Vignette and International Green Card for Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia.
 

Hi:

I will be renting a car for driving in Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia. I have a valid US driver's licence and an International Driving Permit. I read that one needs to have a vignette sticker to drive on toll roads in Slovenia. Where can I buy this sticker, and do I need one in Croatia and Bosnia?

Also, do I need the International Green Card? THe Slovenia tourism Web site (http://www.slovenia.info/?by_car=0) says the following:
International Green Card
International automobile insurance is mandatory for all foreign vehicles, except for vehicles from countries with which Slovenia has concluded special agreements (members of the European Union and some other countries). The Green Card can be purchased at all international border crossings.

Anything else that I should be aware of?

Please advise.

Thanks,
D

I spoke to my current auto insurance folks and they said I am covered for cars rented only in the 50 US states and territories. So this means, I would need to purchase insurance for renting in Slovenia, Croatia and Bosnia, correct? If yes, how do I go about doing this?

Or will my credit card kick in as the primary (and only) insurance provider (when I decline CDW) for the rental car in the absence of my US auto insurance?

But the problem is that I am renting through Avis and they are not giving me the option to decline CDW...at least not when I book online. Haven't tried speaking to them.

Pardon these snippets but I am learning.

If your rental company (Avis in which country?) allows you to drive into those countries, you can assume they will provide insurance coverage needed, including Green Card (after all, it's their car). Be careful, not many rental firms allow you to drive into Bosnia (Slovenia and Croatia are usually ok). Have Avis confirmed they will allow you to drive into Bosnia?

Actually, I've never seen a rental car equipped with a green card, however I'd never go abroad without one... Strange.
Maybe I havn't looked well enough.

Or is that hard enough :-)

Ich habe nicht durchgesucht.
I haven't looked hard enough.

durchgesucht
That's a new word. What does it mean? :-)

Indikativ Perfekt of durchsuchen!

That would be durchsucht.

I am renting Avis in Slovenia and Croatia on different instances so I dont' intend to cross the borders. For driving into Mostar from Dubrovnik, Avis won't allow it, so I am going with Budget.

My question is do I need to buy the CDW from the rental car guys or the coverage I get from my credit card by waiving the CDW charge is enough?

Thanks,
D

You have to come to an agreement with Avis - often not possible online. Speak to them and get it in writing.

Have you checked with your credit card company to be sure they will cover you? If so, and if Avis agrees, be sure to check and initial the box on the contract (at the pickup point) that says you are declining the CDW. Also, whatever downpayment or prepayment you make for the car must be with the same credit card you use when picking up. IMO, credit card coverage is better because with the auto rental insurance, there is a deductible unless you buy super CDW. Also check with Budget if you can decline CDW, and be very sure your credit card covers in Bosnia. It might be better just to purchase the insurance from Budget for the Bosnia trip.

You need a vignette for Slovenia. We bought ours at a service station just before the border for 35 Euro. Depending on when you go, they may have a cheaper, shorter term one. I understand there is a hefty fine for not having it. We didn't need one for Croatia but there are toll roads where you pay at a booth. Don't know about Bosnia.

You only need the vignette for Slovenia. We just rented a Hertz car out of Zagreb, drove it in Croatia, Slovenia, Italy & Bosnia. The Hertz agent gave us a packet to show at the border but I don't think we were ever asked for it. When you get your rental car, check the windshield for a vignette--our car already had one that had been issued the previous week and was still valid. It's a smiling car sticker and it's placed on the upper left hand side of the windshield. The date of issue is punched out. It's my understanding that the only vignette currently is a 6-month 35E version, but a one-week version is coming this summer.

To suffrock, crckwc1 and others who rented cars in Croatia, Slovenia or Bosnia:

Did you purchase the CDW or did you waive it and went with the credit card benfit?

Thanks,
D

We declined everything and went with our credit card benefit (that's how my DH always handles rental cars).

We always use our credit card to insure the rent cars. We have had only one minor claim but we were re-imbursed promptly. (Your credit card is charged for damage, you file the claim with the credit card insuring department, and the charge is deleted from your account.) This trip we picked up the car in Munich, returned to Munich, but drove through Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Slovenia, Slovakia. This was AutoEurope as broker, Avis as agent.

It's just my luck that Avis won't allow me to waive CDW in Croatia and Slovenia (spoke to them and got this confirmation). Spoke to AMEX and Mastercard and both of them said their insurance won't kick in even if I don't have the option to waive CDW...still need to talk to Visa.

The rental price difference between Avis and the next car rental company is about 100 to 200 Euros! :-(

After some more research, I can get equivalent/better car rental rates with Sixt AND also decline CDW. Does anyone have any feedback on Sixt? They are one of the largest European car rentals.