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Insurance Issues - Yucatan Car Rentals
I am trying to get a handle on the rental cars in the Yucatan. Hoping some of of you seasoned Yucatan travelers can assist as rates vary widely and insurance pricing is vague and may be an issue.
I will be renting a car for 30 days and my Chase credit card will cover the CDW, whereby I decline the car rental company insurance and will be fully covered by my credit card Rental Car Insurance benefit. However, not certain that the rental agencies in Mexico will accept my credit card rental insurance and force me to purchase their own collision/liability insurance. I researched the following rates for a 30 day rental factoring in full insurance to cover the vehicle. I am trying to figure out why the rates vary so widely. Option #1- Book direct thru Budget Rental Car for $750 USD includes taxes. Decline rental car insurance as it is covered by my credit card at no additional cost. But, will the rental counter give me a hard time and force me to pay extra for their own insurance? Option #2- Book thru Carrentals.com website with National Car Rental for $227 USD which includes taxes. (shockingly cheap, about $8 per day which rings warning bells to be aware of hidden charges) Option #3 - Book thru Carrentals.com website with National Car Rental for $227 USD which includes taxes. (shockingly cheap, about $8 per day) Accept the Carrentals.com insurance offered on their site for $288 which will bring the total cost to = $515 (I wonder if upon arrival, National car rental would even honor the extra insurance offered by Carrentals.com Option #4 - Book thru very reputable local company America Car Rental for $1,368 USD which includes their own full insurance coverage, which is very expensive. Rates seem all over the map. Its all very confusing when factoring car rental insurance. Any tips would be greatly appreciated. |
US liability insurance is NOT valid in Mexico. You must buy Mexican insurance. If you rely on your Chase card for collision insurance, in case of a claim, you'll be expected to pay for the damage out of pocket first and then figure out how to get reimbursed after you return to the US. The rental agency while also put a hold on your card balance to cover any potential damage if you refuse their coverage. In case of an accident, you must remain at the scene until police and insurance adjusters arrive. If you don't have valid liability, hi-ho hi-ho, it's off to jail you go. Go with a reputable local agent such as Easyway, not an aggregator like Carrentals. And be aware that brands such as Hertz, Budget etc. are franchises, not corporate agencies. So, your option #4 is what about you'll expect to end up paying being adequately insured.
All that said, there are those that will say "I never rent a car in Mexico". Don't pay any attention to them. Having a car is a great way to see Mexico. Just be smart and get proper insurance. |
I have always rented thru Easyway, Avant, or America. These are local companies that include all necessary insurances either as part of the fee, or very reasonably. I would be very leery of super cheap deals, they are always bait and switch. It is not advisable to use your credit card insurance due to strict Mexican requirements in case of an accident. I typically pay about $300 a week with all insurances from one of the 3 above agencies for a sub compact.
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Cheap car prices are meant to draw you in. You need to understand that other charges are to be added to your total cost. From my experience in renting from various companies in Playa, you can decide on omitting several extra charges such as tire insurance and windshield protection. Of course, it is IMPERATIVE that you check out in detail the car that you will be renting. This means scratches, tire condition (including sidewalls), windshield knicks and everything else. I would also add that you should take pictures of the car before taking possession as they might even try to charge you for something that happened beforehand. Please, if they offer you a car with a missing license plate... REFUSE it. They will argue that there is no problem, but the police will say otherwise ! |
One other thing that you can read about online is that it can be fairly common to be stopped by the police claiming you are speeding (what they really want is some money-most likely you will not have been speeding!). You may see signs in rental cars telling you NOT to hand over your license because of that. So I have read it is a good idea to keep a photo copy of your driver's license with you. But honestly-if it happens it can be intimidating to refuse to give your license-so the one time it happened to me (we were 2 women in the car) we offered around $20 to "excuse the ticket". I was always resent the fact that the police stopped me but I felt slightly better when I was with an older Mexican man driving an official Mexico government car from a university I was volunteering at, and he got stopped and shaken down for money too!
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We always buy the max insurance whenever we are traveling internationally. I just add it in - and yes, sometimes it just about doubles the car rental cost. But I've been sideswiped when parked twice - and it's pretty great to just hand the car back over when the rental is over. No worries.
We just suck it up and figure it makes our travels that much more stress-free. |
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