Originally Posted by bergsey

Repeating some of the above but as a fellow aussie here are my thoughts -

- Rental companies in the US do not provide minimum insurance required compared to renting a car in Aus. Thats why the quotes as significantly lower via US websites
- You will be fully liable to any damage to the car and/or if you hit a third party. Collision Damage Waiver (CDW) and Supplementary Liability Insurance (SLI) add-ons cover most this. Each rental company has slightly different names.
- Your travel insurance e.g. via credit card would only likely cover you for the excess charges (if any). For example mine states that i am only covered if i "accept all insurance offered by the rental agency"
- Booking via UK/Aussie websites will typically package the insurance in as they know it is required - prices are therefore higher
- Still compare booking via US website then include the insurance as 'add ons'. Sometimes this is cheaper if there are special deals running (i have done it this way for my most recent rental)
- Get past the fact that the insurance is likely to cost way more than the base rental itself. It is what it is unfortunately

Cheers