Whenever I pick up a car at Heathrow (Budget or Avis usually), the insurance is
not included. Always found that strange as it is in North America. There are
usually several options presented at that time, not just the two Nathan
mentions.
To Andrew's point about licences, I also have a valid UK licence, but my
Canadian one has been accepted without a problem (or extra cost). Now that I
know first hand how AMEX card insurance works, I'll not be getting any of the
extras.
Martin
-----Original Message-----
From: Nathan Wajsman [mailto:photo@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx]
Sent: Wednesday, July 31, 2013 12:36 AM
To: Olympus Camera Discussion
Subject: Re: [OM] (Very OT) Rental Car Insurance, UK style
Bob, I frequently travel to the UK and rent cars there, and what you describe
sounds way too complex. I don't know which car rental companies you are dealing
with; I usually rent from Europcar because they are at Bristol airport (my
usual landing point) and I can book them through Easyjet at the same time as
booking my ticket. The rental always includes insurance, and at the counter I
am always asked about two options: whether I want to pay extra to get rid of
the excess (deductible) and whether I want to pay up front for a full tank of
fuel so as not to worry about returning the car full. The question is asked
politely, with no full-court press (or any press at all), I equally politely
decline, get my keys and drive off. The other things you mention in your mail I
have never even heard of.
I do always use Amex when paying for car rental, hotels and other
travel-related expenses. They are the best of the card companies if there is a
problem.
Cheers,
Nathan
On 31 Jul 2013, at 02:33, Bob Whitmire wrote:
> Sigh. Several of the sites I read set the excess at 1600 pounds. That's a
> good bit of cash.
>
> I've read and re-read my VISA rental car coverage benefit, and it _seems_ to
> cover just about everything, including a provision that you must refuse any
> and all offers at the rental counter. Tina speaks highly of her American
> Express experiences, so maybe the card companies are onto something. The
> reviews I read indicated that VISA was best, with Mastercard struggling to
> keep up. I don't recall reading anything specifically about AMEX.
>
> One of my questions when I call them for clarification is whether I need to
> have the cost of the bloody car in reserve for the car company before VISA
> pays up.
>
> --Bob Whitmire
> Registered Neanderthal
>
> On Jul 30, 2013, at 7:43 PM, Andrew Fildes wrote:
>
>> Nothing. I got caught like that last year - quote around 450 squid for a
>> month (Europcar) but standing at the counter at 3am after a 26 hour flight I
>> opted for a few things like zero excess that sounded reasonable at the time
>> (the excess being VERY high at about 1200 pounds) and ended up with a bill
>> just over double that quote and a lot more than I expected.
>> Car insurance in the UK is bloody expensive and complex for a start
>> (compared to here) - then the car rental companies seem to practice
>> 'competition by confusion'.
>> An unpleasant experience.
>
> --
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>
Nathan Wajsman
Alicante, Spain
http://www.frozenlight.eu
http://www.greatpix.eu
Books: http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/search?search=wajsman&x=0&y=0
PICTURE OF THE WEEK: http://www.fotocycle.dk/paws Image licensing:
http://www.alamy.com/search-results.asp?qt=wajsman
Blog:
http://www.nathansmusings.eu/
--
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