Value for money Car Hire Excess Insurance Deals

Spain has once again topped the holiday destination list for many people in Ireland and the UK with France, Italy and Portugal trailing closely behind. Due to the sheer size of Europe, Insurance rates and rules can differ considerably from country to country.

Generally when you hire a car in Europe you can expect to have basic Collision Waiver Damage included with your policy however certain countries may not offer this when renting cars.

When you hire a car in the UK it is a requirement that your car must come with unlimited third-party liability insurance. In effect this covers against any personal injury sustained in a hire car meaning the injured party could claim for compensation in a court of law. This cover however is not always unlimited and some locations will only payout up to a certain rate which can often be quite low.

CDW covers any damage to the hire car. This does not always include the entire car. For instance damage to the wheels, roof or windows may not be covered. This policy will generally include information on Excess. This is the sum that the renter will be responsible for in the event of damage. It is normally between one and two thousand euro. So if your car is damaged to the sum of €2250 you would be responsible for paying between €1000 and €2000 euro with the car hire company picking up the rest of the bill.

Check out our European car hire excess insurance policy and see if it could be something that is necessary for you. Remember excess rates are much higher at car hire desks.

Car hire can be a major drain on many people’s holiday budgets. Some countries can be quite expensive for car hire such as Greece and Croatia while Spain and Portugal are far cheaper (as much as a 100 euro on average over a weekly period) for the same vehicle.

Some car hire companies are also notorious for adding hidden costs. The majority of companies add basic CDW to their hire packages however not all companies do. Even when CDW is included you of course are not covered for the excess which could cost you up to two thousand euro depending on the company. You can save up to sixty percent on the cost of excess insurance when you purchase through companies such as ourselves.

Sometimes car hire companies will ask you to buy Personal Accident Insurance however this is not necessary should you have decent travel insurance. The same goes for personal effects cover. Other add-ons include second driver coverage and child seats which may be necessities.

The Daily recently published an article advocating the purchase of 3rd party excess insurance when hiring a car. Customers were advised on the considerable savings possible when going down this route.

The article was written by Gill Charlton. She considered the monthly policy to represent the best value which covers up to 31 days at a time. The same policy could set car hire customers back as much as 18 euro per day if bought from a car hire company.

Charlton went on to say  that most importantly, this insurance offers cover of up to two thousand pound for damage to tyres, windows and the underside of the vehicle which is something that can regularly be excluded in insurance policies offered by car hire companies.

Recent numbers from leading car hire companies have shown that many people have taken holidays early this year in order to escape the negative economic climate currently existing in Ireland and the UK.