A card that offers primary rental car coverage
Rental car coverage is crucial, especially when you’re traveling abroad. The last thing you want is to get into a fender bender and get hit with a higher insurance premium.
You can buy primary coverage at the rental counter or get it for free using a card that offers primary rental car coverage, such as:
- Capital One Venture X
- Chase Sapphire Preferred
- Chase Sapphire Reserve
- United℠ Explorer Card
- United Quest℠ Card
- Ink Business Cash® Credit Card (when renting for business purposes)
- Ink Business Preferred (when renting for business purposes)
- Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card (when renting for business purposes)
- United℠ Business Card (when renting for business purposes)
Cards with primary coverage
Interested in credit cards with primary rental car coverage so you don’t have to use your personal auto insurance? Several popular general travel credit cards — the Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card, the Chase Sapphire Reserve® and the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card — are among the cards offering it. To qualify, you typically must be using a consumer card for personal travel and a business card for work travel. All the cards below cover rentals for a maximum of 31 days.
| Card with primary rental car coverage | Annual fee | Rental car coverage limit |
|---|---|---|
| CONSUMER CREDIT CARDS | ||
| Bilt World Elite Mastercard® Credit Card | None. | $50,000. |
| Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card | $95. | Cash value of most rental vehicles. |
| Chase Sapphire Reserve® | $550. | $75,000. |
| United℠ Explorer Card | $0 intro for the first year, then $95. | Cash value of most rental vehicles. |
| United Club℠ Infinite Card | $525. | Cash value of most rental vehicles. |
| Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card | $395 (see rates and fees). | $75,000. |
| BUSINESS CREDIT CARDS | ||
| Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card | $95. | Cash value of most rental vehicles. |
| Ink Business Cash® Credit Card | $0. | Cash value of most rental vehicles. |
The best credit cards for rental car insurance
While understanding how many points or miles you might earn is important, we’re focusing on something else: insurance protections that cover as many aspects of a rental as possible without surprise fees.
The following cards offer primary car rental insurance on most rentals:
- Chase Sapphire Reserve
- Chase Sapphire Preferred Card
- Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card
- Ink Business Preferred Credit Card
- Ink Business Cash Credit Card
- Ink Business Unlimited Credit Card
- United Explorer Card
- United Quest Card
- United Club Infinite Card
- United Business Card
- Any American Express card that’s enrolled in American Express Premium Car Rental Protection program
Is rental car coverage primary or secondary?
Primary coverage is better, but few cards offer it. After an accident, primary coverage pays first, allowing you to bypass your personal auto insurance. That means you can avoid paying a deductible and potentially seeing your premiums rise. The secondary coverage that most credit cards offer typically means your auto insurer pays the claim but the card will reimburse your deductible and potentially other costs not covered by your personal policy.
How do I make sure coverage applies to my rental?
Typically, you must pay for the rental with the credit card that includes the benefit, and you must decline the rental car company’s collision coverage. The driver at the time of the accident must be listed on the rental agreement.
What coverage is included?
Credit card coverage mostly applies to what’s called a collision damage waiver or loss damage waiver, typically the most expensive coverage offered at the rental counter. Cards also usually include some coverage for towing expenses and administrative fees. Many cards also cover loss of use, which means compensating the rental company for time the car is out of service while damage is repaired.
What isn’t covered?
Typically not covered are liability and injury concerns, such as damage to property other than the rental car, people you hurt and related lawsuits. But many people have those coverages elsewhere. Rental car companies must provide a minimum level of liability insurance, and your personal liability coverage often applies. Also usually not covered is loss or theft of personal belongings inside the car, but that is often already covered by homeowners or renters insurance. Credit card coverage also doesn’t include ambulance or medical bills following a crash, but your personal health and auto insurance policies probably do, according to the insurance institute.
Primary vs. secondary car rental insurance
The car rental coverage available on select travel rewards cards can be a primary or secondary auto rental collision damage waiver. Secondary insurance only kicks in after other types of insurance, such as travel insurance or your personal car insurance, have been used. Secondary insurance would cover any expenses remaining to be paid, such as deductibles on those other policies.
If you’re in an accident in a rental car and used a credit card with secondary insurance, you’ll likely need to file claims with multiple insurance companies. On the other hand, primary insurance applies before any other type of insurance. With primary insurance, you’d file one claim.
Both types of insurance usually have maximum coverage amounts, so make sure these meet or exceed the total value of the car you’re renting. Generally, primary insurance will reimburse you for the rental car’s cash value or the cost to repair it — whichever is less. However, secondary insurance will reimburse you only for the amount not covered by other insurance policies.
In two common scenarios, most secondary credit card car rental insurance policies automatically become primary insurance. First, if you’re renting a car outside the U.S. and your personal car insurance policy doesn’t provide coverage, your credit card’s insurance may become primary. Second, if you don’t own a car or carry a car insurance policy, most secondary insurance from credit cards will become primary.
Related: 11 common rental car mistakes — and how to avoid them
What is and isn’t covered
The car rental insurance from your credit card is technically called “auto rental collision damage waiver.” This benefit provides reimbursement for damage due to collision or theft — up to the actual cash value of most vehicles. While the coverage from some cards also covers loss-of-use and towing charges assessed by the rental company, policies from other credit cards only cover physical damage or theft of the rental vehicle.
Additionally, some rental types and locations may not be eligible for coverage. Keep the following provisions in mind if you rely on credit card car rental insurance benefits:
Liability insurance isn’t included
Although your card’s benefits may cover damage to your rental car, the benefits don’t cover damage you cause to other vehicles and personal property. A credit card collision damage waiver typically doesn’t cover injuries to you and/or other people involved in the accident. Your car insurance policy may kick in here, but it’s helpful to check your policy or call your provider to confirm.
If you don’t own a car and want liability protection, consider purchasing non-owner car insurance. Many insurance companies offer this type of protection, though it may not be advertised online. It’s worth pricing out policies with several companies, as prices can vary greatly.
Capital One Venture X
The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card offers an auto rental collision damage waiver that may reimburse you for damages caused by theft or collision up to the actual cash value of your rental vehicle — up to $75,000. You are only eligible for insurance when you rent for up to 15 consecutive days in your country of residence or up to 31 consecutive days in other countries.
Chase Sapphire Reserve and Chase Sapphire Preferred Card
The Chase Sapphire Reserve and Chase Sapphire Preferred provide primary car rental insurance for rentals in most countries, covering rentals of up to 31 consecutive days. In particular, this policy covers losses — including physical damage and theft of the rental vehicle — valid loss-of-use charges from the rental company and reasonable and customary towing charges related to a covered loss.
American Express add-on coverage
American Express provides secondary rental car coverage on its cards but offers primary coverage for a separate fee through a program called Premium Car Rental Protection. It provides enhanced primary coverage, potentially for far less than you would pay at the car rental counter.
Once you enroll in the program, each time you use your American Express card for a car rental, your account automatically will be charged a single, flat cost of about $20 to $25, not a per-day cost like from the rental company (as of June 2021). That’s for up to 42 days of rental, far more than the usual 15 or 31 days. You’re only charged automatically when you rent with one of your AmEx cards. Costs and coverages can vary by the state you live in.
However, it offers no liability coverage and excludes rentals in Australia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica and New Zealand.
Sources:
https://www.nerdwallet.com/article/credit-cards/credit-card-rental-car-coverage
https://thepointsguy.com/credit-cards/best-cards-international-travel/
https://thepointsguy.com/credit-cards/cards-rental-car-coverage/