comments
American Express Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance Plan
Email
 Print
|
While in Lake Tahoe, I’ll be renting a car for about a week and the usual Collision Damage Waiver (insurance) cost approximately $15/day and they’re generally regarded as a waste of money because most credit cards will cover you as a secondary insurance (your primary auto insurance comes first). I saw that my Costco American Express TrueEarnings card has a Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance policy as a free benefit for all cardholders but was concerned at the fine print: “Coverage is determined by the terms, conditions, and exclusions of Policy AX0925 and is subject to change with notice.” Try to find Policy AX0925 anywhere online… guaranteed you won’t. (don’t bother, I asked a CSR and he said it’s not online anywhere).
I called them up and got a full explanation of both their standard car rental loss and damage insurance, free for all TrueEarnings card members, and their premium car rental loss and damage insurance, which has a $24.95 fee per car rental.
Essentially the standard coverage is identical to the car rental agency’s Collision Damage Waiver, which covers any damage or loss to the vehicle (not your items inside!). Some highlights:
- It has no deductible
- Covers you for a rental period of up to 30 consecutive days.
- It will cover you worldwide except Italy, Australia, New Zealand, Israel, Ireland and Jamaica.
- It does not have liability coverage, but your primary auto insurance will have that.
- It also does not cover fifteen passenger vans, pickup trucks, large SUVs, and vehicles over $50,000 in value.
- Finally, it’s a secondary insurance so your primary insurance picks up the tab and it will cover what your primary insurance does not.
What does the Premium Car Rental Protection cover?
- The policy becomes your primary insurance policy for your rental period.
- It also covers some liability, loss or theft of items inside the vehicle,
- some death and dismemberment,
- and a handful of other ancillary insurance items.
All you do is enroll in the program, which is free, and you are charged $24.95 each time you rent a car. There is no cost to join or cancel.
The basic program is pretty good because it basically replaces comprehensive and collision insurance, which I don’t carry, and my liability insurance, which would be first anyway, covers the liability portion it does not cover. For a mere $25, I can get primary coverage for nearly everything (and some) which comes out to approximately $3+ per day.
I reached a CSR by calling 800-338-1670.
{ 117 comments, please add your thoughts now! }Related Posts
 By Jim |
 Stumble It! Bookmark reddit.comTags: American Express, Cars, Insurance May 27, 2006 | Read more in Credit, Insurance, Personal Finance |
Like this article? Get all the latest articles sent to your email for free every day. Enter your email address and click "Subscribe." Your email will only be used for this daily subscription and you can unsubscribe anytime.
Slate.com’s Should you buy rental car insurance?
Some Corporate Amex cards have this attached and available for both personal and business use for $3 per day, per rental. It’s pretty good coverage.
So did you buy it for $25?
Not yet but with Avis you don’t need a credit card to have a reservation (that makes me kind of nervous) so I won’t have to decide until right before I rent the car.
the Amex program works in Portugal. If you have to put a deposit down, they will reimburse if there is a problem. How much is the insurance coverage in Portugal?
Hey Jim,
First time visitor here. Thank you for the clarification on AX0925. I wonder why Amex is so vague about this coverage, I was told it was added to my cards some time ago but never recieved any specifics on the coverage.
Hi,
Thanks so much for posting this information!
I had a few questions -> I don’t have a primary auto insurance, so how do i go about liability coverage when i’m using my Amex (since they do not cover L coverage)
also how did u pay the $25? Like do u need to pay online or buy coverage over the phone?
chan – You just need to call up AMEX and tell them you want this coverage, when they see a car rental charge then they’ll tack on a $25 charge. I did not end up getting this insurance.
As for liability, you’ll just have to get the insurance from the rental company.
According to AX, this is not available with “co-branded” cards, such as Costco. Also, there is some exclusion for CA and NY residents.
I have no personal auto insurance, and tried to sign up for this policy with AMEX. When I contacted AMEX, they said their premium car rental policy (24.95 per car rental) is not available to residents of California and New York. Something to do with state regulations, which I’m still trying to figure out.
In an unlikely event of an accident (and assuming I opted for 25$ premium protection), what are the chances of my insurance premium going up for my current auto insurance the next time I renew it?
I would imagine 0% chance if your insurance company never learned of it.
FYI, The damage collision waiver offered by a rental car company varies. Some waivers serve as PRIMARY coverage, meaning that there would be no need to file a claim with your insurance agency in the event that your rental sustains damage (and thus no risk of an increased premium). This begs the question of whether AX becomes primary if one doesn’t have any primary insurance to begin with. It also means that one/two-day (depending on prices in each state) rentals would be less expensive if one were to opt for a primary damage waiver and PAI than the $24.95 flat fee.
I use the premium coverage for personal car rentals. So far is has been worth it. I had a rock hit the windshield on a rental from Budget, and AX settled the issue without a problem. However, I had that same incident with a rental from Thrifty and things were different. Thrifty uses a debt collection agency to handle the billing. I got several letters from AX stating that they had not received documentation from Thrifty and the collection agency sent me letters requesting full payment. AX finally got it settled, but thrifty charged me a LOSS OF USE FEE which is not covered by the AX premium coverage. AX should put non-covered items in thier description of coverage. I am happy with the AX coverage, but not happy with Thrifty.
What amount did they charge you for the “loss of use” fee? Also, AMEX’s premium car rental protection is indeed not offered in CA but as far as I know it IS offered in NY.
While I didn’t opt for the coverage, I believe $24.95 covers everything.
is it automatic? or do you have to enroll it everytime you rent a car?
Is it possible to get CDW insurance through american express card which not issued in US?
googled “policy ax0925″. It came right up, along with this site. FYI
I do not have my own car and therefore no ‘primary’ auto insurance. What is liability coverage anyway? Is that insurance coverage to protect you from claims from OTHER CAR DRIVERS???
I have recently enrolled in the Amex premium rental car insurance program. The reason I enrolled is because in some states, such as Nevada, rental car companies charge a loss of use fee that most car insurance does not cover. When enrolling in the Amex premium rental car insurance program, I specifically asked the question, does this insurance cover loss of use, and I was told yes. Of course the paper work that was sent to me included specific verbage, but the easy answer from Amex was yes, I would be covered.
So, cut to a rental car in Las Vegas, cab driver runs into me, completey his fault, he is cited at the accident scene by the police officer. I bring a damaged car back to Thrifty. I call Amex regarding the accident. When reporting the claim to Amex you need to have several pieces of documentation with you, the accident report you will receive from the police officer, the registration and insurance paperwork of the vehicle. Typically this will be in the glove compartment of the rental vehicle.
So, for a while everything seems fine. I log into the claim website once a week to make sure the claim is progressing. I eventually receive a letter from Amex stating that they have paid approximately $1400.00 in damage to Thrifty and the claim is closed. I thought, cool, problem solved, fairly painless, I would definitely recommend the Amex premium car rental insurance to everyone I know. Not so fast…
A couple of days later I received a phone call from Thrifty. I owen over $300.00 in loss of use and administrative fees. Amex won’t pay thrifty. I call Amex. Thrifty will not supply a fleet log to Amex to prove that they were at least 85% utilized during that time period and will not supply a break down of the administrative fees.
I am stuck in the middle. Thrift says that never supply that information and Amex knows it. Amex says they will not pay the claim of the $300.00 to Thrifty without that information. Thrifty threatens me will sending the bill to collections if I do not pay right now. I told Thifty to hold on, how can you threaten collections when this if the first that I have heard of this outstanding balance. So now Thrifty is sending me a bill, but Amex will not pay it.
So I have mixed emotions. I originally signed up for the Amex program specifically for loss of use. Amex did pay for the damage, but not the loss of use.
Perhaps in the future I will need to ask Amex, which rental agencies actually do supply the paperwork they require.
Has anyone else been in this circumstance? Is there anything I can do to make Thrifty supply the paperwork, Amex pay the claim?
Grrrrrr….
I got hit by another vehicle while driving a Thrifty rental car in LA about 2 yrs ago. Because the other vehicle had insurance coverage (as would be the cae ofthe cab driver in Vegas), the other driver was repsonsible for the Loss of Use and Admin part of Thrifty’s claims. My vehicle insurance carrier (Chubb) did all the negotiation for me with Thrifty. So, my advice is to go ahead and let your insurance company dela with it; if the accident was not your fault, and the other driver was coavred, there will be no impact on your future premiums.
As for Thrifty, Hertz, et al, soaking consumers for Loss of Use and Admin, it is a ripoff. i would recommend that whenever you rent, if you don’t have the superior, Premium coverage, you find the Loss of Use and Admin clauses in the rental contract, strike them out, initial the strikeouts, and make the agent initial the same changes, or you go to the next rental car counter. If you are a repeat customer, they will make an effort to retain your business.
Had exactly the same experience with the administrative fees and loos of use with Hertz. Amex refused to pay w/o documentation and Hertz refused to provide it. Seems like a rip off all the way around.
I filed a claim under this premium rental program as well. Good news, my insurance company never heard about the incident and Amex paid for all the damages. The bad news is I got nailed with loss of use and $160 administrative fee (by Hertz). Amex would not pay that for me either, unless I could get the rental company to prove they had more than 85% of their fleet rented during that time and the costs to process the accident were not their normal cost of doing business.
Funny enough, I am fighting Thrifty with the same Loss of Use fee. I’m using a MasterCard though. Seems that Thrifty likes to not provide a fleet log. This may end up in collections, because I refuse to pay the $250 dollars that Thrifty wants.
I’m currently working my way up their CSR chain. The first guy I spoke with told me that he didn’t have a supervisor. I called the main support line and managed to get a supervisor’s name and extension. Now I’m calling her ever 15 minutes (after leaving an initial message) hoping she’ll answer.
My vote is to NEVER do business with Thrifty again.
I’d like to hear how your situation was resolved. I’m in the same boat with AmEx and Thrifty. I will definitely never rent from Thrifty again, but I’m actually more PO’d at AmEx–I bought this premium coverage specifically for the LDW coverage and yet they know that 90% of rental car companies are not required to nor are willing to supply it. As a consumer who does a ton of due dilligence, how could I know that that most rental car companies don’t supply fleet utilization logs, info that AmEx CLEARLY had to know. This seems like a misleading business practice from the start.
below is a quote from AMEX’s pdf on their CDW insurance and it says they don’t cover Loss of Use.
Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance does not cover, and benefits will not be paid for:
• sales tax related to repair of damages, unless reimbursement of such sales tax is required by law;
• damage to any vehicle other than the Rental Auto;
• damage to any property other than the Rental Auto, owner’s property, or items not permanently attached to the Rental Auto;
• the Injury of anyone or anything;
• expenses assumed, waived or paid for by the Rental Company or its insurer;
• expenses covered by the Cardmember’s personal auto insurer, employer or employer’s insurer, or authorized driver’s insurer;
• value added tax or similar tax, unless reimbursement of such tax is required by law;
• loss of use fees imposed by the Rental Company;
• diminishment of value;
• any Rental Auto used for hire or commercial purposes; and
• depreciation, unless reimbursement for depreciation is required by law.
Not sure if I have this correct, but in response to Mark’s comment about Amex PDF stating that loss of use is not covered…
I believe there is a difference between the car rental insurance and the premium car rental insurance supplied by Amex, $19.95 for car rental insurance, $24.95 for premium car rental insurance. The premium car rental insurance supposedly does cover loss of use.
Again, I may be incorrect, but it was the reason I chose the premium level to specifically cover loss of use.
Had the same problem with AmEx and Budget Rent a Car. Many credit cards say they will cover Loss of Use and Admin Fees IF the rental car company provide sproof. The rental car companies NEVER provide proof and the credit card companies know this. The credit card companies get to advertise benefits that they never have to pay out for and the car rental companies pocket extra cash because they figure they will never have to go to court on these small claims of $200 to $2000 for LOU and fees. Of course they would have to provide the proof (in most cases they wouldn’t be able to prove LOS and no court has ever awarded admin fees in regards to a car accident) in court if they were issued a subpoena, but who has the time to return to the place where you rented the car and go to small claims court. These scammers should be reported to the Department of Insurance in the appropriate states.
For those that were wondering if the basic coverage would cover something that you don’t have insurance for, it would. For instance, I only have comprehensive insurance on my personal insurance. If I were in an accident, AMEX’s basic plan would pay since they become primary (since I have no personal collision).
See my post above, dated 08/29/2007.
I will say this. Even though I was not impressed with the finger pointing I got from American Express and Thrifty regarding the $300.00 loss of use/administration fees, paying the $300.00 to Thrifty was far better than paying the $1400.00 in damage and having that accident on my insurance. So American Express did save me an increase to my insurance premium.
Having said that, Thrifty treated me in such a horrible manner that I will NEVER use Thrifty again.
If the AMEX premium coverage becomes the primary coverage, does your personal auto insurance then become secondary?
Or, do the covered limits of the AMEX then become the total amount of insurance, and in effect reducing how much insurance you actually have?
thanks,
Are there any plaintiff class action lawyers out there listening to this discussion about the rental car companies refusal to provide loss of use information? This is the classic type of a lawsuit that is not worth the time and money ot a single individual but a class action involving several thousand people could be worthwhile and have a good chance of success.
Jim
That would be great if there was a class action filed.
I used AMEX card, got into an accident, and they only covered the insurance deductible. Neither they nor my personal insurance would cover all the administrative fees and loss of use. I’m out 350-500 dollars.
Don’t believe the CC company marketing. A class action suit is inevitable.
I’m in the middle of the same situation with Mastercard. I thought I was covered by my primary insurance and MasterCard via MasterRental when a deer collided with my rental van. MasterCard first surprised me by identifying that the collision damage was fully rather than partially covered by my primary insurance, based on the location where it occurred.
However, Mastercard wants the fleet utilization log, and the rental company sent me a letter indicated it is their right not to provide it.
MasterCards response to my question about getting my ‘reasonable loss of use charges’ reimbured:
****
Only with a valid Fleet Utilization Log from the rental company, which 95% refuse to send.
(Name removed)
Claims Examiner
MasterCard Assistance Center
****
If they know rental agencies won’t provide the log, it should be illegal for them to offer this coverage as a benefit. MasterRental didn’t cover a single penny of my claim!
Maybe it’s just better off to pay the renter’s insurance: https://www.ufac-claims.com/amexcm/documents/Green.pdf
If you sign up for the individual coverage through the car rental companies – does that cover Loss of Use? I’m seeing a lot of negative about the AmEx programs because they don’t cover Loss of Use. But do the rental companies offer coverage that includes that?
I’m in the same scenario….
Auto Insurance and Master Rental Credit Card Insurance both want the Fleet Utilization Log.
Dollar Rent-a-Car refuses to provide it.
Meanwhile I’ve got a 850.00 bill.
3 things to do differently.
1. Don’t pay for the car in advance. Go to the counter, amend the contract to say you will not pay loss of use charges, unless they provide the fleet utilization log. If they refuse to let you amend it, then go to another rental agency. I doubt they will let a rental fee walk out the door for a such a reasonable amendment. And at an airport with 10 choices….you get the picture. REMEMBER Contracts are an agreement between 2 PARTIES.
2. If you are on business, buy all the insurance. You may be a safe driver, but in unfamiliar terrain, your risks sky rocket and this should be your employers problem, not yours.
3. If you aren’t on business, just get the min. coverage it takes to cover loss of use charges. Your credit card or insurance will cover the rest.
If all else fails, know your state laws about collections, In Colorado if you settle with the collection agent within 30 days, it doesn’t go on your credit report……and MOST COLLECTION AGENTS ARE AUTHORIZED TO TAKE 50% of the actual bill for settlement. This is your final revenge. Because the rental car agency will end up getting probably only 25% of what they were originally asking for from you.
Don’t bring collections up, negotiate in good faith, but refuse to pay the full amount. Go hard at the Admin fee. This is the first thing they are willing to budge on. Any amount you can get off the total bill is great, but anything less than half is short of your goal, because the collection agent will go lower.
My wife has used this on more than one occasion to level the playing field with outrageous medical bills. It works and it doesn’t come out on your credit score.
Happy Negotiating! Knowledge is Power!
(I think this would make a great Class Action!)
I am a legal assistant at Milstein, Adelman & Kreger, a class action law firm in Santa Monica, California and our firm is currently investigating American Express over the claims that many of you have discussed in your postings above. We have been looking into the American Express rental car insurance plan in detail and how it offers significantly less coverage than regular rental car insurance. We would like to follow up with any of you directly to find out more information regarding this matter and to see if there is legal action that can be taken. If interested, please feel free to contact me with additional information and/or personal experiences with the American Express rental car insurance plan. I can be reached at 310-396-9600 extension 102 or at LPuleo@maklawyers.com. Thank you!
Hello Lily…
I was hoping to see a posting like yours…
Most of my story is detailed above in a posting I created on August 29, 2007.
I will contact you directly via e-mail.
-Lori
I just signed up with AX for the premium insurance. I’m also a Costco Ax cardmember. We’ve had recent car problems with our personal vehicles, and have been using Enterprise for the past few weekends. We are accident free and plan to stay that way, but preferred the lower rate and what we felt was the AX reputation (we’ve always had excellent experience over two decades with them). I am assuming that they would be my primary insurance for the rental. What feedback does anyone have on their experiences?
Joyce, I experienced finger pointing between American Express and Thrifty car rental. Please see my post above dated August 29, 2007.
I see above that amex and mastercard are mentioned, can someone discuss the differences between the two. i’ve always used the amex premium insurance, but now i have a mastercard and would like to cancel the amex card but i’m afraid their rental insurance is not as good. what do you think
Has anyone gone to small claims as a result of rental company failure to provide utilization log and based on that – amex refusing to pay for loss of use fee?
what was the outcome? could any small claims possibly grant the collection agency claim while the rental company had refused to provide a log?
Thanks
B
While the loss of use issue is definitely annoying and potentially costly in the event of an accident. I still think the Amex Premium Car Insurance is a cost-effective means to an ends except for very short term rentals. Foremost, for only $25 per rental it saves you from having to file a claim with your personal car insurance carrier and therefore can save you from potentially higher rates following an accident. Mind you those higher rates are not single time charges, but ones that will likely affect you for at least 3 years.
Granted, the car rental companies’ insurance plan is more comprehensive as it covers everything Amex’s premium plan does plus loss of use, but from my analysis, those plans are painfully expensive. From my experience, the cost of the rental companies’ insurance ranges from $15-30 per day of the rental. In a recent week long trip, Alamo wanted $25/day for their insurance, that adds up to $175. The cost per day for the rental vehicle was only $35, so to buy their insurance would almost double the cost of the rental contract. By comparison, the Amex premium plan is a flat fee of $25. Yes, while loss of use could be a potential issue if I was in an accident with the Amex plan, in my mind, the probability of getting into an accident on any given rental contract period is very small so the price offset between Amex plan and the rental companies’ plan is worth it. Take this scenario as an example, let’s say Jim is extremely unlucky and gets into an accident every 5th time he rents a car. Let’s also assume that each rental period is for one week (average vacation length). If Jim bought the rental companies insurance every time, he would have paid between $525-$1050 (35 days times $15-30 day) for full coverage to cover each accident. If he had the same accident frequency but used the Amex plan, Jim would have only paid $125 for the Amex plan over that same time frame, that means that unless the loss of use fees charged to him from the accident were more than $400 he would still be ahead using the Amex plan (and that is only if the rental company’s insurance was at the low end – $15/day). Most people don’t get into accidents as frequently as in the scenario above, and the more rentals that go by between accidents, the more the loss of use fee would have to be to make the car rental company’s plan worth it. That just speaks to how much better the Amex premium plan is compared to going with the car companies’ plans, at least from my perspective.
One caveat however, is for very short term rentals (e.g., 1 or 2 day rentals). In those cases, paying the $15-30/day might make sense since you will be paying a very similar rate to the Amex plan’s rate (maybe even less), but getting full coverage. But, for longer term rentals, I think the Amex plan makes good sense.
Use 2 credit cards. Use the AMEX with Premium cvoerage on longer rentals and the other card for 1-2 day rentals. Problem solved.
This is excellent reasoning and I find it very persuasive. Thanks!
I don’t have collison coverage on my 1979 Mustang or any rental car coverage on on any other policy. I have an American Express Platinum Card. If I rent a car, does my card automatically become primary coverage since I have no other insurance (deductable). I wrote AMEX to put an answer in writing and they refused to answer it. I already know that AMEX would pay only the deductable over the other insurance policies I don’t have.
Be aware with the American Express program they will probably not pay for everything in spite of their claims. They will demand certain records which the car rental companies are not required to keep, and therefore don’t, so you will be left with part of the bill for any damages. The American Express people talk a good game but don’t deliver when the time comes. Thrifty told me that Visa actually pays these charges and is a better way to go.
On the other Blueprint board Mastercard covers loss of use so why would anybody use AMEX rental car coverage INCLUDING premium which has ZERO loss of use coverage? I don’t care because I don’t have any deductible and cards kick in primary if you believe people. AMEX won’t print their policies on loss of use or when primary kicks in on their sites for good reason: you’d know the truth and not buy premium and you’d nail them for a new car on a total if you don’t have any collision coverage on your own policy (just liability) or better than that: own no car. Evasive phone operators, not the Bombay bunch.
Why doesn’t Andy use a simple Matercard with coverage as well as loss of use coverage instead of AMEX with doesn’t cover loss of use including if you get their premium package. At $50 per day loss of use they charge for a 7 day fix yer done. Who pays $35 a day rental? I get rentals at Advatage & Enterprise for $89-$125 a week 15 times a year from Expedia. AMEX is a stone rip-off. A 6th grader understands that loss of use is not covered by AMEX but it is on Mastercard. Gee, anyone for AMEX? AMEX refuses to put this loss of use non-coverage in their website. Good reason: you’d get a Mastercard. Their phone operators are experts at dodging any tough question. Forget about answering tough questions by mail. You get a form letter to call.
Hey all,
Just got off the phone with State Farm. State Farm says for $32/year, they will add “loss of use” to a car that is rented / not your own. Seems like a great deal, and it consolidates all the fighting between your insurance company and the rental firm, as opposed to multi-party finger pointing. best,
Keith
I rented a car using premium car rental program
I blew a tire which had to be replaced. Five months later Amex said tires are not covered under their rental program.
All of you are missing the point. The “damage waiver” they offer at a rental car company is NOT insurance. If you get in an accident with the rental car and you signed up for the damage waiver then you hand over the keys and walk away. Your insurance is not contacted..no deductible…nothing on your record. It’s like it never happened. Sure, your insurance will cover the damage if you don’t get it, but you are out your deductible and your premium will skyrocket. I personally don’t get it but I know that I am rolling the dice.
MAn, I’ve have learned soooo much. Thanks for all your time and input everyone!
I will buy the Damage/Loss Wavier that Hertz offers for the Corvette I’m renting for my daughter’s wedding getaway car. 1 cay, no hassle. and “You Go” you class action suiter!
I hate that AmX/Thrift-legal run around.