What is a car hire ‘excess’?
The excess on a rental vehicle is simply known as the 'excess' or 'deductible' amount. It's a fixed single price that you would have to pay to the rental company in the event that you need to make a claim. Your car rental company will have the core car insurance in place on your hire car, but excess fees will be your responsibility.
For example, if you hire a car and it's damaged or stolen, you'll be responsible for paying a certain amount towards repairing or replacing it. There is a limit to how much car hire excess you'll need to pay, and the rest of the claim will be covered by the hire company's insurance.
Let's say that a car hire agreement asks for an excess of £1,000, you have an accident and the price to repair the damage is £3,000. You'd need to pay the £1,000 excess fee and your rental firm would pay the remaining £2,000.
What is Car Hire Excess Insurance?
In the event that you have an accident, or you need to pay towards the damage on your rental car, having Car Hire Excess Insurance in place means that you'll be able to claim back the excess cost.
While you'll initially have to pay towards the claim, the excess insurance means that you'll be reimbursed up to your maximum cover amount, which you'd otherwise not get back.
Car Hire Excess Insurance is designed to protect you from pricey excess charges should you run into the unexpected. Our Car Hire Excess Insurance also provides cover for hired cars from car clubs and rental companies.