Wednesday, August 28, 2013

best credit cards that offer free car rental insurance coverage


Generally when we think of credit cards we think of points, miles, cash back and other rewards. But another sometimes overlooked benefit of a credit card is the auto rental insurance policy. It’s an arduous task to dig through many policies that are sometimes poorly disclosed, so, I’ve done the homework for you by making a selection of the best credit cards that offer free car rental insurance coverage.

Most credit cards offer car rental insurance to a certain extent, but it’s generally secondary to your existing car insurance. What do the terms “primary” and “secondary” insurance really mean? Secondary insurance only applies after your other coverage has been exhausted, such as your existing personal auto insurance. On the other hand, primary insurance provides the driver with immediate coverage.

But, what happens when you rent a vehicle abroad? When renting a vehicle abroad as a U.S. driver you are not covered by your U.S. auto insurance company, so your secondary coverage is effectively primary. If you don’t own a car (and therefore no car insurance), your secondary coverage is effectively primary as well (even for auto rentals in the U.S) since you don’t have any other auto insurance policy.

The primary and secondary coverage provided by some credit cards for car rental insurance is the Collision Damage Waiver (CDW) which covers towing, damage (to your rental car), theft (of the rental car), and the loss of use to the rental car company while the car is being repaired. CDW does not cover damage to any property, damage to any other vehicle and injuries to people. It’s important to check what the rental car company’s insurance coverages are as well, do they offer liability coverage? And if they do, to what extent? Evidently, it is essential to have adequate coverage for injuries for yourself, passengers, other drivers, and pedestrians. Important note: when using your credit card’s CDW you must decline your rental car CDW for it to be effective.

Here’s my selection of the best credit cards that offer car rental insurance coverage and detailed insight on the type of coverage they offer:

Visa

Visa (NYSE:V) offers car rental insurance coverage on all of its cards when renting a vehicle for up to 15 consecutive days domestically or 31 days abroad. The insurance coverage is secondary and it includes theft, physical damage, towing, loss of use, and administrative costs. It does not include injury, taxes, property damage, damage to other vehicles, and diminished value. You will not be covered in Israel, Ireland or Jamaica and it excludes SUV’s with more than 8 seats (and some other vehicles). Make sure to decline your car rental insurance in order for your credit card’s CDW to be valid. Below is my pick of the best Visa credit cards that offer car rental insurance coverage.

Capital One Venture Rewards Card, issued by Capital One (NYSE:COF), is a great Visa rewards card that lets you earn unlimited miles that never expire. As a Visa Signature card, you will receive CDW coverage when renting a vehicle (15 consecutive days in the U.S. and 31 days abroad). In order to be covered, you must decline the car rental company’s CDW insurance.

More benefits: When purchasing your travel tickets with this card, you will be covered for $250,00 travel accident insurance in case of dismemberment or death, and you will also be reimbursed up to $3,000 per trip in case of lost luggage. Another extra is the $0 foreign transaction fee – this also applies to online purchases when paying in another currency. You will also earn 2 miles per dollar spent on this card and 10,000 bonus miles for new sign-ups after spending $1,000 in the first 3 months of having this card. Click here to read the full Capital One Venture review.


One of the rare credit cards that offer primary rental car insurance coverage is United MileagePlus Explorer, issued by JPMorgan Chase (NYSE:JPM), offers primary coverage for theft and physical damage of most rented vehicles. It covers 15 consecutive days of rentals in the U.S. (if you are a U.S. resident) and 31 days when in a foreign country. Just remember that for it to be effective, you must decline the rental car company’s CDW coverage.

More benefits: This Visa Signature card has no annual fee for the first year (after that you have to pay $95 annually) and is one of the best airline cards that are currently available. Another plus is that you do not have to pay any foreign transaction fee when using this card abroad. You will also receive 30,000 bonus miles if you spend $1,000 in the first 3 months of having this card. You can earn 10,000 bonus miles annually if you spend at least $25,000 on your card. And if you add another cardholder to your account and make your first purchase on this card within the first 3 months of card membership, you will earn 5,000 bonus miles. You will earn 2 miles for every $1 you spend on United air tickets that are purchased directly from the airline or through their website. And you will earn 1 mile for every $1 spent on all your other purchases. This card is full of benefits, like priority boarding, first checked bag free, low ongoing APR, and much more. You can find the full review of United credit card here.


American Express

American Express (NYSE:AXP) offers extra coverage with their Premium Car Rental Protection. It’s free to enroll and you only pay a flat fee when you rent a car ($24.95) for the duration of your rental ($17.95 for California residents). You can have coverage for up to 42 consecutive days. It offers up to $100,000 in primary theft and damage coverage. You will receive coverage for up to $100,000 in case of dismemberment or accidental death (up to $250,000 for California residents). You will also be covered for up to $15,000 per person for excess medical expenses. And up to $5,000 for excess personal property coverage (Florida residents receive up to $15,000). Keep in mind that liability is not included.

When renting a car with your AmEx enrolled card, make sure to decline the car rental company’s CDW, personal accident insurance, and personal effects coverage (liability is not included). If you don’t own an American Express card, you can find our selection of the best American Express cards here.

Discover

Some Discover cards have a car rental insurance plan that provides $25,000 of secondary collision damage insurance. For it to be valid, you have to rent a car using your Discover Card and decline the car rental company’s coverage. This coverage does not include theft, any damage not due to a collision, and loss of use. The coverage applies to rentals that are 31 consecutive days or less (45 consecutive days for employees using business credit card). Click here to see our selection of the best Discover Cards.

Some helpful tips:

Watch out for excluded countries. Check the fine print of your credit card’s car rental insurance policy to make sure that the country that you’re traveling to is not excluded from their rental car insurance policy. Some countries that are commonly excluded are Israel, Ireland, Jamaica, New Zealand, Australia and Italy.

Beware of the type of car you rent. Most credit card insurance coverage only cover standard car rentals and exclude luxury vehicles, SUVs, trucks, etc.

Decline rental car company’s CDW. If you are using your credit card’s car rental insurance (CDW), make sure to decline the rental car company’s CDW so that you don’t nullify your credit card’s CDW coverage.

Bring the terms with you. If you are planning to rely on your credit card’s car rental insurance coverage, make sure to bring a written copy of the insurance policy with you in case you need it. This can save you a lot of trouble in case of an accident. Make sure to apply for it in advance since it usually is sent by snail mail.

If you are looking for car insurance for your personal vehicle, check out the best car insurance quotes from major insurance companies here at DailyMarkets.com!

cardholder say amex centurion not worth it


Our piece the other day about the complaints of a holder of American Express Centurion Card - the so-called Black Card - has attracted a surprising reaction from other dissatisfied cardholders.

A recurring theme in the e-mails we received was that service has deteriorated in recent years, the Centurion Card is not worth the HK$19,800 annual fee, and certainly not the new fee of HK$38,000.

Cardholders seemed particularly irked at the suggestion by Amex that the case we reported earlier was a one-off case.

"I am outraged that Amex said the slow call centre service was a one-off. I had the same experience last night. And it was not the first time," wrote one reader, adding that since she paid HK$19,800 for the service, she does not expect to wait, let alone the proposed new charge of HK$38,000.

A former cardholder wrote that he gave up his Centurion card when the fees rose from HK$8,500 to HK$19,800 some years ago. He selected the HK$5,500 Platinum card instead because it offered travel insurance, well, up to a point.

He recounted how his wife was pickpocketed in Paris and the thief ran up a large bill buying opera tickets. Amex covered those charges and cancelled the card and gave a replacement. It paid for the cost of replacing her identity card and driving licence but declined to cover the cash that was stolen, arguing that pickpocketing is not covered for cash loss, but only theft is. The difference, according to Amex, is that theft was only when you saw your thief and he threatened physical harm.

Our reader has now dropped his Platinum card.

Another Centurion holder wrote: "The lengthy wait for 'travel services' is not rare, and if one is successful in speaking to an agent, the level of service is so wildly inconsistent that Amex's assistance becomes a hazard rather than a benefit.

"The airline ticket prices they offer are easily beaten with a quick web search, largely defeating the purpose of using a travel agent, and Amex has for months been slashing all manner of services and benefits (fast track, Marco Polo status, et al) for Centurion members.

"For the company to now double its already unconscionably high annual fee is the height of arrogance."

Commenting on the evident dissatisfaction from some Centurion members, Amex said: "We are committed to maintaining a high standard of customer service and ensure we service all our customers well. We are dedicated to upholding our service standard, and in fact place a lot of focus and efforts on an ongoing basis to achieve this."

Amex added that its call centre was awarded the Gold award of the Inbound Contact Centre of the Year in 2012 by Hong Kong Call Centre Association. "We take customers' feedback and comment very seriously. That's how we are able to continue to improve our service to meet customers' needs."

credit card similar to Centurion card in South Africa


With the invitation-only American Express Black Centurion card for the rich and famous making headlines recently, BusinessTech decided to investigate whether similar credit card exist locally.


Officially called the American Express Centurion card, the “black card” (named so due to its colour) is one of the most elite and exclusive credit accounts in the world, available by invite only – and only to super rich.

The card was introduced in 1999 to customers who meet American Express’ eligibility criteria. The card started out as rumour and a myth, but American Express eventually made the legend a reality, and created an all-black titanium card to serve the needs of its super rich customers.

The card isn’t strictly a credit card, but rather a charge card – meaning there’s no minimum monthly repayment system, and the card must be paid in full at the end of the month, according to reports.

This means that there’s no pre-set spending limit – and no interest fees.

As the card is invite-only, the criteria for eligibility are open to rumour and speculation – though most reports on the card peg requirements of prospective holders at having a significant net worth; an excellent credit record; and being willing to spend around $250,000 a year.

The card also requires a $7,500 initiation fee, as well as a yearly account fee of $2,500.

For being in an exclusive club, card holders gain perks such as travel benefits in the form of airline and hotel upgrades and access to airport lounges. Then there’s a 24-hour consierge service and VIP access to exclusive events.



South African offerings

While most of South Africa’s financial institutions do not offer an elite credit account for their most affluent clients – it does exist.

Standard Bank

According to a spokesperson from Standard Bank, South Africa’s biggest bank does have an exclusive credit card in which customers are invited to participate in, similar to the American Express Centurion account.

However, the details, in terms of pricing and benefits are made available to customers directly, and no further information could be publicly disclosed.

Nedbank

According to head of banking products and packaging at Nedbank, Heidie Ziervogel, the green bank offers elite packages in the form of the Nedbank Private Wealth Amex Platinum Card and the Nedbank Private Wealth MasterCard World credit and Debit Card.

The cards are bundled in a monthly maintenance fee of R259 per month, for now, and are available unbundled as well, according to Ziervogel.

The Nedbank offering comes with the following benefits for wealthy clients who qualify for it:

Full Travel and Lifestyle Benefits
24/7 Access through our dedicated Contact Suite
Quick turnaround times
Relationship with Nedbank Private Wealth Private Banker
Concierge Services through both affiliations
Travel Insurance Benefits
FNB

FNB told BusinessTech that while no elite account was offered by the bank, it did have its FNB Private Clients credit card for their wealthier customers – and a Platinum Credit Card for non-Private Banking customers who earn between R350,000 and R1.1 million per annum.

The FNB accounts don’t offer much in the way of elite privileges, however, with the same sort of rewards being offered to other credit account customers (just with higher discounts), plus the addition of access to SLOW lounges at the country’s biggest airports.

Other banks in SA

Bidvest Bank and RMB in South Africa do not offer credit cards to individuals, with a bigger focus on business accounts.

Investec and Absa did not return enquiries by time of publishing.