Automobile rental insurance isn’t required. Or is it?
If you’re not sure, then you’re one among many confused automotive renters - a confusion some automobile rental firms appear to be benefiting from.

Consider what happened to Nancy Ferguson when she rented a automobile from Avis on the Indianapolis airport not too long ago. When she tried to decline Avis’ collision-harm waiver, noting that her bank card lined her, a consultant told her that was “not allowed.”

“He said if I didn’t purchase Avis’ insurance coverage, I couldn't get the automobile,” says Ferguson, a pharmacist from Greenbrae, Calif.

Improper. Avis’ site describes its legal responsibility waivers as “optional.” But the misunderstanding netted Avis an additional $414, based on Ferguson.

Related: All the pieces you ever needed to learn about automobile rentals and insurance (but were afraid to ask).


Why is everybody so confused? Because, effectively, it’s confusing.
States require car rental companies to carry insurance coverage on their autos. However there’s no corresponding regulation that claims you have got to purchase insurance coverage, which technically isn’t insurance coverage, but an expensive and highly profitable collision-damage waiver (CDW) or loss-injury waiver (LDW) product offered by your automotive rental company. With the help of a few half-truths, a clever automobile rental agent can push you into shopping for pricey coverage.

Optional collision-injury waivers signify a “significant” supply of revenue for car rental companies, though nobody except the car rental companies knows how significant, in response to automobile rental marketing consultant Neil Abrams. Elective harm waivers are strongly encouraged by automobile rental firms, even though customers may already be lined by auto insurance, a credit card or journey insurance coverage. The insurance policies can routinely double the cost of your rental.

Whereas an overwhelming majority of rentals are freed from misunderstandings, a “tiny percent” could finish with a automobile rental firm turning away a customer because of a paperwork drawback.

“Yes, they'll refuse to rent a automobile,” Abrams says. “There is excessive liability and price associated with car harm, loss or worse. The rental of a car is a privilege, not a right, however the operators do have the fitting to protect their property, passengers and most of the people.”

That’s precisely what happened to Cheryl Manzo when she rented from Economic system Rent a Car in Orlando not too long ago.

“When I arrived to choose up rental Saturday morning, a representative instructed me I needed to pay additional $73 for insurance,” she remembers.


The explanation? “I didn't have my coverage declaration web page with me,” she says.
Manzo, a trainer from Levittown, Pa., reluctantly paid for the protection. After i requested her automotive rental company about her case, it stated it had a proper to ask her for proof of insurance coverage.

“The customer wants to know that we are serving her with a $20,000 car,” stated Patricia Grant, an Financial system consultant. “The least we are able to do is verify coverage.”

Automobile rental brokers don’t power everybody to purchase CDW. lamborghini rental miami on the van journey again to the airport informed Grant they didn’t have to indicate proof of their insurance coverage. Travelers I’ve spoken to felt they had been singled out for being probably the most vulnerable-wanting customers, particularly those with international passports.

Take Samantha Sigler, for example. She rented a automobile in Orlando from Thrifty just lately after arriving from Ottawa.

“When I arrived at the airport, an agent asked me if I was involved in obtaining extra insurance coverage protection for the car,” Sigler says.


She stated her Canadian insurance lined her.
“The agent advised me that it was necessary for me to buy Legal responsibility Insurance Supplement coverage pursuant to Florida state legislation, as there was no means that the state of Florida would cover the cost of an accident that might be over $1 million,” she says.

That’s incorrect. Sigler purchased the extra insurance coverage to avoid a confrontation, but she checked the Florida statutes to be sure. And why wouldn’t she? Sigler is a lawyer. Thrifty promptly refunded the insurance coverage supplement.

“This agent may have tricked and conned numerous other vacationers,” she says. The corporate “should be putting crucial and acceptable checks into place to make sure that their agents do not dishonestly line their pockets on the expense of others.”

Lauren Luster, a spokeswoman for Hertz, which owns Thrifty, says Sigler is appropriate. “We do not require that our clients have car insurance,” she says. “We provide optionally available automotive rental protection which is on the market for buy by clients, a lot of whom are often navigating unfamiliar places in an unfamiliar vehicle whereas on a business trip or vacation.”

I checked with the opposite car rental companies, and that coverage - that coverage is elective - is an business normal within the United States.

By the way in which, I’ll second the sentiment expressed by automobile rental firms. Insurance coverage is a good suggestion; you should not drive a car without protection - but it surely doesn’t have to be the automobile rental company’s protection. You should purchase a insurance by an internet company or a site like Insuremyrentalcar.com for about half the price of auto rental protection.

So the place does that depart you? Car rental corporations will sometimes say something to persuade you to buy their protection, including bending a few facts and withholding the automotive keys. You should be prepared with ample documentation of coverage and slightly information of state insurance coverage law (see below). That’s the one fix - you have to battle fallacy with facts.


What insurance coverage do you really need?
• Home rentals: Any car rental insurance coverage requirements are within the state’s laws, that are readily obtainable on-line. For example, Florida statutes say that if you’re renting a car for less than a 12 months, the owner is the automobile rental firm and is chargeable for insurance. (It’s in Chapter 324 of the Florida Statutes.) A car rental company could try to shift that duty to you, but there’s no law that requires you to accept it.

• Worldwide rentals: If you’re renting overseas, verify the car rental company’s website or name for info. Or you possibly can check out Autoeurope.com, which lists detailed insurance coverage requirements by nation.


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