We’ve all been there. Whether you’re traveling to a new city or planning a cross-country road trip, renting a car can be a bit daunting. You make it to the rental counter, and then you’re faced with a barrage of rental car insurance options. And sometimes a guilt trip. And uncertainty. And more questions.

As you wade through the choices, it’s sometimes hard to decipher which products and options are necessary. You may even feel pressured to buy them all (and hurry, because there is a line behind you!) So, what should you do?

Below we’ll outline the different options for rental car insurance and the corresponding costs so that the next time you’re renting a car you’ll confidentially know which boxes to check and which ones to politely pass on — and pass on again if they keep asking.

Personal Effects Insurance

If your personal belongings are stolen from the rental vehicle, this insurance usually provides around $500 of theft insurance per person. If you already have renter’s insurance or homeowner’s insurance, your personal belongings (even if stolen from your car and not your house) may be covered in your policy. If you don’t have a policy that covers your personal belongings, you can get this coverage for between $1 and $4 per day, which may be worth it if you’ve got a road trip in mind or you’re storing lots of costly gear in the vehicle.¹

Personal Accident Insurance

You can select this option to add accidental medical or death insurance that covers the car renter as well as any passengers. The rental company usually caps benefits at a specified amount, but will pay to help cover incurred medical expenses, as well as ambulance rides and other costs. If you have health insurance and/or life insurance this add-on may be redundant with your current plan, but be sure to double check before you turn it down. To add personal accident insurance onto your rental, it will add between $1 and $5 per day to your total rental charges.²

Supplemental Liability Insurance

This additional option covers damage that you do to others or their property while driving the rental car.³ Liability insurance is required for anyone driving a car, and if you already have it through your current automobile insurance you probably don’t need to double up. If you don’t normally drive though, adding this protection is a must and you can get up to $1 million of liability protection for between $7 and $15 per day.^1,4

Collision Damage Insurance

This coverage comes into play when your rental car is damaged. Not only are you responsible for the costs to repair the damage to the car, but there are some additional charges that rental companies can bill you for that may not be covered by your traditional car insurance. For example, rental companies can charge you for the time that a damaged rental car is in the shop and unable to be rented by other customers. One of the benefits of purchasing collision damage insurance is that it includes insurance with “loss of use” coverage.⁵ While this benefit may help cover costs associated with the time that the rental vehicle cannot be used, note that not all collision damage insurance plans include it, and those that do often have a maximum limit for loss of use or an applicable deductible.

Adding on collision damage insurance through the rental company is the most expensive of the rental car insurance options and will increase your total rental price by 25-40%, or an additional $10-30 per day.⁵ The price of the insurance varies from city to city and from one rental car company to the next. If you have time on your side, call around for quotes. Even if the daily price seems relatively reasonable, you need to consider the total additional cost that adding this insurance will amount to over the duration of your rental period.

The Bottom Line

With all of these rental car insurance options, read the fine print. The policies vary somewhat from one rental car company to the next, and you want to be aware of any exclusions before you sign on the dotted line.

Finally, if you’re seeking a streamlined travel experience, there’s an easy way to make sure that you have the rental car insurance you need without the hassle. Rather than sifting through options and calling around to price compare, we’ve made it easy for you. The Allianz Global Assistance Rental Car Damage Protector bundles some of the heavy-hitting benefits of the insurance options outlined above into one neat package.⁶ For just $11 per calendar day, costs can be covered if your rental car is stolen or is damaged in a covered accident or while it's left unattended. (Note that there are exclusions, and it’s possible there may be associated costs that are not covered, so be sure to read your Rental Car Damage Protector policy.)

In the event of an accident, you’re covered by Allianz Global Assistance and don’t have to worry about filing a claim through your personal car insurance, which can help protect you from accident-related price hikes to your plan. The Rental Car Damage Protector provides protection up to $75,000. Plus, you’ll also get access to the Allianz Global Assistance 24-hour hotline to help you with a whole host of travel snafus.

At the end of the day, rental car insurance isn’t just about finding a product that provides some recourse in the event of an accident or incident. It’s also about feeling confident about your plan so that you have total peace of mind — and can enjoy your trip without distractions.

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