9 seats so any minibus larger than this would not be covered.

Are any countries not covered?

Bettersafe does not cover any trip to or vehicle rental in the following countries:

Afghanistan, Belarus, Cuba, Congo, Iran, Iraq, Ivory Coast, Liberia, North Korea, Myanmar, Russia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, or Zimbabwe.

In addition, we do not cover any country where the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has issued advice against travel for UK residents.

Can I insure a van?

Bettersafe doesn't provide insurance for vans.

What sort of driving license do I need?

You and all other insured drivers must be aged between 24 and 85 years of age on the date of purchase of your insurance and must have a full valid driving licence or hold a full internationally recognised licence.

Is breakdown cover included?

Roadside assistance is not covered, if you breakdown this should be covered by your car hire rental provider but you are covered for towing charges relating to a puncture, damage or mechanical breakdown.

I have not received my insurance documents

When you purchase your insurance coverage from Bettersafe, we generate an automatic email containing your policy documents, this is sent to the email address you provided. (Please check your spam or junk email folder). If you have not received this email, please contact us by email at enquiries@bettersafe.com with your policy number, full name, address, the date you purchased your insurance coverage and we will send you another copy.

Who is the insurer of Car Hire Excess Insurance?

The insurer of the Bettersafe policy is Newline Insurance Company Ltd, which is authorised by the Prudential Regulatory Authority and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulatory Authority under Firm Reference Number 435028 . You can find more about Newline here https://newlinegroup.com/newline-insurance-company/

How do I make a claim?

In order to make a claim, please contact the claims administrator on +44 (0) 20 3740 4431 or email claims@comandgen.com . You can find more about how to make a claim here

Is there anything I should do when I pick up or drop back my rental car?

Things that we suggest you do when you pick the car up:

  • Take lots of pictures or videos of your rental car.
  • Make sure you check for pre-existing damage to the car and make sure the rental company have a note of it.

Make sure all the details on the rental agreement are correct.

Things that we suggest you do when dropping the car back:

  • Take lots of pictures or videos of the rental car.
  • Collect any documents the car hire agency provides you with.
  • Make sure the car rental company checks over the car with you.
  • If you need to make a claim make sure you get an invoice from the car rental company for any charges.

How can I cancel my Car Hire Excess Insurance?

You may cancel your insurance within the 14-day cooling-off period and you will be entitled to a full refund of your premium as long as you have not made a claim and do not intend to make a claim.

You can also cancel at any time after the cooling-off period, and we will make a proportionate refund of the premium you paid. However, any such refund will be subject to a £5 administration charge. You will only be refunded as long as you have not made a trip or made a claim and do not intend to make a claim.

For more information please refer to your insurance policy document or contact us at +44 (0)20 3740 4431 or by emailing us at enquiries@bettersafe.com.

Your premium refund will then be credited back to the debit or credit card you used in the original purchase. This can take up to 10 days to appear on your card statement.

How can I make a complaint?

We aim to provide a high level of service to all our customers but occasionally things can go wrong. When this happens, we will do everything we can to put things right and assist you.

If you wish to make a complaint, please telephone us at +44 (0)20 3740 4431.

For more information on how to complain please look here or please refer to your insurance policy document.

Can I buy your product if I live outside the UK?

No, unfortunately you can only buy Bettersafe’s Car Hire Excess insurance if you are a permanent resident in the UK or the Isle of Man.

Please check the policy document for what permanent resident means.

What if there is an error in my insurance schedule, how do I change it?

If there is an error in your insurance schedule, please send us an email at enquiries@bettersafe.com with your Policy Reference Number and the correction you would like to make. We will then correct our records and send you the updated Insurance Schedule.

What types of vehicles do you insure?

To be eligible for our Car Hire Excess insurance, your rental vehicle must:

  • Be equal to or below £65,000 in value
  • And not be over 10 years old.

We do not cover motor homes. camper vans, trailers, caravans, commercial vehicles, trucks, motorcycles or passenger vehicles with more than 9 seats.

What is the maximum number of rental days covered by the Bettersafe Car Hire excess insurance?

We have two different maximum hire periods:

  • For single trip (daily) cover; you are covered for a single rental agreement up to a maximum of 180 continuous days.
  • For annual cover, you are covered for up to 62 days for any one rental agreement. There is no limit to the number of rental agreements you make take out in any one year.

What Additional benefits does your Car Hire excess insurance have?

Our Car Hire excess policies have the following additional benefits:

  • Car Rental Key Cover - up to a maximum of £500, for each and every claim.
  • Misfuelling Cover - up to a maximum of £500 for each and every claim.
  • Reparation – of £25 per day with a maximum of £300 during the period of insurance.
  • Drop Off Charges – up to £300.
  • Lock-Out – up to a maximum of £60 if you are unintentionally locked out for physical assault.
  • Road Rage – up to £1000 for physical assault.
  • Car Jacking – up to £1000 for physical assault.

You can find more information about the additional benefits in the insurance policy document.

Need more details? Contact us

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