bblount

I just got off the phone with my auto insurance company. I thought I should let them know we were renting a car in Italy, just in case of an accident. They told me we were not covered thru them out of the Us or Canada. They said most insurance companies are the same.
My question? Does the auto car rental agency insurance cover everything? I thought our insurance covered what they don't? Do I need more insurance?

buongiorno

With most if not all rentals you don't have a choice whether to accept or decline insurance...you have to take it which is good. It's also probably why the rental are much more expensive than in the US.

Budman

If you are renting a car in Italy, it is mandatory to take the Collision Damage Waiver (CDW). That's why rental cars are so expensive in Italy.

In other countries, the CDW is covered by using your Plat Mastercard. You just decline the CDW on the rental agreement.

Dukey

Please be VERY aware of what the CDW consists of..whether or not it is "covered" by your credit card and if you even decide to rely on that coverage.

Some CDW coverages have very high deductibe amounts...find out what they are. In some instances you can purchase additional insurance which brings those deductibles down.

You might also want to ensure that any insurance you purchase/invoke includes the so-called "loss of use" by the rental car company if the car is damaged and they are unable to generate revenue from it while it is being repaired.

And lastly, please do not go over there thinking that the rental agency is responsible for speeding tickets as some very misguided folks on another thread have purported. With that sort of thinking you could commit homicide with the rental car and then Hertz would be put in jail for it!

Neopolitan

Dukey, have you been reading a different thread than I have? I see where many people have said that it is the "ultimate responsibility" of the car owner for tickets (meaning that if you were speeding you should be getting a ticket via the agency to comfirm it is real), but I sure didn't see anyone suggesting that the agency or owner of the car would pay for them. The way you've worded your post makes it sound like there are many who think that the agency will pay for the traffic ticket. I haven't seen any such suggestion -- am I missing something here?

RufusTFirefly

Neo--I also didn't see anyone alleging that the rental company would/should have to pay. Though I guess it might have been buried in one of the longer entries.

Dukey

I'll let the two of you read this particular post from that thread and decide for yourselves:

Author: xyz123
Date: 09/14/2006, 02:29 pm
Correct me if I'm wrong but the rental agency owns the car and ultimately they are responsible....but of course if they had to pay you probably signed some kind of agreement that they can debit your credit card for any such violations or do they do it differently in Italy?

Dukey

Well, guys..what do you think?????????????????????????

nytraveler

You are required to buy Collision insurance by car rental companies in Italy - since US credit cards will not cover it - as many do in monst countris in europe.

Collisin covers the cost of the car you're in - so the rental company doesn;t lose.

It doesn;t cover anything else (your medical bills, medical bills of people you may hit or the damage to their car or other property). All that insurance is extra - and you need to be sure what you're buying so that your assets are protected - unless you're judgement proof (have no assets) - or like living dangerously.

And no US car insurance companies regular policies cover anything but US and Canada.

ourjetboat

So what your saying is I do need an international driving permit?

LoveItaly

Hi ourjetboat. The International Driving Permit is a whole nother subject. If you are going to be driving in Italian under Italian law you are to have in your possession your home state drivers license and the International Driving Permit which translates your home state drivers license into something like 15 languages including Italian.

Most people report that the car rental agencies in Italy do not ask to see your IDP but Hertz did one time at their Milan car rental office.

However if you are stopped for any reason by any Italian law enforcement agency person you would be in violation of Italian law if you cannot produce the IDP.

ira

Hi bb,

You must pay for CDW in Italy. There is a deductible.

SuperCDW has a lower deductible.

Italy requires that you have an IDP, not for the rental agency, but for the police.

You can get it through the AAA in the US.

Neopolitan

Dukey, sorry but I still interpret that post as indicating that if the car agency had to pay a ticket then surely they will bill the renter (even backed up by the idea that probably the renter signed an agreement to do so). Do you still read it as suggesting that they wouldn't bill the driver/renter?

jsmith

I hate to repeat myself from the other post but:

FYI, from a Hertz rental agreement in the UK:
-------
VIOLATION OF TRAFFIC REGULATIONS
You are fully responsible for all fines and any consequences of the violation of traffic regulations and parking orders or prohibitions during the rental. If Hertz is required to pay such fines, you agree that we may debit your credit or charge card during the rental or after the return of the vehicle with the amount of any fine plus an administrative charge of 10% of the fine(s) or 20 GBP whichever is greater. We shall, upon request, supply you with a copy of any traffic violation notice which we receive.
-----------
I would expect the rental agreements in other countries and for other rental companies say the same.

Note this applies to minor infractions. A major accident would be a whole other ballgame. In such a case, the police would be involved early. In your experience, Neopolitan, wouldn't that be true.

Neopolitan

I assume you are referring to our major accident in Wales. Yes, that is true, and I hadn't thought about that. Even then the only way we could get a copy of the police accident report was through the rental agency (in our case Avis, but booked through Auto Europe). The problems of towing away the wrecked car, storing it, etc. were essentially the "ultimate responsibility" of the owner of the car, but of course our insurance (in this case via VISA) paid for it.

Maybe there is some disagreement about that term "ultimate responsibility". I don't think because we say that the owner is ultimately responsible that should be interpreted as to who must ultimately pay for the damage (the driver, of course) but rather that the police will essentially mainly deal with or through the owner of the car.

LoveItaly

Neo, having been in the insurance business for decades I agree. The owner of the car (the rental agency) would have the say in the negotiations, towing, storage, repairs, totalling out the car etc.

But the contract between the rental car agency and the person(s) who rented the car would assume the obligation of paying for any monetary expenses that they were responsible for. And hopefully the person(s) signing that contract would have sufficient insurance or funds to cover the expenses. As far as I know any expense that the person(s) incurred liability wise while the rental car was in their care, custody and control would be their responsibility. Again hopefully they would have adequate insurance to cover the financial loss.