Insurance companies pay for a rental car if the accident was not your fault (covered by the at-fault driver's insurance) or if you added rental reimbursement coverage to your own policy. It is not automatic; it requires specific coverage, typically for a set daily limit (e.g., $30–$40/day) while your car is in the shop for a covered repair.
Rental reimbursement coverage is an optional coverage that may cover the cost of a rental car if your vehicle is damaged in a covered accident and can't be driven. To add rental reimbursement coverage to your policy, you typically need to carry comprehensive and collision coverage as well.
Renting a vehicle with reimbursement coverage
In most cases, rental reimbursement coverage will cover a certain dollar amount per day up to a total limit. For example, you might have rental reimbursement coverage for $40 per day up to $1,200.
Yes, you can often get a rental car through your insurance if you have Rental Reimbursement coverage on your policy, which pays for a rental while your car is repaired after a covered claim (like an accident). If you're not at fault in an accident, the other driver's insurance may also cover a rental. You need to check your specific policy for "rental reimbursement" or "transportation expense" coverage, as it's usually an optional add-on requiring collision/comprehensive, and it has daily/total limits.
How long will insurance pay for a rental car in California? Insurance will pay for a rental car for a reasonable period necessary to repair your vehicle or until you receive a settlement offer if your vehicle is declared a total loss.
Most rental reimbursement coverage lasts a maximum of 30 days. This is usually plenty of time, since it takes an average of two weeks to repair a vehicle, according to the Insurance Information Institute. In some cases, however, car insurance may pay for a longer car rental.
Gathering strong evidence, which can include expert testimonies and thorough documentation, is crucial for establishing the value of the claim. Researching previous personal injury settlements can provide insight into the potential claim value, although remember, like snowflakes, no two cases are identical.
Yes, your personal auto insurance often covers rentals, extending your liability, collision, and comprehensive coverage to rental cars, but you need to check your specific policy for limits and ensure it covers the rental's value, deductibles, and potential loss-of-use fees; also, your credit card might offer secondary coverage, but always verify details beforehand, especially for international rentals.
In California, many landlord policies offer Loss of Rents/Fair Rental Value coverage, but it's not universal. Coverage applies only if the peril is covered under the policy. Tenants benefit because the funds help finish repairs faster and reduce the risk of losing housing.
If the insurer totals your car, it will pay you the vehicle's actual cash value (ACV). The actual cash value is how much the car was worth just before the loss. It includes a reduction in value for depreciation, so the ACV will be less than what you paid for the vehicle, even if it's relatively new.
A “reasonable repair period” is not an arbitrary number of days set by the adjuster. If your vehicle is totaled, the insurer typically pays for a rental until they make a settlement offer. Once they issue the offer, coverage usually ends.
It's up to you whether the risks of paying a deductible outweigh the expense of the damage waiver. The longer you plan on renting the car, the less sense buying the rental insurance probably makes. Comprehensive – This applies to damage that occurs to a car while it was not being driven.
Rental car insurance can be worth it to fill gaps in your existing coverage, especially if you lack comprehensive/collision on your personal policy, have high deductibles, or are traveling internationally, but it's often redundant if your personal auto insurance or credit card already provides full coverage, including for "loss of use" and "diminished value," so always check your current policies first to avoid paying for unneeded protection or leaving yourself exposed.
California allows electronic proof of insurance for many drivers, but a rental situation can still involve paper documents. The safest approach is to carry paper plus digital backups. Digital copies are especially useful if the glovebox paperwork is lost, wet, or taken with you when swapping cars.
You don't need to buy insurance on your rental as all our cars come with Damage Waiver included. This does come with an excess however, so you may want to purchase extra protection.