Piccolina

I'm seeking your experience with renting from Europcar through Kemwel because I have another rental reservation with Europcar in a few days. About 2 months ago, I rented a car with Europcar through Kemwel. For my Kemwel reservation, I purchased the full CDW insurance with zero deductible. This was listed in the fine print of my Kemwel reservation. Upon arriving in Rennes to pick up the rental car, Europcar advised me that I had to sign a form to state that I am declining insurance and that all damages need to be paid in cash to Europcar. I was confused about this because I thought I need not to incur any out of pocket charges in case of an accident since I bought the zero deductible insurance from Kemwel. The form that I signed looks like something relating to declining the insurance because it is covered by my credit card (which is not the case for me). I asked the lady at the Europcar desk to call Kemwel but they said they can't make long distance call. We reluctantly signed the form and luckily nothing happened to the car during the trip. Has this ever happened to anyone before?

When I buy the zero deductible insurance from Kemwel, am I buying it through Europcar?? If so, then why did Europcar ask me to sign that piece of paper stating that I will pay them cash if an accident happen (and then re-claim the money from Kemwel)?

Does anyone know if Kemwel has a number to call in France? They keep giving me the 1-877-xxx number but that is not a toll free number outside north america. I will be picking up the next rental in Toulouse airport, which I hope is staffed with personnel who are more knowledgeable with reservations made through Kemwel.

Many thanks in advance for your insight.

clausar

Seems like you bought an extra insurance from Kemwel which is a broker, they book through some other company, Ruropcar in your case.
Europcar doesn't recognize this extra insurance, as it has it's own terms and conditions. In Europe CDW is usually included, but in case of an accident there is a participation of the driver. The amount is usually between 500 and 1000 Euro, according to the category of the car. They have also a so called super CDW, where you can minimize this amount down to 100 or 150 Euro, but it's never getting eliminated.
I think rental companies have found a clever way to make some extra money, since they know that statistically most accidents that happen to their cars are of low cost.
The zero deductible is between you and Kemwel, or the company that has provided that extra insurance.
I am sure that there has to be a full description of this insurance in your booking, taking a look at it, will give you all the answers.
In case of an accident you will have to pay Europcar for the damage, according to the rental agreement that you signed, and get in touch with Kemwel ( or with the insurance company) to get a refund for what you've paid.

zoecat

I just called Kemwel. Here is the number to call-

00-800-223-55555

It is actually the Auto Europe number, but when you call just let them know that you have a Kemwel voucher and give them the voucher number.

Here is their email contact-

[email protected]

ParisAmsterdam

I can confirm zoecat's post above.

I had the Europcar office at the Nice train station phone AE in 2008 to resolve a difference of opinion. Although it was 4 in the morning in Maine an agent answered on the second ring and he also spoke fluent French.

Rob

Sher

Kemwel and AutoEurope are actually sister companies. This may or may not help to explain the insurance.
In my most current rental from Auto Europe I paid AE for insurance with no deductible. My understanding is that the insurance is actualy with AutoEurope. If I have an accident it will be charged to my credit card and then I notify AutoEurope and they will credit my card.

So maybe AutoEurope, or Kemwel in your case, is actually providing an insurance that will cover you and not Thrifty, in my case, the rental company they placed you with. This may be why Europcar is outside the loop on the coverage and made you sign off.

I am not saying I am correct, I am just offering and explanation as I understand my rental through AE to be.

ira

Hi P,

>When I buy the zero deductible insurance from Kemwel, am I buying it through Europcar??

No. You are buying it through AutoEurope, with which Kemwel is associated.

>.....why did Europcar ask me to sign that piece of paper stating that I will pay them cash if an accident happen (and then re-claim the money from Kemwel)?<

Because Europcar is not always interested in customer service.

They should have connected you to AE, who would have resolved the problem and explained to you what should be done.

I had a problem with Europcar from my last rental. Amex was the insurer. They spent nearly a year trying to get necessary papers from E. E never did come through.

Dukey1

In my several experiences with both the sister companies here is how THEY explained it to me:

What you usually get from Kemwell/Autoeurope is the opportunity to rent with all inclusive insurance. The AutoEurope site PLAINLY explains that this means you STILL have a possible deductibe of up to 1000Euro...it is NOT, repeat NOT "zero deductible" also made clear.

You have the opportunity, once you actually REACH the rental counter of purchasing additional coverage (some call that "super CDW") from the specific rental agency and THAT additional coverage is what reduces your deductible to zero. It is bought from the folks who own the car, NOT from Auroeurope and never has been

Sher

Dukey. My policy with Auto Europe clearly states that I have ZERO deductible.
And email inquiries to Auto Europe also state this.
But not all rentals are the same even from the same company. I had the opportunity to rent the car with a E1000 deductible OR no deductible but I must apply for the damage cost through Auto Europe OR I could have rented the car with insurance coverage provided by the supplier (Thrifty)
There were three different prices for the same car the last being the most expensive so I took the middle price.

Piccolina

Thank you all for your responses, especially the toll-free number of AE provided by zoecat. Much appreciated.

Seems like there are some conflicting comments here...should or shouldn't I pay Europcar if an accident happen? What I'm trying to figure out is whether the customer rep at Europcar should or shouldn't have asked me to sign that piece of paper stating that I have to pay Europcar in case of damages to the car? If Europcar shouldn't have asked me to sign that piece of paper, then I'll make sure Europcar call Kemwel to sort it out if Europcar try to ask me to sign that paper again.

Many thanks again

uhoh_busted

You haven't had an accident, right? I think I would assume you have to pay Europcar, BUT don't expect that 1) you will have an accident and 2) they may tell you something different after you've returned the car and gotten back home. The only time we've ever had an accident in a rental car, (damage to a side fender panel from a parking garage post in Vence) we turned in the car, acknowledged that we were responsible for the damage, and got a bill from them about a month later for around $350 -- which we thought was low, considering what it costs to fix our cars here, so we didn't feel badly about that at all.

Alec

Europcar isn't party to the contract between you and AE/Kemwell about nil-deductible CDW. As far as Europcar is concerned, you have declined their Super CDW cover so you are responsible for paying whatever the deductible is for each claim. They aren't interested in whether you get reimbursed by AE/Kemwell. So they are within their right to insist you sign the paper, though the undertaking is already part of your rental agreement.
The way it works is if you cause damage to the rental car, Europcar will charge the deductible to your credit card, and Kemwell will reimburse you when you make a claim on their insurance.

Sarastro

Most all of these insurance coverages are secondary coverage meaning that you will pay for the damage (no matter who caused it) and you will be reimbursed later by the insurer for the amount greater than the deductible or excess.

Primary coverage, meaning you simply walk away from the car after any damage, might be offered by some rental companies (read the coverage carefully) or some third party companies such as American Express or Insurance4carhire.com

Free CDW insurance offered by Visa/MC is secondary coverage and only reimburses after you have paid the claim by the rental company.

Piccolina

Just thought I would make a post as a future reference for others who will be renting a car with Europcar via Kemwel. Here's what happened when I picked up the rental at the Toulouse airport.

When I picked up my car at the Toulouse airport, the agent explained that there's no need to even discuss insurance because I had bought the zero-excess insurance which is RECOGNIZED by Europcar. In other words, my experience at the Rennes station in April was NOT how it should have been done (ie: I should have been asked to sign a form stating that I will pay Europcar for any damages and then seek the damages from Kemwel). The agents at the Europcar counter at Toulouse were much sharper than the ones at Rennes rail station. I think it's because the Toulouse counter must receive many more international travelers than the Rennes rail station.

Note that this is only applicable for Europcar and Kemwel. If you are renting from another car company via Kemwel, please check with Kemwel accordingly.

Although this was never verified with the agents at Europcar, I believe they treat the insurance purchased from Kemwel and the insurance covered by north american credit cards differently. The latter one is the one where you have to pay the damages to Europcar first, and then claim back the damages from the credit card company (ie: hence the form I had to fill out at the Rennes train station although I actually purchased the zero deductible insurance from Kemwel).

Good luck!

Michael

In most recent experience with Europcar a month ago, the agent explained that by declining the CDW I was responsible for the total cost of the car, or about 12,000 euros (scare tactic?). She logged my credit card just in case, but its limit would not cover the total cost anyway. The car also had two scratches, one of which I could not find, which was more worrisome--what kind of imperfection would they be claiming against me?

kerouac

<i>Although it was 4 in the morning in Maine an agent answered on the second ring and he also spoke fluent French.</i>

That's because the AutoEurope/Kemwel call center for Europe is in Dusseldorf.

ParisAmsterdam

>>>call center for Europe is in Dusseldorf<<<

That would explain it!