Your car hire insurance guide

When hiring a rental car there is typically third party liability cover included in the car hire costs. This is due to the fact that liability cover is typically required by law when driving in the UK. You might also find you are also going to be offered excess car hire insurance by your rental company. This is protection that would cover your portion of the costs of a damaged or stolen vehicle under hire, known as excess.

Excess is the required amount that you would have to pay if something happens to the rental vehicle in your care. With this insurance cover, your provider would pay for the costs of repair cause by collision or a stolen vehicle. Sometimes providers include protection for tyres, underbody damage and glass that might be damaged while you use it.

Car hire insurance is a product that protects the renter of the vehicle as opposed to the vehicle itself. Excess waiver is a Godsend to have if you are in the unfortunate situation of having an accident or a car stolen when under hire. How much your excess may be typically rely on the company and the vehicle you are hiring. They may be as low as £500 and up to and over £1000.

How it works

To ensure that you get the best deal on your car hire insurance you may choose to look online with a specialist. There are policies available that cover you for rent in the UK or Europe and also some for worldwide protection.

If you were to be involved in an accident or the vehicle was stolen and you has a policy to rely on a claim may be made once the hire company had billed you. The key for you is to decide whether it is better to take on the risk of a potential expense of hundreds or thousands of pounds in excess, or to pay a modest premium cost to know that you would not face a large expense.

It is important to remember that when you hire the vehicle you do not have to take the cover that is offered there and then. Some companies will try to push their insurance on you while others simply make you aware that they offer it. You may be able to find cheaper insurance premiums if you decide to search online and compare the cost of cover with a specialist.

Now that you understand the basics of car hire excess insurance, what it is about, and what it covers, you can investigate more thoroughly to find the exact right policy for you. You may need to consider:

• how much excess waiver to take out, with the obvious awareness that the greater the excess protection the more expensive the premium;
• what benefits you would want to include? You might decide to get a basic policy to save money, though the broadest protection probably comes by including the benefits for tyres, windows, and more.

When considering any policy also check it over carefully and consider consulting with your insurance provider.