The primary car rental coverage is the main reason I renew my Diner's Club card every year. They were fantastic when someone tried to steal a car I had rented while mine was in the shop. Even more so because I was using a free weekend rental certificate for the car, but had also provided my DC when I rented the car. They handled everything once I notified them -- even Fedexed me a copy of the settlement check paid to National within 24 hours of receiving the final total for the damage (broken window and cracked steering column) from National.

For those that recommend using your own auto insurance coverage, you really need to check your coverage closely. Many personal policies no longer cover rentals made for business purposes, so if you're renting the car on a business trip, your claim would/could be denied.

I have no personal auto insurance, but I rent with National quite frequently. I use my personal Amex Gold Rewards Plus card to rent, and I rent on a month-to-month basis. Am I covered for 30 day rentals? Also, I thought the card provided full coverage, but I read about the $15 or $25 additional coverage you can add from Amex. Where would I find info on that?
Thanks all.

IMHO, this no business rental coverage on your personal policy info is problematic. Perhaps an issue if you rent a car for business only for very long periods, but you should be covered on any reasonably short trip. Does anyone have some specifics on claims denied because of "business" use?

I wonder if this isn't a story first told by a car rental agent eagar to seel extra coverage?

RE; 30 day coverage w/ Amex Gold. you do get 30 day coverage. thanks for amaking me check, i always thought the max was @ 2weeks. check out the T&Cs at http://tinyurl.com/3cfsak

RE: Amex Premium Car Rental Coverage Product can found at http://tinyurl.com/38fl9x

i haven't signed up but think that the flat fee for length of rental period could be an attractive benefit

hth

Thanks for the help. I've taken the top coverage, for the $25, its a no-brainer for me.

Why would you pay "loss of use" damages if the rental company was unable to prove actual loss of use damages (to the satisfaction of the credit card adjuster, at least)?

Because this is a 3rd party handling the claim of the franchisee - they said they would turn this to collection agency - it is just not a big $ to mess with. I know I know, you can ignore the collection agency's harrassment, and can put notes on your credit report should they file something against you.... It is just too much hassle to deal with. Had it been a Corporate owned location, I would handle it differently. In our case, the Thrifty is a franchaisee in JAC - its insurance claim is handled by a company in Las Vegas. It could be the ownership of the franchaisee is actually some investors somewhere. Who knows.

As a matter of fact, MC actually lied to the rental car insurance agent that there never was a claim from us, claiming they did not find any records. We got a phone call from Thrifty insurance agent on the Friday evening, right before New Year Eve long weekend. She was trying to reach us in the previous 2 weeks, because she was unable to reach the MC adjuster. We went on a cruise until Dec 28, and she caught us at 6pm Eastern Time. Imagine my shock when I got the phone call at such timing. She was about to give up and turned the case over to collection, because MC kept telling her there was no claim filed. I gave her the claim number we were issued. Only with the claim number she was able to get hold of the adjuster.

Bottomline, with MC, dont expect they will do anything for you - if you haven't heard anything from either CC or rental car company, DONT assume things are hunky donky - call the rental car company to make sure the claim is being handled.

Besides, when we rented, the situation was, if you did not have reservation, you did not have a car if you were walk-in - accross all companies at JAC on the day we picked up our car. We do feel the loss of usage is a legitimate claim in our case - the car needed an extensive body job and would be out of commission for 3 to 4 days. The repair was extensive and MC agreed - otherwise they wouldn't pay the $2282 repair estimates without a blip.

Also, there were discussions in the various rental car forums, especially the Avis forum where there was ex Avis manager participation, that the Loss of Usage coverage while was there on the benefits, he NEVER saw CC paid that. The crus is, the CC will never satisfy with the proof, judging by the fact the adjuster did not even want to bother with the fleet log, and wanted to simply pay the repair estimates and be done with it.

I think all business cards are better in coverage, at least it claim to be so.

Lots of useful info in this thread. A couple of questions:

- What's the point of secondary coverage? If I have a claim and need to report to my auto insurance company (and am willing to live with deductible / premium increase), then is there any reason/benefit to also reporting through my credit card?

- Like the last poster, I had also heard that business credit cards may have primary coverage for rentals for business purposes. Is this myth?

On the loss of use point, one should always ask the agency to provide documentation that their entire fleet was indeed sold out for the days when your vehicle couldn't be used. This is usually done by insurance co's etc.

I'll chime in cuz this may be right...

-secondary coverage? to be redundant, and also to cover any minutia that you could miss. As well, I'd rather be double covered in case (A) there's some dispute --meaning, the CC and the INS co can argue it out, and maybe leave me further out of it, but still get coverage. (B) because you may even get double monetary returns, legitimately. Think of it like scholarships. Apply to more, get more!

That's all I got though... just educated guesses.
MM

1) The secondary coverage pays for your deductible, unless your deductible is very low and you couldn't care less. Most people have 250 to 500 deductible - with the 250 deductible, a claim usually jacks up your premium by sizable %. That is why some here opt for the Diner card or buy the coverage from AMEX if you have AMEX Gold reward card.

2) It does not need to be entire fleet sold out - because a rental car company would not give a, say, a compact car to a renter who wants a full size, - they usually go by % of usage, ranging from certain % to certain % - it seems to be a highly-guarded secret, and for good reason.

Suggest you do a search on the various rental car forums on FT, esp the one frequently received input from an Avis manager, you would understand there is a big gap between practice and theory. Good luck for your need to get that if you are unlucky to need to go thru that in the future. Be sure to post back your experience so we can learn.

You do not get double cover because one is primary the other is secondary. The secondary pays what the primary does not pay but considered covered items.

You will not get double payments. If you happen to - it is better to report and return it, as this constitutes Insurance Fraud and is a criminal offence (not civil). Look at the T&Cs before you make such statement.

This is fundamentally different from trying to get more sign up bonuses from CC, for example.

what is the main difference between the $19.95 and the $25 coverage with AMEX car rental insurance?

um...
$5.05?

I soo had to. Sorry!

OK, great discussion here and I've learned a lot. Let me get down to the nuts and bolts of a specific case and see if you have any suggestions. I willl be renting a car in Italy this summer. My AMEX won't cover it because Italy is one of their excluded countries. I have both MC and Visa cards which I could use to charge the rental from reservation through final payment. (See, I told you I learned something.) My regular insurance with Hartford/AAA does not apply in Italy. What would you do to ensure adequate (I know - varies in definition) coverage on a compact, not very expensive rental for 3 or 4 days? Is there a better rental car company to use in Italy (Rome and/or Naples) that provides good insurance at a more reasonable rate than other companies? Anyone with personal experience on a great deal combining reasonable rates on both car and insurance? Any relevant suggestions would be appreciated.