Posted on April 03, 2008 by Fiona Hilliard

Being confronted with the question: “Do you want to buy damage waivers?” is for some people the most confusing part about the whole car hire process.  The following advice comes from a leading insurance expert on how to tackle this tricky question. 

According to Rick Crawley of Progressive insurance company, optional insurance can in some cases double the cost of a rental.  He advises renters to do their homework before they  get talked into buying damage waivers. 

 Some helpful tips:

· Read through your insurance policy with your own insurance agent.  Your agent should be able to tell you your personal car hire policy to determine whether you are covered in a vacation rental car.
· Review your credit card details.  Some credit card companies provide coverage at no charge if the card is used to pay for the rental.  Some restrictions may apply but it’s important to ask for an exact description of what’s covered.
· You may also be required to take your insurance policy’s “Declaration Page” with you to the rental counter.  The answers to any questions that the agent may have should be detailed in the papers.  It’s also a good idea to take along a contact number for your insurance company. 

Crawley says: “Generally if you have comprehensive, collision and liability coverages on your personal car insurance policy, there’s a good chance you’ll be covered in a rental car.  If you are covered, you would be liable only for the deductible on comprehensive and collision coverages, just like your personal vehicle.”