Loss Of Use Insurance Coverage
Here we examine the “loss of use” exclusion clause in your car insurance document. You need to what transport you will be offered by your insurer just in case your car gets stolen or is damaged and you need to have alternate transport.
Certain insurance companies have a team of retained mechanics who will offer you a courtesy car if one happens to be available. Very often a comprehensive policy comes with the facility of a rental car. The extension is far from cheap and the policy coverage is quite limited. You should decide if you feel it is essential that you purchase it. Ask yourself these questions:
You need to decide if you can do all of these even when your car is not available.
- commute to work
- drop the kids to school
- go shopping
- get out of the house (grocery shopping, etc.)
If you could live without a car for a week, you don’t really need to buy this extra coverage. If you’re sure that you can’t survive then you should check that you have this coverage.
If your car is stolen or in an accident that is your fault, you will not be able to recover any car rental costs from a third party. You probably will not be certain of the loan for a replacement car from the mechanics. So this additional coverage becomes worthless to you.
Similarly, if you do not wish to use the recommended mechanic of your insurer, or your car is written off, your rental car extra coverage will save the day. What does an average policy offer you?
You can only rent a car if yours is off the road for over two days, but the maximum period of rental is fourteen days. If the rental car is required for longer than this you will have to pay the additional cost to the car rental firm. There has been many a disagreement between the repair shop, the owner of the car and the insurance people in the event of the costs incurred for repairs having gone up due to whatever reason. This could be because a part was not available perhaps and no party wants to pay the extra rental car costs.
There is usually a delivery maximum so if you live away from the major cities and the rental company is a distance away from you, you need to be prepared to pay a charge for having your car brought home to you.
Your existing car insurance policy will cover the rental car for comprehensive benefits. That helps your insurance company keep down the cost of the rental car coverage, but if you are involved in an accident whilst using the rental car, the claim will be on your policy.
The car can only be rented from the date your car goes in to be repaired if the damage to your car is such that it is still safe and legal to drive. If your car is not roadworthy you can rental the car from the day of the accident.
In all likelihood, there will be a maximum of fourteen days for rental in the policies and just in case you get your car back, you should return the rental car as soon as that happens.
The rental car supplied will almost just fit your needs unless you are willing to pay for an upgrade at the rental company. When you get the rental car, it should come with a full tank of fuel and it must be returned with a full tank of fuel. Some rental companies will ask for an imprint of your credit card, insuring against the event that you return it without filling it up or if you’ve damaged the car in any way. If you don’t fill it up, you will be billed by the rental company for a fill up – and you’ll find the price they charge you very high.