American Express Premium Car Rental Protection

The Lowdown On Amex Premium Car Rental Protection

Last Updated on July 1, 2022 by Kristin

Do you have an American Express card in your wallet? If so, you may have heard about a service called Premium Car Rental Protection. If youre wondering what this service provides and how it differs from your standard American Express benefits, dont worry. We have the lowdown on what Amex Premium Rental Car Protection offers.

Capital One Venture X

The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card offers 75,000 bonus miles when you spend $4,000 on purchases in the first 3 months from account opening. This bonus is worth at least $750 in travel and significantly more if you know the best ways to use Capital One miles.

The Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card is another rewards-earning monster when it comes to car rentals. Not only will you receive primary rental car insurance, but you’ll earn 10 miles per dollar on rental cars booked through Capital One Travel.

The card also earns:

• 10 miles per dollar when booking on Turo
• 10 miles per dollar on hotels booked through Capital One Travel
• 5 miles per dollar on flights booked through Capital One Travel
• 2 miles per dollar on all other purchases

This card incurs a $395 annual fee and comes with valuable travel benefits such as:

How Does Amex Rental Car Insurance Work And How Much Does It Cost

American Express rental car insurance is a secondary coverage option for those that have an American Express credit card or charge card. Cardholders are able to enjoy the usual perks such as cashback, travel credit, and rewards points that are included in the annual fee. Along with these perks come two options for rental car insurance coverage that include:

• Only pay when you rent: personal or business card will be charged when rental enrollment ends

• Coverage everywhere in the United States and select other countries:excludes Australia, Ireland, Jamaica, New Zealand, Israel, and Italy

• Up to 42 consecutive days of car rental insurance coverage: except for residents of Washington State, then its 30 consecutive days

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When And How Should I Submit A Claim If An Accident Or Theft Occurs

You must report an accident to American Express as soon as reasonably possible and all forms/documentation for claims must be submitted within 60 days following the incident or else you can risk being denied coverage.

If you opt to decline CDW coverage offered by the rental company and use your credit card insurance instead, you will need to pay any deductible or charges due to the company you rented from, which is to be reimbursed, in turn, by your credit card processor. In order to seek compensation from American Express, they will require an official claim in the event of an accident or theft. The required documents will include:

• Rental receipt showing that the full amount was paid for with your AmEx card
• Official American Express claim form
• Itemized repair bill

Reasons To Enroll In Premium Car Rental Protection

Although the American Express Premium Car Rental Protection policy isn’t expensive at $12.25 to $24.95 per rental, it’s still usually better to use a when you use that credit card to pay for a rental. However, there are some reasons why you might want to use an American Express card and enroll in the Premium Car Rental Protection program instead:

• The Amex EveryDay® Preferred Credit Card from American Express: $95 annual fee, 1.5x on general spending in billing cycles where you make 30+ purchases, see full card review

The information for the Amex Green, Hilton Aspire card, and Amex EveryDay Preferred card has been collected independently by The Points Guy. The card details on this page have not been reviewed or provided by the card issuer.

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When To Use American Express Premium Car Rental Protection

Editors note: This is a recurring post, regularly updated with new information.

Some using your card that covers the rental car if youre in an accident or if the rental car is stolen or damaged. A small number of premium travel rewards credit cards even offer primary coverage which means you don’t have to file with any other insurance first but secondary coverage is much more common.

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While most American Express credit cards don’t automatically offer primary car rental coverage , most will offer the option to purchase a Premium Car Rental Protection policy that provides primary coverage. The optional Premium Car Rental Protection policy can be added to rentals made using an eligible Amex card for a small fee.

This guide looks at this optional coverage and discusses when it makes sense to enroll.

Limitations To Car Rental Insurance On The Platinum Card From American Express

As good as the AmEx rental car protection is, it doesn’t cover every car rental. For example, car rental insurance on The Platinum Card® from American Express doesn’t cover car rentals in Australia, Italy or New Zealand. Also, AmEx’s car rental loss and damage insurance doesn’t cover rentals of the following types of vehicles:

• Full-sized or cargo vans.

• Off-road vehicles.

While your card covers damage to the car you rented, it doesn’t cover liability for damage you cause to other vehicles or people. Check your car insurance policy to see if your liability coverage extends to rental cars. If not, consider purchasing liability coverage.

The Platinum Card® from American Express provides secondary coverage. That means you’ll need to file with your insurance company first before you file with American Express. Terms apply.

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What Primary Car Rental Insurance Does And Does Not Cover

There are some important things to remember to get the most out of your credit card’s car rental insurance benefits.

• You must pay for the entire transaction with the credit card you’d be filing the insurance under. Some cards even require that renters are booking the entire trip on the card, so read the fine print carefully.
• This primary insurance generally doesn’t include liability, damage to other cars, damage to personal property, personal bodily injury, or injury to others. See Insider’s guide to shopping for auto insurance to get this liability coverage.
• Check for not-so-obvious limitations on coverage. For example, if you’re traveling between countries, you will need to know if the coverage extends to those areas. Or if your rental lasts more than 31 days, some cards won’t cover you.
• Perhaps the most unexpected limitation is the type of car. Before assuming you’re covered, check to see if your car has any constraints on make and model.
• If you’re using a business credit card that offers primary car rental insurance, you need to be renting a car for business purposes in order to receive the coverage.

Regardless of coverage, you should always snap a few pictures of the vehicle when you pick it up and drop it off in case there is a dispute over damage.

What Does Amex Platinum Car Rental Insurance Cover

If you or a card member, passenger, or authorized driver gets injured in an accident in the rented vehicle, the plan pays up to $5,000 for medical bills. Similarly, if the passenger, card member, or authorized driver dies as a result of an accident that occurred in the rented vehicle, the plan can pay up to $20,000 for an authorized driver or passenger per accident maximum of $300,000, and $200,000 for the card member.

The policy pays $1,000 per person and a total of $2,000 per accident for any personal belongings lost, damaged, or stolen while in the rented vehicle. The platinum card also covers up to $75,000 for theft or damage to the rented vehicle.

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What Does American Express Car Rental Insurance Not Cover

American Express car rental benefits can come in handy when youre renting a car, but its important to note that there are plenty of exclusions listed. The majority of cards do not honor their auto rental coverage under the following circumstances:

• Use of a vehicle outside the terms of the rental agreement
• Use of vehicle that involves illegal activity
• Use of vehicle when the driver is impaired
• Off-road operation of a rental vehicle
• Intentional damage

Editorial Disclaimer

The editorial content on this page is based solely on the objective assessment of our writers and is not driven by advertising dollars. It has not been provided or commissioned by the credit card issuers. However, we may receive compensation when you click on links to products from our partners.

Kelli Pate is a former contributor to CreditCards.com and a freelance writer and copy editor living in Kansas City, though she’s a Jersey girl at heart. When she’s not writing about personal finance and credit cards, she’s immersing herself in the world of travel hacking.

Holly Johnson is a financial expert and award-winning writer who is obsessed with frugality, budgeting and travel. In addition to serving as contributing editor for The Simple Dollar, Johnson owns Club Thrifty and is the co-author of Zero Down Your Debt: Reclaim Your Income and Build a Life Youll Love.

Other Things To Know About Primary Rental Car Insurance

• You should pay for the rental with your credit card and decline the rental car agencys CDW to activate your cards policy. You may have to book the rental with your card as well.
• Your cards CDW only covers theft and damage to your rental car it will not cover damages to property or another car, or injuries to yourself or another person.
• Certain countries as well as certain vehicle types may be excluded from your cards rental car coverage check your cards terms and conditions closely for exclusions.
• In case of an accident, be sure to hold onto all documentation including the accident report and a copy of your rental agreement and report the incident to your benefit administrator as soon as possible. There may be a time limit on the policy.

While these are some common limitations, your cards benefits guide will contain a detailed list of limitations. You should familiarize yourself with your benefits guide before you rent a car.

For rates and fees of The Platinum Card® from American Express, please click here.

For rates and fees of the American Express® Gold Card, please click here.

For rates and fees of the American Express® Green Card, please click here.

For rates and fees of The Business Platinum Card® from American Express, please click here.

The Capital One Spark Cash for Business card may no longer be available.

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Who Does Amex Platinum Rental Car Insurance Cover

You can receive full benefits of the rental car insurance if:

• You fully activate your coverage.
• Youre a primary card member or an additional card member.
• You maintain permanent residence within the 50 United States of America, Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
• Youre the primary signer of the rental agreement.

If you add a child, parent, travel partner, or spouse to the rental car agreement, they will be part of your policy.

American Express Premium Rental Car Insurance

If youre renting a luxury vehicle, the $50,000 to $75,000 benefit limit may not be enough. You could always buy American Express® Premium Car Rental Protection for a flat rate of $12.25 to $24.95 per rental, for up to 42 days of coverage. Premium Car Rental Protection will provide you with a higher limit of $100,000.

However, its best feature is the primary nature of the coverage. Unlike the free but secondary American Express car rental insurance, Premium Car Rental Protection from American Express provides primary coverage. This means you could opt out of using your main car insurance to cover theft or damage to your rental.

If youre wondering why you would want to avoid using your car insurance for a rental vehicle, consider this. If your rental car is stolen or damaged, your personal car insurance will step in to pay for the loss but could increase your premiums due to the claim.

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Chase Credit Cards With Primary Rental Car Insurance

If youre searching for a credit card with rental car insurance, Chase credit cards are your best bet. Most Chase business credit cards and Chase cards with an annual fee offer primary rental car insurance both in the U.S. and abroad. This coverage includes theft or collision damage and some qualified towing expenses. There are also a few no-annual-fee personal Chase credit cards that offer primary rental car insurance while traveling outside the U.S., though their coverage is secondary for U.S. rentals.

To use Chase rental car insurance, youll need to book and rent your car using your Chase credit card. Then, be sure to decline the rental companys collision damage waiver and loss damage waiver.

Rental coverage is complimentary with each the following Chase credit cards :

Whats The Catch With American Express Rental Car Coverage

American Express offers basic rental car insurance coverage on most cards. If you pay for your rental car using your American Express credit card, then you should have collision damage waiver insurance on your vehicle.

However, theres a big drawback to this rental car coverage: it provides secondary rental car insurance coverage not primary coverage.

Because this is secondary insurance, its only activated after you exhaust the limits of your primary insurance. In this case, you would file an insurance claim with your personal insurance companyfirst and then activate the American Express CDW coverage.

As secondary rental car insurance, American Express rental car insurance covers the loss of the rental car and damage to the rental car. It covers you in incidents where the rental car is damaged or stolen, for example.

Theres another catch with this coverage: you need to decline the rental car companys collision damage waiver. If you accept the rental car companys collision damage waiver coverage, then your American Express CDW coverage will not apply.

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How Does Credit Card Rental Car Insurance Work

offer a Collision Damage Waiver ) for qualifying rental cars that you pay for with that credit card. Depending on the terms, the policy may cover the full cost of the car in case it is damaged or stolen.

Without rental car insurance, you could potentially be responsible for covering the full cost of a damaged or totaled rental car. There are lots of options for reducing your liability: For example, you may have some degree of coverage through your car insurance policy or your homeowners insurance. But for full coverage, you typically need to purchase a CDW from the rental company, which can be pricey.

You can save yourself a lot of money by booking and paying for your rental car with your credit card and declining the policy from the rental car company.

Best Hotel Credit Card: Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card

Card Details

Pros & Cons

• The information related to the Hilton Honors American Express Aspire Card has been collected by Business Insider and has not been reviewed or provided by the issuer.
• Earn 150,000 Hilton Honors Bonus Points after you spend $4,000 in purchases on the card within your first 3 months of card membership
• 14X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases charged on your card directly with a hotel or resort within the Hilton portfolio
• 7X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases on your Card on flights booked directly with airlines or amextravel.com, and on car rentals booked directly from select car rental companies
• 7X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for each dollar of eligible purchases on your card at U.S. restaurants
• 3X Hilton Honors Bonus Points for all other eligible purchases on your card

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Chase Sapphire Preferred Rental Car Insurance Exclusions

The Sapphire Preferred is our favorite beginner’s travel rewards card. In addition to solid point earnings and flexible Ultimate Rewards, the card offers a wide range of travel and purchase protections. This coverage lands it near the top of our list of the best credit cards for rental car insurance.

However, this rental car coverage doesn’t cover all car rentals. First, you’ll need to rent through a traditional car rental company. Carsharing services like Turo and hourly car rentals from services like Zipcar aren’t covered by the Sapphire Preferred protections. Then there are the other exclusions.

What Does It Cover

American Express Premium Car Rental Protection offers two levels of coverage. The more expensive option covers up to $100,000 for theft or damage. It has the the same limit for accidental death and dismemberment coverage. This option also provides secondary coverage of up to $15,000 for medical expenses and $5,000 for personal property. Liability coverage is not included.

You can use Premium Car Rental Protection anywhere in the world, with the exception of a few countries: Australia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica and New Zealand.

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What Type Of Rental Car Coverage Does American Express Provide

The benefits offered by American Express car rental insurance will cover damage/loss caused by collision or theft of the vehicle you are renting . While towing and loss of use fees are covered for all cardholders, only AmEx platinum car rental insurance and the optional premium protection will cover some costs for personal injury and property loss, as well.

…See our page on rental car insurance types