Declining CDW on car rental - a tale of woe
Dec 5th, 2006, 01:35 PM
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Declining CDW on car rental - a tale of woe
OK, I should have known better. That said -- here is the story.
We booked a package with Hapuna Prince Hotel that included car. I was given a special code to use when I booked the car rental with Avis. The package provided at credit for a specific sum of money towards the car. If we choose an intermediate sized car, we would end up only owing taxes and fees; if we wanted to upgrade we could choose to do so and simply pay balance. I booked the reservation online at Avis.com and entered the code. I got a confirmation with TOTAL costs [rental, fees etc]. No credit card was required at the time of making reservation.
We declined CDW when we picked up our car in Kona in October. We gave them our Mastercard when we picked up the car. WE used our Mastercard to pay the fees when we turned in the car.
In between picking up the car and returning it, we had a close encounter with what I believe is called a "lava toe" at VNP. DH was backing up to exit parking space at end of Chain of Craters road and scrapped the bumper.
When we got back to the Prince, we went to the Avis desk there and reported the damage and filled out a report.
When we turned in the car at Kona airport, we gave a copy of the report to Avis checkin person.
We were under the belief that Mastercard would pay for this damage under their MasterRental insurance program.
I submitted all the required paperwork and have now been notified by Mastercard that they are declining payment because we did not "use the card to initiate and pay for the entire rental agreement/contract {tax, gas, and airport fees are not considered rental charges] with your mastercard."
I have not called them yet, as I will try to protest this denial, but I am sure I won't get anywhere.
So -- the lesson to be learned here -- if you get a car as part of a package deal, your credit card will not cover damages should you decline CDW.
Sadder, wiser, but poorer...and really p*ssed off...
Debi
PS - There are lots of other conditions that invalidate the insurance [like having car for more than 15 consecutive days; rental vehicles must have msrp of $50,000 or less etc etc.]Better check these out before you falsely believe that your credit card will protect you.
We booked a package with Hapuna Prince Hotel that included car. I was given a special code to use when I booked the car rental with Avis. The package provided at credit for a specific sum of money towards the car. If we choose an intermediate sized car, we would end up only owing taxes and fees; if we wanted to upgrade we could choose to do so and simply pay balance. I booked the reservation online at Avis.com and entered the code. I got a confirmation with TOTAL costs [rental, fees etc]. No credit card was required at the time of making reservation.
We declined CDW when we picked up our car in Kona in October. We gave them our Mastercard when we picked up the car. WE used our Mastercard to pay the fees when we turned in the car.
In between picking up the car and returning it, we had a close encounter with what I believe is called a "lava toe" at VNP. DH was backing up to exit parking space at end of Chain of Craters road and scrapped the bumper.
When we got back to the Prince, we went to the Avis desk there and reported the damage and filled out a report.
When we turned in the car at Kona airport, we gave a copy of the report to Avis checkin person.
We were under the belief that Mastercard would pay for this damage under their MasterRental insurance program.
I submitted all the required paperwork and have now been notified by Mastercard that they are declining payment because we did not "use the card to initiate and pay for the entire rental agreement/contract {tax, gas, and airport fees are not considered rental charges] with your mastercard."
I have not called them yet, as I will try to protest this denial, but I am sure I won't get anywhere.
So -- the lesson to be learned here -- if you get a car as part of a package deal, your credit card will not cover damages should you decline CDW.
Sadder, wiser, but poorer...and really p*ssed off...
Debi
PS - There are lots of other conditions that invalidate the insurance [like having car for more than 15 consecutive days; rental vehicles must have msrp of $50,000 or less etc etc.]Better check these out before you falsely believe that your credit card will protect you.
Dec 5th, 2006, 01:53 PM
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Would a bumper scrape have been covered by the CDW? I ask because we had the same sort of thing happen but our CDW specifically did not cover this (either that or there was a deductable-now I can't even remember).
Dec 5th, 2006, 02:53 PM
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I know that I can report this to my car insurance BUT we have a $500 deductible on our cars for collision and I really hate to report anything to them...for fear of them hiking our premiums.
The scrapes were not all that bad, but by the time they included loss of use, administrative fees it totaled almost $700.
We did in fact use the same mastercard to pay for the package at the Hapuna Prince and will pursue that as argument that I did in fact use my card to pay for everything. I should have known that "free" benefits/coverage is "you get what you pay for" and that they will do everything possible not to pay out, but I will try to reason with them.
Thanks all...
Debi
The scrapes were not all that bad, but by the time they included loss of use, administrative fees it totaled almost $700.
We did in fact use the same mastercard to pay for the package at the Hapuna Prince and will pursue that as argument that I did in fact use my card to pay for everything. I should have known that "free" benefits/coverage is "you get what you pay for" and that they will do everything possible not to pay out, but I will try to reason with them.
Thanks all...
Debi
Dec 5th, 2006, 03:24 PM
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I posted this on Debi's other thread but for the benefit of everyone else I will post it here.
We had a similar situation and when I called my insurance agent at home, they told me damage to rental cars falls under LIABILITY, not collision or vandalism, therefore it's paid 100% with no deductibles. Of course every policy is different, so before renting a car do check with your agent. My agent says that CDW is a waste of money because most insurance policies will cover rental car mishaps 100%.
Good luck, Debi.
We had a similar situation and when I called my insurance agent at home, they told me damage to rental cars falls under LIABILITY, not collision or vandalism, therefore it's paid 100% with no deductibles. Of course every policy is different, so before renting a car do check with your agent. My agent says that CDW is a waste of money because most insurance policies will cover rental car mishaps 100%.
Good luck, Debi.
Dec 5th, 2006, 03:34 PM
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Are you telling us that if you had made the reservation yourself, without anything to do with Hapuna Prince Hotel, that mastercard would have then paid?
Your second paragraph is a little confusing.
Did the Hapuna Prince Hotel pay for any of these charges using their funds, and not YOUR mastercard?
Your second paragraph is a little confusing.
Did the Hapuna Prince Hotel pay for any of these charges using their funds, and not YOUR mastercard?
Dec 5th, 2006, 03:44 PM
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From what I am reading, since we did not pay for the car in full DIRECTLY with our mastercard, they are denying our claim. We paid Hapuna Prince a one night deposit with the mastercard, then we paid for the remainer of our bill with our mastercard. Our "package" from Hapuna included the room, breakfast and the daily car rental [except fees which we were liable for]. I can at this moment only assume that Hapuna paid Prince through some type of arangement as it was their deal. I further believe that there must be some type of ongoing arrangement since Avis has a location in the Hapuna lobby.
If we had simply reserved the car ourself, used our card to pay, declined the coverage, we would have been covered --as I understand it.
Debi
If we had simply reserved the car ourself, used our card to pay, declined the coverage, we would have been covered --as I understand it.
Debi
Dec 5th, 2006, 05:56 PM
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Hi Debi - I got burned in a similar situation a few years ago when I used a VISA to rent a car in Alaska.
I denied the LDW insurance when I rented the car because it should have been covered under the VISA if something happened. Well, during the trip, the rental was broken into and one of the doors was smashed. When they broke into the car, they stole my backpack and luggage from the car which happened to have my credit card along with other valuable items in it.
That meant I had to cancel the credit card. We got a replacement rental car but I had to pay for it at the end of the week with my new credit card. Since it wasn't the same credit card I'd rented the car with, VISA wouldn't cover it and I got stuck with the fees, even though I'd had to cancel the original card so there was no way I could use it to pay.
My personal car insurance did end up covering the cost, but with a $500 deductible. Plus I had to file a claim with homeowners insurance for the stuff they stole from the car which meant another $500 deductible.
It was an expensive lesson to learn so now I just pay the insanely high LDW insurance just so I don't have to deal with it. Good luck.
I denied the LDW insurance when I rented the car because it should have been covered under the VISA if something happened. Well, during the trip, the rental was broken into and one of the doors was smashed. When they broke into the car, they stole my backpack and luggage from the car which happened to have my credit card along with other valuable items in it.
That meant I had to cancel the credit card. We got a replacement rental car but I had to pay for it at the end of the week with my new credit card. Since it wasn't the same credit card I'd rented the car with, VISA wouldn't cover it and I got stuck with the fees, even though I'd had to cancel the original card so there was no way I could use it to pay.
My personal car insurance did end up covering the cost, but with a $500 deductible. Plus I had to file a claim with homeowners insurance for the stuff they stole from the car which meant another $500 deductible.
It was an expensive lesson to learn so now I just pay the insanely high LDW insurance just so I don't have to deal with it. Good luck.
Dec 5th, 2006, 06:54 PM
#12
P_M...I worked as an adjuster for two different companies. The first paid it under collision. USAA, our own insurer also pays it under collision, but the last company I worked for, AMICA, pays it under liability. It isn't so much how the policy is written, as they are standard forms in the state you reside in, but how your company interprets the policy.
AMICA paid it under liability because you were legally responsible for returning the car in the same condition in which you rented it. Failure to do so made you legally liable for damages. Thus they paid under the liability portion of the policy which has no deductible.
When my DH and I had a similar situation in a rental I argued this issue until I was blue in the face with USAA to no avail.
AMICA was a terrific company! Hard to get insurance with, but once in, they sure treated their policyholders like royalty with a higher approval rating (at the time I worked there--don't know how they stand now) even than USAA the king of insurers.
AMICA paid it under liability because you were legally responsible for returning the car in the same condition in which you rented it. Failure to do so made you legally liable for damages. Thus they paid under the liability portion of the policy which has no deductible.
When my DH and I had a similar situation in a rental I argued this issue until I was blue in the face with USAA to no avail.
AMICA was a terrific company! Hard to get insurance with, but once in, they sure treated their policyholders like royalty with a higher approval rating (at the time I worked there--don't know how they stand now) even than USAA the king of insurers.
Dec 6th, 2006, 01:06 PM
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When I had an accident with a rental car several years ago, I also learned that most credit cards only pay as second payer AFTER you file with your own personal auto insurance. I had paid for the entire rental with my AmEx card and declined the CDW as usual, but after the accident, when I called AmEx, learned about the second payer clause. My insurance (USAA) did pay (I think it was under liability, not collision) but my insurance rates also increased as a result.
After that, I reviewed my other credit card agreements and the second payer clause is pretty much standard.
After that, I reviewed my other credit card agreements and the second payer clause is pretty much standard.
Dec 6th, 2006, 01:10 PM
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I sure wish they had an edit function on Fodor's!
Bottom line, if you regularly (or even only once) use rental cars, you need to read both your own insurance policy and your credit card Ts&Cs to see how it will be handled if you do have an accident. Do not rely on what I or anyone else tells you our experience was because it does vary depending on location, etc.
Bottom line, if you regularly (or even only once) use rental cars, you need to read both your own insurance policy and your credit card Ts&Cs to see how it will be handled if you do have an accident. Do not rely on what I or anyone else tells you our experience was because it does vary depending on location, etc.
Dec 6th, 2006, 04:59 PM
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Collision Damage Waiver. It's the insurance you can buy directly from the car rental agency.
This has been a really interesting thread. I didn't know policies varied so much from one place to another. It just goes to show the importance of calling your agent, then decide what's best for you.
This has been a really interesting thread. I didn't know policies varied so much from one place to another. It just goes to show the importance of calling your agent, then decide what's best for you.
Mar 23rd, 2007, 05:22 PM
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It has taken over 5 months to deal with Mastercard on this matter. So much back and forth; they kept wanting more documentation and information.
Well the wait has paid off!! Or should I say Mastercard has paid off. They paid my $500 deductible [from our USAA car insurance policy] to Hertz!
I never thought they would give in, but I bombarded them with papers work supporting my claim.
Now I am going to try and negotiate with Hertz on the remainder since I don't want to have USAA pay it and take a chance on them raising our rates.
I will try to have them knock down their administrative and "out of service" fee.
That should only take another 5 months!
Debi
Well the wait has paid off!! Or should I say Mastercard has paid off. They paid my $500 deductible [from our USAA car insurance policy] to Hertz!
I never thought they would give in, but I bombarded them with papers work supporting my claim.
Now I am going to try and negotiate with Hertz on the remainder since I don't want to have USAA pay it and take a chance on them raising our rates.
I will try to have them knock down their administrative and "out of service" fee.
That should only take another 5 months!
Debi
Mar 23rd, 2007, 05:40 PM
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Debi--A few years ago my husband was involved with a collision with a car from Avis. Very long story...will spare you...but basically Avis was awful and USAA was, as usual, fantastic. The other driver was at fault, the base CO said no problem, they would pay for the damage, but Avis tried to come after us. USAA stepped in. Then the base reneged and didn't pay. I felt awful that USAA was stuck with it, but they said not to worry, they deal with this all the time. It never affected our rates. After that, we will not use Avis...I would rather walk, lol!
