Types of Insurance Offered at Major Car Rentals

When deciding if you do need that extra insurance when renting a car, it would help to know and understand the different types of car insurance being offered by rental companies.

1. Collision damage or loss damage - This is essentially a form of waiver that relieves you of any responsibility to pay for loss or damage to the rented car in case of theft, vandalism or accident.

2. Liability insurance - The liability insurance sold through the car rental company will give you supplemental coverage if you own a car and have your own insurance policy.

3. Personal accident insurance - This will insure you and your passengers for medical expenses should you be injured if the rented car figures in a car crash.

4. Personal effects coverage - This offers insurance protection in case your personal items are stolen from the car you rented.

To Buy or Not to Buy Insurance When Renting a Car

Before finally deciding if you need insurance when renting a car, you should take a good look at your own car insurance policy and the insurance benefits you can get on your credit cards. If you are a car owner, you should have your own insurance policy already.

However, to make sure that you are amply protected, check with your insurance agent about the limitations of your policy and the type of additional insurance you will need if you rent a car. If what you have is a comprehensive insurance, you can rest assured that any car you drive, even a rental, is covered under your existing policy.

Major credit cards provide insurance benefits to their account holders. They usually include coverage for rentals of regular cars within the country. To be sure, call the card company to ask about the type of insurance they're giving you. Note that credit cards do not usually cover the cars you rent in foreign countries, as well as cars of expensive makes and models, SUVs, or RVs. Again, phone the card company to check on the details of your insurance benefits.

And if you have to bring along jewelry and electronic items like digital camera, cell phone, or laptop computer when you drive the rental car, you should consider buying a personal articles floater. The floater rides on your homeowner's insurance policy (or renter's insurance of you're not the homeowner) and covers your personal possessions at home or when you take them with you anywhere. This way, you can do away with the personal effects coverage when you rent a car.

Do remember that no matter how skillful or careful a driver you are, there are other vehicles you will encounter on the road and anything can happen. There is no doubt that you need insurance coverage but if you are already fully covered by your existing insurance policy, it will just be superfluous on your part. So, do you need insurance when renting a car? You should already know the answer by now.