When it comes to paying for a car rental, not all credit cards deliver the same way. Choosing the right credit card can mean saving money and racking up a host of perks and benefits.
Here’s what to look for in a credit card when you pay for your next rental car.
Signs Your Credit Card is Not a Good Choice for Car Rentals
Your card does not include car rental insurance
While most credit cards offer collision damage coverage on rental cars, not all of them do. This is a huge drawback, since over-the-counter car rental insurance can add $10 a day or more to your total cost. For example, Citibank recently dropped many travel rewards, including car rental insurance, for the vast majority of its cards. If car rental insurance is an important perk for you, then most Citi cards are not a good choice.
An exception is the Costco Anywhere Card by Citi, which continues to offer secondary rental car insurance for domestic rentals and primary coverage for international rentals, covering damages or vehicle replacement up to $50,000. Secondary car rental insurance kicks in only after your personal auto insurance coverage has been depleted. If you don’t want to risk your auto insurance company getting involved, you should consider buying over-the-counter insurance at the car rental agency.
Your card does not offer primary car rental coverage
Most credit cards offer secondary collision damage coverage, which means it kicks in after your personal auto insurance coverage is depleted. Some cards—typically premium cards with higher annual fees—offer primary coverage, which is even better. If you pay for a rental car with one of these cards and have a damage claim, your personal auto insurance never gets involved.
Some credit cards offering primary coverage include:
- Chase Sapphire Preferred Card
- Chase Sapphire Reserve Card
- United MileagePlus Explorer Card
- United MileagePlus Club Card
Your card does not offer any travel rewards
If you’re not using a card with plenty of travel rewards, you’re leaving money on the table. The Chase Sapphire Preferred Card arguably boasts the best all-around value when it comes to travel rewards. You’ll earn 60,000 bonus points after spending $4,000 on purchases in the first three months. That adds up to $750 that you can redeem and put towards travel, whether it be for car rentals, airfare, hotels, cruises, or more. Additionally, Chase Sapphire Preferred Card members also get two times the points on travel costs and dining—even internationally. Overall, the rewards stack up fairly quickly with this card, making it a great option for the average traveler.
Your card does not let you earn cash back
If you’re looking for a good all-around travel cash-back credit card, it’s hard to beat Wells Fargo Propel American Express Card, which lets you rack up rewards on a huge gamut of spending categories while paying zero annual fee and (for the first year) zero interest. You’ll earn 3x points on dining out, ordering in, gas purchases, ridesharing, transit services, flights, hotels, vacation rentals and entertainment such as Apple Music, Hulu, Netflix, Pandora and Spotify Premium. Basically, you earn bonus points almost everywhere you go, so this card is a great choice for travelers.
Your card does not offer travel protections
A great credit card will not leave you high and dry if you run into trouble when you’re traveling. Many cards offer a nice array of travel protections. For example, the Wells Fargo Propel American Express Card includes 24-hour emergency travel assistance, medical assistance and legal assistance. There’s also roadside assistance and emergency towing. If you’re flying, there’s also insurance for lost and damaged baggage. Cardholders also get Worldwide Travel Accident Insurance coverage up to $150,000.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you need a car in Europe?
The best solution for you depends on where your life is and what you’re looking to do. A typical European city may have priorities that are different from one in a rural area.
You should also consider how long you plan to stay in each country. You might need a more economical car if your plans are to move frequently.
Renting a car is usually more affordable than buying a second-hand vehicle. You can find many reasons why renting a car in Europe is more affordable than buying a used one. You can save money on fuel costs, parking fees, maintenance, insurance, taxes, and so forth.
Another benefit is that the car can be driven safely.
There are many websites that provide useful information about European car rentals. Please see our recommendations below.
Chase Sapphire provides car rental insurance for Ireland.
You can add EUR15 per day to your vehicle insurance. You also have the option to add a variety of optional extras such as breakdown assistance or theft insurance, as well personal accident insurance.
What countries will accept US driver’s licences?
The United States does not recognize other countries’ driver’s permits as valid on their roads. These licenses are however recognized by Canada and Mexico as well as the District of Columbia.
Canada recognizes American driver’s licenses issued by all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
Mexico recognizes American driver’s licences. At this time they are only recognized by the state of Chihuahua.
The District of Columbia is open to American driver’s licences from all 50 United States states, with the exception of Alabama and Mississippi, Texas, Texas, West Virginia, West Virginia, West Virginia, West Virginia, West Virginia, West Virginia, Texas, Texas, Texas, and Texas.
You can rent a car from Portugal and have it delivered to Spain.
This is possible. This is called “car rental”. You will find many companies offering this service online.
It is enough to verify that they are licensed by the Portuguese and Spanish authorities.
You can contact them directly via their websites. They should have all the information needed.
Is it possible for me to rent a car and have it returned to Switzerland?
Answering this question will depend on many factors including the vehicle type you are renting, how much time you plan to drive, and whether or not you have any special requirements such as child seats.
If you plan to drive from Munich or Zurich, you don’t need to rent a car. You can take public transport instead. If you want to drive from Munich to Barcelona and back again during a holiday, you may wish to consider renting a car.
Statistics
- The perks vary from partner to partner, but you can expect discounts of up to 35 percent on some rentals and the ability to earn anywhere from 50 bonus American AAdvantage miles per day or 500 per rental. (afar.com)
- You can rent an automatic but these cars can cost as much as 50% more than a manual vehicle. (earthtrekkers.com)
- For canceled trips two days or shorter, a guest is charged 50% of one day’s trip cost. (insider.com)
- If you’re a member of AAA, you might also be able to snag discounts of 10 percent at Thrifty, and 8 percent at Dollar. (afar.com)
- American Airlines, for example, offers AAdvantage members 35% off Budget and Avis — but you need to rent from an airport. (nerdwallet.com)
External Links
jdpower.com
alamo.com
avis.com
kayak.com
How To
How to report an accident in a rental car
There’s always the possibility that something might happen while you’re driving a rented car. There are many things that could happen while driving a rented vehicle. You might be in an accident, have your luggage stolen, or worse, get hurt. If this happens, you’ll want to know how to file a claim against the insurance company so that you don’t lose any money because of what happened.
It is mandatory that you report any car accident in the United States immediately. This will allow police to take a detailed record of the incident and inform you of the results of their investigation. You will be issued a ticket or made a note about the incident on the spot. They’ll then take care of submitting a claim for your driver’s licensure.
After getting in an accident, dial 911 immediately. A dispatcher will ask the basic questions and determine if anyone was injured. After that, the dispatcher will inform you of where to go and whom to speak to next. The first thing you should do in dealing with an accident is exchange information with the other side. The other person will probably give you his/her name and phone number. Next, make sure that everyone is safe. You will try to assist anyone who is disabled or injured.
You should document all incidents, even if no one was injured. Notate the time, place and weather conditions. The type of collision. Names of all involved. Injuries sustained. If anyone was injured, it is your responsibility to ensure that they receive medical attention. Also, you’ll want to keep track of your damages, including damage to your vehicle and the other party’s vehicle.
After that, you will need to follow up with the insurer. First, fill out an online form to file a claim. Most insurers will pay the deductible first before covering the rest. Once the claim has been settled, you and your other driver must sign an agreement. Finally, you will receive a check directly from the insurer.
Once you have filed your claim, it’s important that you follow all guidelines set forth by your insurer. These rules will apply if you have an insurance policy that allows you to rent a car or to have another person drive it.
