What is excess car hire insurance?

Car hire excess insurance is an optional insurance coverage which can protect you from the excess costs that you are required to pay in the event that your hire car hire is damaged or stolen.

What is rental car insurance waiver?

When renting a vehicle to take to the mountains, another province, or while you’re visiting another country, you may be asked to sign a CDW, or collision damage waiver. This is to insure your car against damage or theft, and in some countries is required if you want to rent a vehicle at all.

Do you have to get extra insurance when renting a car?

No, you do not need insurance to rent a car because rental companies have their own insurance that covers their cars. Rental car companies usually provide minimum liability coverage only, so if you don’t have personal insurance, you’ll probably want to purchase extra rental car insurance through the rental company.

What is the difference between CDW and excess insurance?

A Collision Damage Waiver (CDW) is additional protection that reduces your liability for damage if your hire car is stolen or damaged. You usually agree to an excess fee, meaning you’ll cover the cost of any repairs up to this amount.

What does excess waiver insurance for car hire mean?

Excess Waiver Insurance for car hire is a reimbursement insurance. This means that, if a policyholder is charged by a car hire company for the excess payable when their hire car is stolen or damaged, they can seek reimbursement from the car hire insurer. It provides significant peace of mind for car hirers.

Why do you need a damage waiver when renting a car?

Damage Waiver protects you in the event of damage to or theft of the vehicle and lowers the amount you are liable for. It may be included in the cost of your hire and have an excess dependent on the vehicle category. It means your financial responsibility is limited should something go wrong.

When to buy excess insurance for car hire?

Car hire excess cover is a policy which shares similarities with travel insurance, in that you either buy it as a single or annual policy (you may wish to consider an annual policy if you hire cars regularly or are hiring for more than 14 consecutive days). The policy is designed to cover excesses of up to £10,000*.

Can a zero excess car hire policy cover?

So even with a zero excess car hire, you may still be liable for charges. Thankfully the specialist car hire excess insurers on the MoneyMaxim comparison service realise that they’d sell more policies and have happier customers if they cover some or all of these areas.