InsureMyRentalCar.com Claim Experience (Hertz)
 

Am starting my claim process with InsureMyRentalCar.com (IMRC) after my Hertz rental got dings from hail storm yesterday in Colorado.

Beware that one must fill out a Nine Tab online form on IMRC, each with a multitude of questions. This is disappointing. Beware that IMRC wants your SSN on the first tab. This too is disappointing.

Wanting my SSN to file a claim is not what i like. IMRC did not disclose this "requirement" in their T&C when i signed up and paid for the policy in advance a month ago.

I've not been able to complete all online nine tabs at IMRC yet b/c they are so onerous and I'm in the middle of traveling.

i will update this post as i progress thru the IMRC process. But already I sense that one would be better off getting an Amex card and paying about $25 for their Premium Rental Car LDW or just paying the extra $100 or so for Hertz LDW for a week

Please post your claim experiences with IMRC
THX

UPDATE: It took me about three hours to decipher & fill out the required fields in the IMRC claim form's eight tabs (not nine). But I'm not done yet as IMRC wants six different documents uploaded to their site that are "required to process your claim." :
1) Rental agreement
2) The claim presented by the rental agency for loss or damage.
3) Initial claim report submitted to the licensed Rental Agency
4) Incident Report filed with Rental Agency
5) Estimate of damages
6) Completed Claim Form

Some of these seem redundant to me. The IMRC help line just retorts go to the website.

All of these forms are standard for making a (rental car) insurance claim.

Exactly what I had to submit using my Mastercard, then when Budget didn't send them pictures/estimate/bill I had to request it from the company Budget uses to go after you and then upload it to Mastercard. Yes, I did spend some significant time and brain cells but in the end, I didn't pay anything.

Brighton Line, thanks for your experience. It gives me any idea of the row I'll have to hoe.

The insurance party actually responsible is becoming quite confusing and no one party seems to be taking the lead on the insurance end. These are the parties that have been named or communicated to me since I started the policy with InsureMyRentalCar.com:

• Halo
• Chubb National Insurance Co.
• Broadspire
• Crawford (aka @crawco.com)
• Affinity Claims

It feels like a shell game to me...very frustrating.

(I'd like to find,on my next rentral, an insurance company that has a more straight-up customer facing experience )
Is the AMEX " Premium Car Rental Protection " experience just as ambiguous during a claim?

Nope. I had 1 claim with them and had to submit a packet of information to them. They called me with a few questions, and I NEVER heard anything back! Was very painless. However, I rent a few times a week and have only had to file a claim ~3x in 15 years of renting frequently: once with AX, two with other cards that are more like your card. The $20/rental that AX charges isn't worth the cost. I'll go the extra mile filling out paperwork when necessary instead of the higher AX cost (probably would be over $1000/yr if I was using the AX). I only use the AX card/coverage when I'm getting a vehicle that isn't covered under my other cards (certain luxury brands, pickup, >8 passenger, etc).

Good to know about AMEX. Thanks IAHtraveler. Interesting about AMEX - " They [Amex] called me with a few questions, and I NEVER heard anything back! Was very painless".

This stands in contrast to InsureMyRentalCar.com/Chubb/Broadspire/Crawford where there is no human contact by a person who is knowledgeable of my claim & situation. Even though I am assigned an "Adjuster Agent" with a phone number & email, there are no replies to my queries to him.

At least now, I got one email that says which document requirements I have satisfied and which I haven't (i.e. I need to supply an Estimate of Damages and an Invoice or Repair). Still, I'd point out that there is no dashboard that one can go to, on-demand like Mastercard.

Clearly, I'm the middle man in managing the exchange of information between Hertz and the insurer (InsureMyRentalCar.com and its affiliates). Am not satisfied with the level of communication, or dashboarding, from the insurer at this point.

Finally got an email from a properly assigned Adjuster at InsureMyRentalCar/Broadspire/Crawford. And he wrote what he is expecting in the way of outstanding documents:
• Estimate of Damages
• Copy of the demand letter or invoice
I'm not clear if the InsureMyRentalCar/Broadspire/Crawford Adjuster is communicating directly with Hertz to get these OR if he expects me to play monkey-in-the-middle. In any case, for such documents, I sent email request to Hertz & CC the Adjuster.

QUESTION:

• I have been email requesting an "Estimate of Damages" from Hertz three times now. The response from Hertz is - "The vehicle has not been repaired yet". IS THIS TYPICAL?
• I mean, I would expect that Hertz would produce an "Estimate of Damages" to me BEFORE the vehicle has been repaired. Hertz is saying they would provide such, for the hail damage, AFTER the vehicle is repaired.
• Is This Your Experience?

Comments appreciated.
....HitByHail

So I explicitly asked Hertz for the Estimate Of Damages be forwarded BEFORE the repair. Hertz (Colorado) response was such is not their process.

What?! What is the point of delivering an Estimate if it is after the repair is accomplished?
Am I being gamed?
Or is this typical

What difference does it make?

It is not your car and not your decision. If the estimate comes back and is double what you think it ought to cost, you have no say in the matter.

Even more to the point, if the estimate is spot on but too rich for your blood -- if it is your vehicle, you live with the damaged vehicle. Hertz need not. Hertz will repair the vehicle no matter what and leave it to you to pay. Whether you pay out of pocket or a third party, e.g. insurance, pays for you, is your choice.

It's not uncommon.

The easiest way I've found is to deal with rental car damage is to wait until the car company has closed out their process, provides finalization documents and states they consider the matter closed. Then I submit everything to whoever I'm seeking reimbursement from. Otherwise, as you've found, you can get stuck between how rental car companies work and how insurance companies work.

All of the policies I've used for reimbursement allow up to 6 months for a claim to be filed and docs to be provided.

Note that as of this post insuremyrentalcar.com is no longer writing any policies. See website. I have no idea why.