Car Hire - can you avoid their insurance rip offs and add ons that they never tell you about?

[MARYROSE02]

I usually book my hire cars with "No Birds" Bayswater because they don't seem to rip you off with the insurance. Here's their quote:
New Corolla Hatch
Rental Period: 27 days$1,078.00Top Cover$70.00Sat Nav (GPS)$50.00Additional Drivers$25.00Transfer from Airport$5.00Transfer to Airport$5.00Your Final Quote (Total inc. GST)$1,233.00

Compare it to the cheapest one I could find with one of the other companies - ACE: It looks a good deal until you add on the "extras" and note how they have the basic price plus extras plus the insurance. $1343 plus $457 insurance with "glass and tyre" being another extra on the basic price which looks good of $852.

I got a quote from Trip Cover for $234 and If I can add that to the basic price of the car above or any other one that sounds "too good to be true?"https://tripcover.com.au/faqs.php

 

 

[Cerberus1]

It's the various levels of insurance cover that bump it up to nearly double the cost of the car on its own. I know various credit cards are supposed to cover you, but I've always been reluctant to rely just on the cards insurance.

Having said that, when we had taken out full coverage on a hire car in Melbourne and it got hit with a lightning strike whilst in the motel carpark  and fried all the electrics, we had an almighty row with the hirecar company as they wanted to charge us thousands, saying the incident wasn't covered.

[Guest]

We never take out the extended waiver excess/reduction with hire cars companies direct. We just google 'car hire excess insurance' and find the best deal from there. As we hired quite a few before buying a car we then looked into domestic travel insurance for the year that also covers the excess (this was cheaper than taking out excess insurance each time).

For anyone who is reading this and isn't sure, excess waiver/reduction insurance is something 'on top of' the car hire price. You can buy this directly with the hire car company or find an insurance company separately that offers this (google). It means that if you have an accident you will be liable to pay the amount the hire car company states in your contract you need to pay - and then you claim directly with the company you took out 'excess waiver/reduction' insurance with.

[Drumbeat]

I always take out travel insurance even when just travelling interstate as it includes cover for car hire excess - usually about $5000. It's far cheaper than the extra insurance through the car hire company and also covers the usual stuff like lost baggage, trip cancellation etc.

[Guest263228]

Read the content well. We used to rent a car during the years of being auto free, for long distance country travel mostly. There are certainly restrictions involved in that.

But you will be staying in South Perth, will you not? A great cycle path all around the river in both directions to Fremantle and Perth. Just imagine the benefits you will bestow on yourself. Fitness. All the 'readies' saved. Enough to stop at every river side pit stop for an over priced Perth café or beer and even a sandwich and still come out on top.

[MARYROSE02]

17 minutes ago, Drumbeat said:

I always take out travel insurance even when just travelling interstate as it includes cover for car hire excess - usually about $5000. It's far cheaper than the extra insurance through the car hire company and also covers the usual stuff like lost baggage, trip cancellation etc.

I was wondering about travel insurance with it being a trip entirely within Australia. I always take it out if involves travelling overseas even if it's a direct flight to the UK, but I thought that in Australia, an accident means going to an Aussie hospital, non-emergency medical care to an Aussie doctor, who may or may not bulk-bill.

I shall have a think about travel insurance now.

[MARYROSE02]

16 minutes ago, Pura Vida said:

Read the content well. We used to rent a car during the years of being auto free, for long distance country travel mostly. There are certainly restrictions involved in that.

But you will be staying in South Perth, will you not? A great cycle path all around the river in both directions to Fremantle and Perth. Just imagine the benefits you will bestow on yourself. Fitness. All the 'readies' saved. Enough to stop at every river side pit stop for an over priced Perth café or beer and even a sandwich and still come out on top.

I'll have a car from day one, and we'll be driving down to Margaret River too, although in Perth, where practicable, I'd be using public transport or walking. I have not missed my car these last seven months in Sydney.

Actually, I chose this location for its closeness to my friend's place in Applecross, but if I was going on my own I would have looked for a place in Perth itself.

[MARYROSE02]

I've always liked Bayswater cars and you can see from that quote $70 for Top Cover, $50 for a sat nav (I wouldn't bother with that either but my friend might like it). I think my friend would prefer another car hire company too.

[MARYROSE02]

Look at the same quote from Ace without their insurance and "window and tyres" (How come that is not included in their insurance anyway?) Add on the $234 insurance that I got a separate quote for - 867 + 234 - much more reasonable - if it's "kosher."

Check price details

Promo code?

Daily rate

28 days x AUD $30.44

AUD $852.32

Additional Driver

1 x AUD $15.00

AUD $15.00

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Deposit Payable Now

 

AUD $867.32

 

[Jessica Berry]

Double check your own car insurance.  On our normal car insurance policy we pay extra for the hire car option in case our car is in an accident and is off the road then we have access to a hire car.  Our policy also has the additional benefit of hire car excess cover of up to $4,000 even if you are hiring the car for your holidays. I thought it sounded too good to be true, so I rang up and double checked and yes it's all good, but you must have paid for the optional car hire criteria as part of your policy, which we have.