If you are looking for a short term car insurance policy theres a good chance that you may not even need it…
Is car insurance for a temporary period of time required when renting an automobile?
The rental place will likely offer you liability coverage, personal effects coverage, accident coverage, and/or a loss damage waiver. As long as you are using the rental car for recreational use (not business use) you own car insurance will cover the each of these offered insurances.
Below is a list of the 4 insurance options that the rental car service may offer you and why you probably don’t need them…
Liability coverage: The liability insurance on your own policy will protect you.
Loss Damage Waiver: The collision & comprehensive coverage, which you probably have on you car, make the LDW unnecessary. Collision coverage pays for damages to the car regardless of who is at fault and comprehensive coverage pays for damage caused by things such as a thunderstorm or a collision with a deer.
Personal accident insurance or accident coverage: If you already have either Personal Injury Protection, Medical Payments Coverage, or health insurance, you can skip on this additional insurance.
Personal effects coverage: Rental car companies offer this type of coverage for stolen items. However, it is very likely that your homeowners or renters insurance already covers items that are stolen not just inside the house, but outside of it as well.
If you want to be 100% sure that your homeowners, renters, and/or car insurances carry over, call them or read the policies for yourself. If you pay for the rental using a credit card, the card company may automatically give you some coverage, so its worth calling them as well.
What if you’re not renting, but borrowing somebody’s car?
If you have your own car and thus have the respective car insurance, you needn’t worry. Furthermore, the lenders policy (as long as they give you permission to drive the car) transfers over to you. But what if you’re borrowing somebody’s car and don’t have your own car insurance?
Lack of liability coverage is the main thing, which can hurt you, if you are borrowing somebody’s car. If the lenders liability coverage is not enough (say it is $4,000 short of paying for the damages), you are responsible for the difference in an accident in which you are found to be guilty. You don’t have to worry about this happening if you get a nonowners policy, which provides liability coverage for those who borrow others cars. And, as always, if you are the innocent party in an accident, the guilty one will pay for the repairs (this isn’t the case in every state as some are no-fault states).
If you borrow somebody’s auto, who is going to pay for damage done to the lenders car? If the owner of the car has collision and/or comprehensive insurance, they will pay. You may pay if you have these two insurances.
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