Hello,

I have spent a lot of time researching the whole car insurance issue. If I take the AMEX insurance and accidently damage another car, I am 100% liable for the cost of the damage to the other vehicle. Does AB cover liability?


Also, if I take the AMEX insurance...the card is in my name. Will my husband and brother-in-law be covered if they are listed as drivers of the truck?

Has anyone had any issues with getting refunded by AMEX? I am assuming that I have to have a super high credit limit if anything happens. Comments?

Thanks!
Karen

Karen..To my knowledge when you take out insurance the coverage on the rental car is primary (third party).. Your own auto policy would be excess under the "owned -non owned auto" verbiage.. AMEX will cover collision (first party-comprehensive; as opposed to liability referred to as third party coverage) damage to the truck or vehicle is you decline the collision damage waiver (CDW). Check with AMEX to verify the first party coverage.

Hello Karen,

Please take a look at www.ABcarrental.com and under "Terms & Conditions", you will find the following:

Article 5.

The insurance conditions are available for inspection and form part of the rental agreement. Upon request a copy will be given to the renter.
The renter is fully liable for any and all losses not covered by the insurance.
Only if an official police report of the accident is submitted to AB Carrental proving that the damage was not due to the renter's intent, fault or negligence and that the damages can be recovered from the other (known) party to the accident, will the own risk deductible charged for damage to the rented vehicle not be applicable. Until such moment that all damages have in actual fact been recovered from the known other party to the accident, the renter will be held liable and responsible for all damage. There will be no refund to the renter until all damages have been fully recovered from the other party.
AB Carrental has the right to change the insurance conditions. If this is done, AB Carrental will make sure that any such changes are indicated clearly and are available for inspection at the check-in counters.

No insurance

The renter is fully responsible for any and all damage to the rented vehicle, caused either by the renter or by an unknown third party, irrespective of the extent of the damage.
Damage due to burglary or theft is not covered by the insurance.
The own risk deductible amounts to USD.572 for any and all damage inflicted upon any third parties resulting from a collision due to the renter's fault.

CDW (Collision Damage Waiver)

The own risk deductible amounts to USD.350 for any and all damage to the rented vehicle resulting from a collision/accident caused by the renter or an unknown third party. The renter is fully liable for any and all damage to the rented vehicle amounting to less than aforementioned amount.
Damage due to burglary and theft is not covered by the insurance.
The own risk deductible amounts to USD.350 for any and all damage inflicted upon any third parties resulting from a collision due to the renter's fault.

Full Insurance.

The own risk deductible amounts to USD.100 for any damage to the vehicle resulting from a collision/accident caused by the renter or an unknown third party. The renter is fully liable for any damage to the rented vehicle amounting to less than aforementioned amount.
Only if a police report can be submitted proving that the renter had not left any valuables in the vehicle and had put the key away in a safe place, will the renter not be liable for any damage to the rented vehicle resulting from theft of (parts of) the vehicle or from burglary,. In all other cases the own risk deductible amounting to USD.100 shall be applicable. The word 'valuables' includes items such as: mobile phones and/or accessories, cameras and/or accessories, diving gear and diver's watches, jewels, wallets, instruments of payment such as credit cards, checks and cash money, computers and palmtops and/or accessories, visible bottles of liquor, cigarettes, car or hotel keys, designer clothing and/or branded articles and accessories.

IMPORTANT: only if he/she has submitted a police report as referred to sub B, will the renter not be liable for any damage to the rented vehicle in the event of theft. Therefore the renter is advised before turning in the vehicle to carefully inspect it for damage himself and to make sure that the spare tire and car tools are still in the vehicle. If upon returning the vehicle the renter has no time left to report any damage to the police, AB Carrental will nevertheless recover all damages from the renter up to the amount of the own risk deductible amounting to USD.100
The own risk deductible amounts to USD.100 for any and all damage inflicted upon any third parties resulting from a collision due to the renter's fault.

If you have further questions, you always can send an email to: info@ABcarrental.com

Kind regards,

AB Carrental Bonaire
Ton van Berge Henegouwen

Hello Karen,

I called AMEX and they gave me the following explanation. There are 2 separate types of coverage. One is the standard rental car coverage that is ONLY secondary coverage. In other words AMEX will insist that your regular car insurance at home cover any damage to the rental car. If your home car insurance does not cover the entire bill, for example after the insurance payment is made there is an outstanding balance of $500, then AMEX will cover the $500. However AMEX will insist that the primary home auto insurance be used first and provide the primary funds for coverage, then AMEX will take over for the outstanding amount. However there is another type of coverage. The second type of coverage that AMEX supplies is "primary car rental coverage". In order to take advantage of this type of AMEX coverage you would have to actual sign up to the "primary car rental coverage" program. There are two different levels for this type of coverage. The first is a fee of approximately $19.99 and the second is a fee of approximately $24.99. The difference between the two types is the amount of coverage. Once you sign up to one of these
programs, your credit card will automatically be charged the fee whenever you rent a car. Once
you are charged the fee, the coverage is good for 42 consecutive days of car rental. It is a good plan if you would like to be protected. There are a few countries where this car rental
protection is invalid such as Ireland, Italy, New Zealand, and a few others. Bonaire is not on the list so you would have coverage if you sign up to the program.

(Message edited by tommyh on September 25, 2006)

My name is Ton van Berge Henegouwen and I am the owner of AB Carrental, to my knowledge are pick up trucks not covered at Amex Insurance. We accept Amex, no problem and you are free to decline any kind of insurance at AB Carrental. But I know the sad stories about clients who declined insurance and later found that they are not covered and have to pay a huge amount of damage repair costs etc. Thanks.

Hi Karen! Long time no talk.

Per AMEX, yes pickup trucks are covered. Why buy insurance you don't need? I suggest contacting AMEX directly because the coverage you have and the cost you pay is directly related to which of their cards you have. For example, the Gold Rewards Card has the premium coverage for FREE! Even if you have to pay for the premium with your card it is worth it to save the charge of the extra insurance.

And...if you want accurate answers from AMEX, do not call the 800 number on the back of your credit card. Sometimes you get someone who is up to date and other times you don't. Call the insurance section directly. You can find their phone number on AMEX's website.

AMEX has always come through for me! I would use nothing else.

Sorry Karen, I missed the rest of your questions. Any one you list on the car as a driver will be covered by AMEX. Just be warned, some rental companies charge you extra for every driver you list. I think for Hertz it was $50.00 per additional driver. As for credit limit, it has nothing to do with the insurance. The insurance is handled separately just like your regular car insurance would be handled if you had a car accident.

Again...call AMEX, they will give you the straight story.

Ton,
Regular Amex insurance doesn't cover pickup trucks, true. But the Amex "Premium Car Rental Coverage" does. Amex card carriers call Amex and sign up for the service, and each time we rent using an Amex card, we're charged the fee (either 19.95 or 24.95 depending - if I remember correctly, which it's possible I'm not - upon whether you want $75,000 or $100,000 liability coverage).

I just got my AmX premium insurance and you must be certain to get the $19.95 one because the $24.95 one does not cover trucks. They sent me one of each in error. I had to call like three times to make certain I had the right one. Read the exclusions to make sure you got the right one with the trucks covered.

Darlene, Thanks for the info! That is really good to know. What type of AMEX card do you have? What is the annual fee? I am trying to decide if is worth it to get an AMEX card. I had a visa card that became and AMEX, but MBNA still treats it like a visa. Go figure.
Karen

Karen, if you have an AMEX card that is issued by a bank OTHER than the AMEX bank (ie Citibank, MBNA, etc) I do not think that they provide Amex's "Premium Car Rental Coverage". But I am not completely certain. So it would be best to give your MBNA bank a call to see if this type of coverage is available on your AMEX card. I do know that MBNA and other banks are trying hard to provide the same type of services on their AMEX cards as the regular AMEX charge cards but I do not know how similar the services they are. Another option is to call the AMEX bank customer service line directly (not MBNA) to see if they are willing to provide the "Premium Car Rental Coverage" service by charging your MBNA AMEX card. The advantage of the MBNA AMEX is that there is no yearly membership fee. There is a membership fee for most types of regular bank AMEX cards with a few exceptions. I believe that AMEX Blue and AMEX Optima do not charge a yearly fee.

Hi Tommy,

I have an MBNA AMEX. After making about 10 phone calls, I found that they do not provide the "Premium Car Rental Coverage" They do have rental coverage, but it isn't as good as AMEX and they do not cover trucks.

I got the AMEX BLUE for the sole purpose of using it for the Truck insurance in Bonaire. There is no annual fee. You just use the card for your rental and then your card will get charged the $19.95 for the insurance each time you rent one.

I just called AMEX. The only problem with their "Premium Car Rental Coverage" is that you are not covered for liability. So if I accidently damage another car, I am not covered at all for the damages to that car. I know there is far less traffic in Bonaire than in New York City, but that still kind of stinks. Those of you who take the AMEX insurance, do you use some other insurance for liability?

They suggest you take just the liability at the car rental place.

Karen..Several issues.. As pointed out above Amex has various coverages available for their cardholders. I have Amex Fidelity gold & have purchased the additionaly coverage for the collision/comprehensive risks..
With respect to LIABILITY coverage you MAY be afforded coverage under your auto ins policy in the U.S. under what's referred to as the "omnibus clause". Check with your agent or broker (there may be geographical limitations). If not, if you have an umbrella policy I'm sure this would pick up the liability exposure since the coverage is world wide.
Or conversely just purchase the liability coverage with the rental car company.

Karen, the so called Amex Premium insurance is not available to residents of NY. The regular insurance provided automatically by your Amex card will not cover trucks, though certain SUVs may be covered. When you call Amex, write down the phone number, the name of the person you are speaking to, the time and date, and take notes on your conversation. Then do it all again, and you have covered yourself if you get the same answer twice and have documentation.
YMMV

Interesting Seb...I wonder why they won't cover New Yorkers?

Karen, FYI: This is from AMEX's insurance department
Thank you for your recent inquiry regarding the American Express Car Rental Loss and Damage Insurance Program. As requested, we have enclosed a Description of Coverage which fully explains the benefits and restrictions of this program. We recommend that you read all of the information, however, highlights of the program are noted below:

· Your American Express Card must be enrolled in the program to receive PCRP benefits
· The Cardmember must be the primary renter on the rental agreement
· Primary coverage is provided for theft or damage to a rental vehicle
· There is no coverage provided for liability
· Coverage is provided for Accidental Death and Dismemberment
· Coverage is provided for Excess Medical Expenses
· Coverage is provided for Personal Property
· Coverage is worldwide except for vehicles rented in Australia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica and New Zealand
· There is no coverage provided for Loss of Use or Loss of Revenue
· Cardmember must use an enrolled Card to pay for a rental auto
· Full-size vans, full-sized SUV's, pick-up trucks, and luxury vehicles are covered
· Coverage is provided for up to 42 consecutive days


Please retain this information for future reference.
Thank you for using the American Express Card for your auto rental. We hope you have a safe and enjoyable
journey.


And Karen...YGM. I'm sending you the PDF that explains the entire program.

Tribbula, I don't know why, they just said it is not available in NY. I applied anyway, and they turned me down.
karen being a fellow NYer I assume she is out too, unless she is not a resident.

(Message edited by seb on September 26, 2006)

Seb, Not sure why NY residents are not eligible. I have an apt in the city, but my primary residence is in New Jersey. I would just give them my NJ address if I were to apply.