When asked what we love to do, most of us if not all, are likely to mention traveling as one of our favorite activities. Unlike in the past when traveling was mainly done during the festive seasons, nowadays people tour all around the year. In turn, this has led to growth in the travel and tourism industry. In the travel sector, car hire excess insurance is one of the products that has been born out of people’s need to hire cars when traveling both locally and internationally.
Even though car hire excess insurance has been in existence for quite a while, it may be a new concept to a few of us. Some of us only get to learn about it when car rental companies ask us to buy car rental excess insurance before embarking on our journeys. This can be short notice, with limited time to understand what this kind of insurance is and whether it is important. It is therefore wise to be knowledgeable about the car hire excess insurance policy beforehand.
Especially during holidays, we often use travel as a means of getting away from our school, work, or business routines that can be quite hectic. Therefore, the escapade is well-deserved and the last thing we expect is an incident that causes us distress in the course of the travel. However, cars are prone to theft and damages. So, what happens when the rental car we are using is stolen or wrecked? This I where the car hire excess insurance policy comes in.
Excess Insurance
Do I need excess protection car hire? You may ask this. As an individual renting a car, the objective of this policy is to shield you from the excess fee that you would have to meet, in the event that the car is lost or damaged. Even so, it is worth noting that the policy is entirely optional and you may decide not to purchase the excess insurance policy.
The term “excess” refers to the sum of money that you would owe the rental company upon the occurrence of such an incidence. The remaining amount, involving replacing the lost car or repairing the damages, is met by the company. The responsibility taken by these two parties varies and this is largely influenced by the presence or absence of an excess insurance policy.
Responsibility In Case of An Accident
Perhaps you are still asking yourself, “is it worth buying car hire excess insurance?” When you learn about the responsibility that comes with failure to have excess insurance, the answer will be quite obvious. We will use an illustration where the rental car is involved in an accident and a few of its parts are wrecked. After an assessment, it is determined that the repairs will cost about 600 Euros.
Perhaps you already have an annual car hire excess insurance policy that covers your travels using rental cars throughout the year. Your deductible with the rental company maybe 400 Euros and consequently, this shall be the amount that you pay the company. In turn, the company covers the remaining 200 Euros. You can now present a claim to the insurance company from which you purchased the policy and they will refund you the 400 Euros for the excess.
Let us now assume that there was no excess insurance policy. You will still have to pay the 400 Euros excess charges and the rental company only incurs 200 Euros. It is just that in this situation, you do not have a policy and therefore have no claim to make. No refund will be made and you will have suffered a loss of 400 Euros. If you had second thought on getting a car hire excess insurance compare this with how much loss you would avoid, only if you had the policy
So, is car hire excess insurance worthwhile? If you do not wish to incur such hefty charges, then yes, it is. The decision to buy car rental excess insurance is a good call.