There was a discussion om UK company that provided this but cnnot find using "cdw insurance " search.
As just got a quote for $480 for 3 weeks am looking for cheaper deal
Thanks Backroomers
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Try.
www.honestjohn.co.uk/forum/post/index.htm?t=22177
You can get an annual insurance policy that covers you for cdw/sli/ump on Rental Cars in USA for £99 or £75 if you have a NatWest card.
Who is your quote for US$480 for 3 weeks with and what does it include? On the face of things that is good but you have to be very wary of all the hidden charges and taxes.
Also bear in mind that many of the Fly/Drive packages with the so called free car will not accept any insurance but their own - as that's how they make their money.
C
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Also bear in mind that many of the Fly/Drive packages with the so called free car will not accept any insurance but their own - as that's how they make their money. C
This is good advise. Although theoretically they can't lawfully refuse to accept the insurance you already have, I'd certainly recommend checking before you book with them that they will accept it. That's what I did, and had no problems (although the guy behind the desk spent a good ten minutes reading the small-print of my policy, trying to find a hole that he could sell me the insurance for.
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Thanks Cardew for this info.
It is what I was looking for.
Quote was for full size car in Phoenix @$600 for 3 weeks but $480 for insurance which I thought was a rip off
Am not using Fly drive
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"Quote was for full size car in Phoenix @$600 for 3 weeks but $480 for insurance which I thought was a rip off"
US$600 is quite good if it is all inclusive. The cheapest firm I know is www.hotwire.com and for a full size for 3 weeks in August they want US$575. Although if you register with them and make an enquiry they normally 'find' better offers after a few days if you don't make a booking.
As an aside I have had a couple of full size cars(as opposed to Luxury or Premium) and found them to be 'dogs'. Powered by 2.2L 4cyl and not much bigger than a Compact or Mid Size. Pheonix in summer, as you probably know, is hotter than hell and with the A/C full on, performance is dire.
My £99 insurance was accepted by Alamo last month but not without severe scrutiny as BazzaBear mentioned.
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Cardew
Did they attempt to sell you 'tyre and windscreen insurance', despite there being nothing on the policy to indicate these things weren't covered?
I found it quite amusing actually, it was such an obvious last-gasp attempt to get a little extra money out of me.
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You have to be careful, i have hired several cars in Florida and they always try to sell you extra insurance. I have never taken this out and stuck with the basic which came with the deal from the package holiday. I am told that you don't need this expensive extra insurance but I suggest you check it out with a reputable travel agent or the AA etc.
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You have to be careful, i have hired several cars in Florida and they always try to sell you extra insurance. I have never taken this out and stuck with the basic which came with the deal from the package holiday. I am told that you don't need this expensive extra insurance but I suggest you check it out with a reputable travel agent or the AA etc.
Barney,
We must be careful here and not get confused.
There are 3 elements of car insurance in USA including Florida. These are CDW(collision damage waiver - sometimes called LDW) SLI (supplementary liability insurance) and UMP(uninsured motorists protection) On most package holidays that provide a car with the major rental firms - Alamo, Dollar, Hertz etc - this insurance is included. The insurance that the rental firms try to sell is not needed because it is covered by normal holiday insurance.(lost luggage etc).
If you are not on a package deal you can rent a car in UK before you leave and that normally has CDW/SLI/UMP included. Depending which firm in UK you use you can obtain, say, a Compact car in Florida for approx £140 a week.
If you rent a car from a company in USA an American Motorist can get it without any insurance. This is because some American private motorist car insurance policies cover the use of rental cars. For the same Compact car without insurance you can pay as little as £75 a week. However for a Brit to take out the rental company's insurance in the USA could add £100+ a week.
However - and this is what Geoffken is talking about - it is possible to buy an annual insurance policy in UK that covers CDW/SLI/UMP for rental cars.
So looking at Geoffken's case. 3 weeks rental for a full size car paid for in UK with all insurance would cost approx £540. He has obtained a quote of US$600(£325) but they want US$480(£260) for insurance. Getting the £99 insurance from UK and paying £325 in USA for the car is a worthwhile saving. If he makes more than one trip to USA in the same year - as I do - the savings are greater.
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