Car Hire Insurance Glossary
This page provides explanation of the terms used in car hire rental and car hire insurance
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CDW - Collision Damage Waiver
Intended to cover you for damage that you or someone else causes to the vehicle
that you have hired. CDW cover normally has an excess, payable by you, which is
dependent on the type of vehicle, where it is hired and the age of the person hiring
the vehicle.
The excess can be as high as £2,000 per incident.
CDW cover is normally included within the cost of the hire.
Theft Protection
Intended to cover you in the event that the vehicle you hired is stolen. Theft protection
cover normally has an excess, payable by you, which is dependent on the type of
vehicle, where it is hired and the age of the person hiring the vehicle.
The excess can be as high as £2,000 per incident.
Theft protection cover is normally included within the cost of the hire.
Baggage
Covers your personal effects if they are damaged or stolen whilst in the boot or
glove compartment of the hired vehicle. Theft cover is only included if there is
proof of forcible entry to the vehicle.
There is a maximum sum insured and single item limit please see the policy wording
Section 4 for further information. If you do not have proof of ownership cover will
be further limited.
Curtailment
If on the advice of a medical practioner you have to cut short your car rental,
Insurers will pay a benefit for each unused day of the rental agreement. For example
if the benefit payable was £15 per day and you had four unused days you will receive
a £60 benefit.
Please see section 6 of the policy wording for further details.
Drop Off Charges
In the event that there are no insured person(s) able to return the rental car to
its drop-off location following an accident or illness for which you are hospitalised
Insurers will pay up to £200 to cover any drop off charges applied by the car hire
company.
Please see section 7 of the policy for further information.
Excess Reimbursement
Covers the excess applicable on the car hire agreement following loss or damage
to the hired vehicle. There is a single incident limit and a car hire agreement
limit applicable to this cover. This cover is applicable to car hire agreement
in Europe (defined as all countries West of the Ural Mountains, British Isles, Ireland,
islands in the Mediterranean, Morocco, Tunisia, Turkey, Canary Islands, Madeira,
Iceland and the Azores).
Please see section 1 of the policy for further details.
Key Cover
In the event that you loose the car keys to the hired vehicle Insurers will pay
to replace the keys and replacement locks and locksmith charges. This is subject
to a maximum amount per incident and for annual policies a maximum per annum.
Please see section 5 of the policy for further details.
Locked Out
It has happened to us all at sometime, we've locked the car keys in the car!
This cover will pay an amount to have the car opened but will not pay for any damage
caused in opening the car.
Please see section 8 of the policy for further details.
Loss Damage Waiver
This cover is applicable to car hire agreements worldwide excluding Europe and covers
you up to $80,000 for loss or damage to the hired vehicle.
See section 1 of the policy for further details.
Personal Accident
Covers you against accidental death or permanent total disablement following an
accident whilst in the hired vehicle or if struck by another motor vehicle during
the period of insurance.
Supplementary Liability Insurance (SLI)
In the USA and Canada local state law requires car rental companies to maintain
minimal levels of third party liability insurance. These minimal levels of
cover can be as little as $15,000 for bodily injury. This leaves hirers exposed
to large damages which are not covered under the car hire agreement. Supplementary
liability insurance bridges the gap between these minimal limits and the limit offered
under section 2 of the policy.
It is best to illustrate the point with an example. If the car hire company
offers $15,000 of cover and the hirer had an accident that resulted in $50,000 of
damage to another persons car the hirer would claim $15,000 from the car hire company
and $35,000 under the supplementary liability section of the car hire insurance
policy. Currently Questor offer cover of up to $1,000,000 in excess of the
limit offered by the car hire company.
Please refer to section 2 of the policy for further details.
Third Party Liability
This is the cover that protects you against damage to another persons property or
bodily injury to another person for which you are held liable. Throughout
Europe and in many countries local legislation forces car hire companies to provide
adequate third party coverage however in the USA and Canada only minimal amounts
of cover are required. Questor offers supplementary liability
cover to bridge this gap in cover.