"Loss of Use" car rental insurance

Can anyone tell me where to find car rental insurance (other than that sold by the rental car agencies) that will cover "loss of use"? When renting a car in Florida, we have to agree to pay for any loss the rental company might incur if our rental car is involved in an accident and can't be rented because it needs to be repaired. Potentially a fender-bender that wasn't our fault could end up costing us thousands of dollars. Of course that car would have been rented every day of the six months it would take to repair it
Our insurance company will pay liability and collision on rental cars, but not loss of use. Are there any credit cards that will?

Judy said:

Our insurance company will pay liability and collision on rental cars, but not loss of use. Are there any credit cards that will?

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Our rental car was vandalized several years ago and Visa Gold covered everything our auto insurance didn't (deductible, loss of use, etc.). We had to submit a lot of paperwork (police report, rental agreement, estimate of damage from rental company, statement from insurance company regarding what they were covering, etc.).

Platinum cards and even some gold cards will take care of this. Of course, it has to be REASONABLE loss of use. It's not like they rent every car every day though, is it! Most car repairs are 3-5 days not six months. If it's not your fault you can be covered by the other driver's coverage (if any) or your own under/uninsured coverage.

My Insurance company provides it for us. It was something the we added before one of our trio to Las Vegas. I would check with you Car Insurance first.

Dale

dawg said:

My Insurance company provides it for us. It was something the we added before one of our trio to Las Vegas. I would check with you Car Insurance first.

Dale

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No.

The first place to check is the terms and conditions of your credit card. Many credit cards cover loss of use on rental cars. But if you use any otheri insurance policy ahead of the credit card policy, the creidt card insurance doesn't kick in. That leaves you holidng the bag for loss of use if loss of use is not covered by the policy under which you file.

Same thing with deductibles. If your policy has higher deductibles than the credit card coverage, you're stuck with the higher deductibles under your policly if you file under your policy.

Auto rental inxurance coverage is an important item to check out when getting a credit card that you use for travel purposes.

Dollar tried to hammer us with "Loss of Use" last year.

When we rented a car in Vegas last year, I rejected CDW and LDW, and the counter rep said, "Your credit card covers damage to the car, and the deductibles, but that car will be out of commission, and you will be responsible for our lost rental fees." I still rejected it, but drove all week nervous I was going to be on the hook for thousands of $$$.

Before the trip this year I contacted my credit card company and reviewed the car rental insurance with them very carefully. Turns out I was covered after all for "Loss of Use".

Also be aware that your personal car insurance is probably the primary insurer if a problem occurs, and the credit card company is a backup insurer. I would check with your personal insurance company, and the credit card company, and make sure you find it in writing on your policy.

IMHO, this is the latest scam by car rental companies to increase margins.

cluemeister said:

Also be aware that your personal car insurance is probably the primary insurer if a problem occurs, and the credit card company is a backup insurer. I would check with your personal insurance company, and the credit card company, and make sure you find it in writing on your policy.

IMHO, this is the latest scam by car rental companies to increase margins.

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It's important to check your CC language. IIRC, on a rental car claim my CC insurance is primary if I file the claim through them. If I file first with my personal auto policy, the CC coverage is secondary. If I buy any insurance from the rental company, my CC coverage is secondary.