Originally Posted by
guv1976
Wirelessly posted (BlackBerry: BlackBerry8530/5.0.0.1030 Profile/MIDP-2.1 Configuration/CLDC-1.1 VendorID/417)
"It's ridiculous how rental companies screw U.S. residents, but for once it's good to not live in the states."
It's not quite that simple. Most U.S. residents who rent cars also own cars, and their personal auto insurance policies typically provide liability coverage when they rent. Those residents who do not own cars but rent frequently can buy a non-owned-auto policy, or purchase million-dollar liability coverage directly from the rental company at a daily rate.
That's true...but to be fair, it doesn't explain why renting a car as a non-resident includes
extended liability and CDW coverage for essentially the same price as a resident's rental without insurance. I compared the prices for equivalent packages and the resident's package was close to twice the price when insurance was included. That definitely sounds like they're price-gouging residents on insurance simply because they can.
Originally Posted by
Quokka
A quick example would be rentals in California and Texas. Rental car companies might be the insured policyholder on some sort of liability policies as owners of vehicles, but most explicitly state automobile Liability and Property Damage Protection is not included in their rental rates.
Just because a liability policy "coverage" of some sort exists that pays out when you as the driver cause bodily injury or property damage, doesn't mean *you* are the insured.
It's true, California and Texas are unique in their legislation; I'm just trying to sort out how it works in states like Virginia.