When You Rent a Car, Is Insurance Something You Need to Get?

Pennygem

Driving uninsured is not a smart move, but neither is throwing away money. Find out if you need to pay for extra coverage at the rental car counter. Pennygem’s Justin Kircher has the answer.

Transcript

00:00Traveling certainly adds up, and the last thing you'd want to spend extra funds on

00:08is something you don't use on your trip.

00:10Assuming you haven't sent a Buick to that graveyard in the sky, hopefully that means

00:14rental car insurance.

00:16But if you want to know whether or not to say yes when the person at the rental counter

00:19asks if you'd like additional insurance, the answer is… maybe.

00:23Forbes writes that experts agree you should have some form of insurance, citing examples

00:27of individuals paying hundreds of dollars for damages, or worse yet, being on the hook

00:32for replacing a car, leaving them in financial ruin.

00:35The publication points out that rental agents are trained to sell you their insurance policy

00:39for a reason — it's priced at a premium.

00:42While it usually covers most of the damage to a rental vehicle, you may already have insurance

00:46you didn't know about.

00:47This will take some research on your part, but U.S. News & World Report suggest checking

00:51with your auto insurance provider to see if you're already covered for rentals.

00:55Forbes points out that specific sites like insuremyrentalcar.com are a less expensive

01:00way to go and can offer more coverage than at rental car companies.

01:04Travel insurance can also provide some limited protection, but the publication says that some

01:09credit cards will also provide rental car insurance.

01:12Forbes does say this can sometimes be a bureaucratic headache, as secondary insurance can be provided

01:17after you file a claim with your auto insurance provider.

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