looking to book our car via auto europe and have 2 prices for the same car - one states - No insurance excess and one does not -- what does this mean and do we need it... coming in from the states?

I think they mean deductible. It would be best to call and verify.

an "excess" is what you have to pay yourself if you have to claim, eg, your claim is for £500, you have an excess of £100, they pay out £400.

in practice what it means is that you pay a lower premium, but don't report or claim for small amounts of damage.

I believe "no insurance excess" means zero deductable.

I have rented from AutoEurope before and never noticed this two-tiered pricing before. This may be reflective of a situation peculiar to Italy, namely the prices are for car rentals with and without CDW (Collision Damage Waiver = won't cover damage to your own car).

Normally, many credit card companies include CDW in their contract, so you don't have to pay extra for it. However, if you rent your car in Italy, the Italians won't accept the credit card CDW and they make you buy it, no matter what.

So, here is what you can do: First check with your credit card company if CDW is included in the contract, if you charge a rental card in Europe.

Then, if your itinerary allows it, rent the car outside of Italy (e.g. Switzerland, Germany, Austria)and return it anywhere in same country from you where you picked it up. This way, you can save yourself paying for the CDW.

However, if your itinerary forces you to drop the car off in a country other than where you picked it up, the high cross-border drop-off charge may make this a wash relative to paying for the CDW in Italy.

Check with AutoEurope (1-888-223- 5555).

thanks everyone!

>>>Normally, many credit card companies include CDW in their contract, so you don't have to pay extra for it. However, if you rent your car in Italy, the Italians won't accept the credit card CDW<<<

Most credit cards exclude Italy (and Ireland) from their coverage with the exception of a few VISA cards.

I have rented from AutoEurope and DID have this "no insurance excess" in France in 2008. I do not have insurance on my credit cards.

I backed our rented Passat wagon into the corner of a wall in a dimly lit underground garage in Carcassonne... at today's prices for body work it was in the 2-3000 dollar range even though the damage was not severe.

I called Europcar who had provided the car and after inquiring if anyone was hurt, if another vehicle was involved and if the car was drivable they said just drop it off as planned at the end of the rental.

That was it... no extra hassle, no extra money.
The insurance worked perfectly for me.

Rob

"<i>I have rented from AutoEurope before and never noticed this two-tiered pricing before</i>"

I have -- many times. I've rented through AutoEurope off and on over the past 10 years and depending on the location/country there are often excess/no excess options.