After more rental cars than I'll ever be able to count. Many for months at a time over the years finally jacked one up. Completely my fault. In Brazil now trying to get to this secretly famous kiteboarding lagoon. Out of the way down a 2km dirt road to the end of the point. Read on the internet that cars get stuck often getting there near the end. About 5 years ago was in Northern Brazil alone and got a buggy stuck and took over 3 hours and getting dark before another car drove by so paranoid about getting stuck.Well got to that spot, there was about a 50 ft stretch of sugar sand with ruts. Instead of being logical and getting out of the car to access the situation. I backed up and told my girlfriend to hold on and punched it because I really wanted to get to this kite spot. About 3/4 of they way through, way deeper than it looked. Then two big bumps. Couldn't slow down because I'm stuck in the middle of nowhere. Hit the first bump and it launched me bumper first into the next bigger bump and fly off that catching enough air that my head hit the ceiling of the car with my belt on. We land hard, lucky the airbag didn't go off. The front plastic grill is gone, all the plastics underneath are in a trail broken to where I stopped the car, bumper is cracked, nothing lines up on the door quarter panel. Make it back to the paved road, stop to look under, radiators leaking, not to bad. Drove 45 min back to the house. Had to get the car back to rio 2 1/2 hour drive. Pulled over ever 20 min to fill the radiator. Was worried how much it's going to cost me, stressed out. They looked over the car, while it pouringout water at that point with all my plastic broken parts in the trunk. Added stuff up and hand me a bill for 175.00. I was super happy!! The little Renult Sandero was a trooper. Just wondering if you cause serious damage to a rental car in the US what's the normal deductible/ out of pocket for future reference
What credit card, have capitol one, wells fargo, and a credit union one. I never used to buy insurance on rental cars when I was younger, but now the 10 bucks a day doesn't seem so bad. I remember working on a boat 6 years ago being built. I had a Ford escape for like 325 a month with no insurance, boat got delayed, after the 3rd month had to drive the car back 2 hours to where I rented it to prove it was still in my possession and not damage. Having this happen brought back funny memories of showing up to a beach in Costa Rica on dawn patrol to find 2 drunk/ hungover guys with a new jeep wrangler stuck in the sand with the tide coming in and a big swell. About 10 of us were trying everything. The tide and ocean won, sucking up a new jeep wrangler out to sea. Really felt bad for those guys, a look of utter defeat and a huge expense ruined vacation coming
Amex. never wrecked one, but am somewhat prepared with a set of "explanations" since rentals go through company account.
Use Enterprise, always got the insurance.......my BIL worked for them and very clearly said...you can total the car and not out of pocket cost. Not recently, but I did rent a Maxima while in school, installed a NOS kit on it, intake, and drag radials and took it racing.
in 25 years of nearly weekly travel, only one rental car problem. Backing out of a parking spot hit a sawed off pipe (it wa about 18" high) that I could not see in the mirror. Cracked the bumper cover. Total cost was about $800, including lost revenue for the rental agency (many states allow charging you for lost revenue - essentially you continue to rent the car until its back from the shop fixed). My out of pocket was $500 - my deductible. Having good insurance does matter.
For non-corporate rentals on Green or Gold card, the car insurance AMEX provides is secondary to your personal vehicle insurance. For Platinum and Black cards, it's primary (accurate as of 2010) - I downgraded the cards back then).
My best insurance story this week (I have many): Older couple rents a Slingshot for the day. Late in the day he nails a rock in the road, gashes the rear tire (flat) and puts a cut in the wheel. Rides it back to my shop on the rear wheel. This is a new Slingshot with 3,000 miles. All my Slingshots go out with user's insurance. They must supply proof of insurance and they sign paperwork that they are responsible for all damage. Not only will the guy not pay for my new tire and wheel, and the fuel he didn't fill (about $850 total), he wants a discount because he got robbed out of 2 hours of his rental day. Next best: Sent a dude out this morning on a brand new KLR650 with 298 miles on it. He called me at 3 PM to let me know he crashed it on the pass. His ankle is F'd up and he might have to return it early tomorrow. I'm guessing he's going to ask for a refund for his missing day of riding.
Pulled a 30ft GMC Topkick onto leveling blocks and set the parking brake. Parking brake was out of adjustment and it rolled backwards into a corporate rental car. Two big pieces of angle iron under the rear bumper cut 3ft long slices in the hood. Took it back to Enterprise and they only said, "Have a nice day." Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk
I rented a Ford fusion and Ford and rental place said it was impossible to lock the keys in the car.....well somehow I did. When I called the rental place they tried to "charge me a nominal fee" to have a tech come out. I said not to worry I'll throw a brick threw the window and get the keys out myself. The rep said I'd be charged for the damage and to that I told the rep I'd taken out their zero deductible insurance so it'd be their problem to fix. She said not to do that and would have a tech out to unlock the car at no charge to me. Win. Always get their insurance.