Should I Buy Additional Insurance From a Rental Car Company?

You’re renting a car but don’t want to overpay for the pseudo-insurance that rental car companies offer you. What are your other two options to protect against liability?

Follow Us for More Money Tips:

Need Consumer Advice?
Need advice? The Consumer Action Center is a free community resource for advice on money and consumer issues. Call 636-49C-LARK (636-492-5275) and a member of Team Clark will assist you as soon as possible. The Consumer Action Center is available Monday-Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. ET.

If you found this video valuable, give it a like.
If you know someone who needs to see it, share it.
Leave a comment below with your thoughts.
Add it to a playlist if you want to watch it later.

Our Promise to You:

[franciscoruiz]

None of these people talk about the deductible you'll have to pay even with coverage. The point of the damage waver is that there is no deductible and you basically walk away from the car

[saltysubmariner]

Some years ago at LAX, I got incredible pressure from the counter agent to buy the insurance (which I knew I didn't need, as a USAA member and Clark Howard listener). This was a rental from one of the "majors" (I only ever rented cars from Enterprise, National, and Budget) but I don't recall which one. I was used to some kind of pitch, but in this case the pitch went on and on... and on, and the guy wouldn't quit! ("If you even get a chip in the windshield, you will be responsible, yada, yada, yada."). It finally got to the point where I had to tell the guy to either quit the pitch or I would walk away from the rental! Last week I was in Phoenix, and rented from SIXT, a company I had never rented from before. There was ZERO sales pitch for the insurance, the agent didn't even want to check my insurance card, ! And I ended up with a free upgrade because the agent noted I was a military veteran! SIXT will now be my "go to" company!

[puntodulce]

Wrong. Car rental insurance allows you to walk away from typical, non-injury collisions or damage (without reporting it to your insurance).. I buy it every time because I once experienced a couple of significant incidents where the rental car was damaged. There was no consequence to me, ultimately, not even any paperwork.
The premium is worth it if you want the most risk-free coverage of a rental car. Not having to fill out paperwork is HUGE, especially if you're in a hurry (ie., airport).

[junitolopez]

Most credit cards only offer liability insurance, only. Furthermore, if you get into an accident, no insurance company offers what is called, loss of use. Something to consider. He gave you a pro tip. Is what I do, video and pictures of any scratches, dents etc. also, if your car smells like cigarettes, let them know. Some rentals have no smoking policy; they will charge to "clean air".

[theronwright]

I work at a rental car company ! Def buy the damage waiver

[stevesherlock]

The thing about credit cards, is that they don't cover liability e.g. they don't cover the state minimum requirement (e.g. $35K in CA) or the supplemental liability which also covers every state. Also keep in mind that some credit cards only cover specific durations - though most people don't ready the fine print and can end up being responsible for damage if their trip exceeds the number of days the credit card covers the rental.

[dadjokeswithrobh]

I rarely rent cars. For the first time ever I used my credit card insurance. It did not cover loss of use or the Reduced value of the car since i was rear ended.

For a short term rental, I'd rather pay the money for the insurance at the counter Then spend time several hours gathering information to make my claim And having to call the credit card insurance and wait on hold for a long time Due to claim processing issues. I saved fifty dollars By not buying the insurance . The time I spent working on things was worth a lot more than fifty dollars😢

[dadjokeswithrobh]

I thought i took pictures of the car before i turned it in but couldn't find them. Enterprise billed me/my primary insurance for more damage than the car had.

After you take pictures/videos, email them to yourself and make sure you can see or view them🧠❣️

Ill be buying a dash cam because the accident was the other person's fault. They cut me off, they said i cut them off🤯😡❣️

[Iwannadrive]

Nobody addresses loss of use. Your personal policy will probably cover the car but it won't cover the rental company for loss of use. If you've rented a car for $50 a day and it takes two weeks to fix it then you're on the hook for $700.

[sanjacintoknives]

I cant imagine why anyone would want to file an insurance claim on a rental vehicle when that counts against YOU for years

[mattcee]

If you DO NOT have your own insurance even with credit card, probably best to buy coverage.

[crey]

An additional thing I'd recommend is getting the Loss Damage Waiver coverage. This will waive your insurance deductible. I had an accident when leaving Las Vegas. The other guy loss control of his car and ran into me. I took pictures, video, got info. I thought I wouldn't have anything to worry about. Later, Hertz and my insurance company said I would have to pay $1100! Why? There was no police report or witness. There was no video of the incident. It was essentially my word against the other guy's. There wasn't enough evidence to prove otherwise. I had to pay my $1000 collision deductible PLUS a "service fee" to Hertz. (Since then I've also invested in a dash cam that will record the FRONT and REAR view of my car.)

[conservativehippie]

I've been renting cars for nearly 30 years. I only get the insurance every now and then. I learned through an Enterprise employee that's how they make most of their profit. So I quit yet entirely. On that note if you're not gonna have that insurance be prepared! Very prepared!Throughout all these years I finally had one accident and it was my fault by backing into someone....

[franciscoruiz]

I love how all these people saying "DONT BUY THE INSURANCE!" Get contradicted buy so many comments saying to do so by actual customers. Interesting that thats the narrative

[trailer]

Doesn’t cover drop off charge ifcar is towed because of flood?

[tommac]

This is bad advice. Insurance is expensive. An accident is more expensive than insurance. Peace of mind knowing that you can walk away from a damaged car is priceless.

[conchobar]

This is classic survivorship bias. "You don't need it, until you need it." Clark Howard by his own admission has never filed an insurance claim on a rental car. He's completely clueless to the process. The only good advice is to video record/ photograph the rental car before leaving the rental establishment. Buying the damage waiver is just the cost of doing business; a necessary evil.

[jasonsmith]

I want total insurance, I don't want to leave a large deposit

[christophervarela]

I got had today. Wish I looked it up earlier.

[Big_AlMC]

I hit a double wammy in life. I had a family of deer jump out infront of me while driving to work. Had car in shop and insurance provided a rental from enterprise. Not really familiar with the process as it was my first accident. Dropped car off at body shop and picked up car from enterprise. Didn't think or know that I could have added the damage waiver. Guess I assumed it was included with my insurance rental set up. Well had rental parked in parking lot of work and it Hailed. It Hailed hard. Golf ball sized hail. Dented the whole car and cracked the windshield from edge to edge. Called enterprise, they said ok you had the damage waiver right. I said hmm idk. He looked me up and said sadly no. That I'd have to file ANOTHER claim with my insurance 😂. Sure wish I had that damage waiver.