AUTO INSURANCE ARTICLE

Understanding Rental Car Insurance to Get Cheap Rates

By: beverly

Are you having your own car repaired? Or perhaps you don’t have a car of your own but you are going on a vacation or a business trip and you need your own transportation? When we find the need to rent a car, the next thing we often worry about is if we need to buy rental car insurance. Rental car insurance is not compulsory but it may be worth having for our own protection ad convenience in case we get into a car accident. Therefore, how do we get cheap rental car insurance? Ultimately, you need to understand rental car insurance to know the ways on how you can reduce your cost. Remember the following pointers and you may get affordable rental auto insurance.

First thing you can do is to find out if your current car insurance policy for your private car will cover your rental car. A lot of auto insurance companies usually extend cover to your rental car most especially if you have purchased collision and comprehensive coverage for your own private car. This type of coverage should automatically transfer to your rental car, at least ideally. If you are unsure whether your current auto insurance company will cover it, you can always call your auto insurance agent to double check. In case you don’t have comprehensive insurance, then your auto insurance company will not cover you in case your rental gets damaged or worse, stolen.

If you don’t have a personal car at all and thus you don’t have private car insurance, then there are options available to you. Insurance coverage for rental cars is available at the car rental’s counter. This type of insurance will normally cover the rental car in case it is damaged or stolen and the cost of this rental car insurance will be calculated by the day. Additional policies you can buy at the counter include liability coverage and personal accident coverage. However, some car rental companies put these types of coverage in one policy so check the documents before you buy and see which ones you can drop to lower the cost.

Aside from buying rental car insurance at the counter, you can also opt to buy non-owner rental insurance especially if you are a frequent traveler. This is very cheap auto insurance as the prices rangers from $300 to $500 a year. However, this auto insurance does not include collision coverage, which means it would not pay for damages to your car or the other party’s car in case you encounter a crash. Check if your credit card company will cover the damage to the car in case you crash into a car or a car crashes into you. If you use your credit card to pay for your own car’s damages, it may be covered but they will not pay for the other party’s injury or damages.

Once you have understood the importance of rental car insurance then you are ready to purchase one, and have peace of mind while driving or traveling.