5 out of 5, reviewed on Nov 02, 2015
http://www.productreview.com.au/r/tripcover/830125.html
“Though we only went to Darwin for 11-days, I thought not to take a chance of taking extra insurance that is reasonable and affordable. I must admit I had apprehension in taking insurance. Often I heard dodgy stories but after searching online review, Tripcover appeared on the toplist and opted to take insurance through them. We hired a car through Thrifty but unfortunately our car was hit by kanga roo on our way to Katherine Gorge and damaged and split the front skirt. Upon our return, I rang Tripcover and reported the incident. Immediately they sent me the Claim # and all the requirements. I submitted all the official and necessary documents to expedite my claim. Within 5-working days, I was refunded all the expense I incurred. Tripcover has kept to its standard of honesty and integrity….I’ll definitely make another transaction again with them in our future trip and would highly recommend. Thanks to all Tripcover staff as each of those I talked to, were very helpful…”
Author Archives: des
Its Your Choice
Check out this comparison of alternatives to taking the expensive car rentalcompanies insurance options on Choice, the people’s watchdog in Australia.
Even though Tripcover is still in startup mode we got a mention alon with Virgin Money and 1Cover. For more on this CHOICE article…….more
A Typical Greedy Car Rental Company
Check this out and see why finding an alternative to the car rental companies’ insurance is a necessity. If you have ever rented a car in Australia or New Zealand you will notice the sinking feeling you get while at the rental desk.
We have been in the car rental industry for over 15 years and the one thing that we found that the customer hated is dealing with the insurance.
Below are the rates of a typical greedy car rental company for their CDW
(Collision Damage Waiver – they are not allowed to refer to it as insurance)
- They leave you with $6000 liability
- For $38 a day they reduce your liability to $1100
- For $49 a day they will reduce your liability to $550
That can be more than the rental itself!
Alternatively Tripcover’s rates start from $9.30 per day with a $300 excess and
reduces down to $5.61 over a 15 day rental.
Another Good Reason to Take Out a Tripcover Policy
ProductReview Quote:
“I rented a car in late June to drive to southern Victoria with my family. On our way to Melbourne, we hit a kangaroo at a very slow speed.It damaged a fog light and broke the bumper. The result was a big repair bill. Thankfully, I bought Tripcover insurance for the trip. After I got the invoice from the car rental company, I filled in the claim form and attached the invoice, rental contract and damage report to the insurance company. They asked for the detailed invoice and within about 10 days, i got my reimbursement less a small amount. I would use Tripcover again.” Alf
And don’t for get that AAA members can now use their 16 digit membership card number to get a 5% discount with Tripcover.
AAA Members Get 5% Discount
Now all AAA Australian members can use their 16 digit membership number to secure a 5% discount. Along with using your PayPal account you can save 7% on your next car rental excess insurance policy with Tripcover and Allianz Global Assistance
Do your research to avoid car rental shocks
Rental cars are costly. If the upfront hire fees aren’t enough, there are lots of other charges that can double the cost. That can be anything from increased insurance costs to reduce excesses, to hiring a child seat.
If you know how the system works, however, it’s possible to minimise costs.
If you’re booking a hire car, the first thing to do is to use comparison engines that list more than one rental car company……more>
Company Policy Now Available
Now your company can cover ALL the eligible aged drivers employed in your company.
Yes, that’s right, why pay the car rental company’s expensive corporate excess insurance rate when you can use Tripcover’s much cheaper car rental excess insurance.
Simply have the car rental agreement in your company’s name and away you go.
Reduce your corporate rate with the car rental company and save. Just let them know that
you do not need their CDW or Collision Damage Waiver to cover your company’s excess
anymore and each time you take a rental out get one of our policies for the employee.
Clarifying Your Car Rental Insurance Choices
When renting a car in Australia or New Zealand, it is very important to have quality car rental excess insurance coverage for the vehicle. You have several options available, and by comparing and contrasting the different types of insurance, you can have a better idea of what you might need.
Credit Card
Many times, the credit cards you already have in your wallet will actually have collision coverage included on them. If you choose the right credit card to pay for the rental, you could actually receive coverage with zero deductible, or at least a very low deductible. This is quite different from the high cost of insurance through the car rental companies. The right card has the potential to provide coverage for the costs for which you might be liable, such as damage to the car, or even a theft but a lot of times does not cover the general exclusions such as windscreen, tyres, single vehicle accidents or undercarriage damage.
Another issue is that some that use this method of coverage for their rental vehicles have is that it can be a hassle to deal with the credit card companies. Still, given the amount that you could possibly save in the event of an accident, it does make sense at least to consider utilizing credit card coverage for the rental.
Make sure that your credit card company offers this type of coverage, as some do and some do not. Look through the policies regarding the coverage it offers, and make sure it is applicable in Australia or New Zealand – or any country you might be visiting for that matter.
Standard Travel Insurance
In some cases, you may also have collision coverage available through your travel company. If you buy a travel insurance policy for your vacation through many companies in Australia and New Zealand, you will have the option of adding on insurance for your car rentals. However, it is important to make sure that the travel insurance policy that you are considering using actually cover all the normal exclusions that the car rental companies exclude, such as windscreens and single vehicle accidents.
Dedicated Car Rental Excess Insurance
Of course, there’s always the option of buying your car rental excess cover (usually called CDW or Collision Damage Waiver) from the car rental company. This is something they will actually encourage you to do. It’s a simple solution since you can do it right at the counter. However, that does not necessarily mean it is the best solution. The cost of the insurance through the company is expensive, and could be close to the cost of the rental itself, which could double your overall expenditure. When you buy insurance through the rental company, you should not think that it will automatically cover the entire cost of damage or theft. Look at what your excess or deductible will be. It can be in the thousands in many cases. Car rental companies will sometimes offer an additional form of coverage that will drop the deductible to zero. Of course, this adds to the cost of your rental substantially.
Dedicated car rental excess cover is also offered now by such companies as Tripcover and this can be less than half the cost of the car rental companies’ rates.
However there is also the hassle of making a claim with their insurance provider Allianz Global Assistance in the event of an accident.
Take the time to research all of your options for your car rental insurance, and then choose the one that makes the best financial sense for you.
Resources:
https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/transportation/car-rental-cdw
http://www.tripadvisor.com.au/ShowTopic-g255103-i531-k5982489-Car_rental_excess_reduction_Tripcover-Perth_Greater_Perth_Western_Australia.html
Bullied Customer Feedback
I have booked a car when I will be in Brisbane in 10 days – taken out Insurance with your Company. (SHER100082*****)
This afternoon I received a phone call from the company I placed the car booking with. He quizzed me about why I hadn’t taken out insurance, and then became VERY pushy. He warned me I would be up for hefty costs if there was any damage. I stated I already had Insurance to cover my trip – and then he started!
Told me that any other Insurance ‘wasn’t worth the paper it was written on’ and told me I would have nothing but problems if I actually had to make a claim. Told me that no other Insurance company offers 3rd party insurance for car hire. Went on and on about the perils of NOT taking out car insurance with them (the car hire company). I stupidly them said ‘I use the same insurance company that my business does’ – meaning that the business I work for, always uses your company. Straight away he jumped on this and said – ‘you have falsely stated this is a private hire’… and proceeded to tell me he would have to cancel the hire. He would barely let me explain! It took quite a few minutes to get through to him.
I felt he was intimidating, pushy and in some ways, aggressive. Just thought I would let you know.CF.
Hi CF I really appreciate this or any other feedback.
I think we should name and shame companies like this as they are fighting back
(unfairly) to try regain their outrageous profits that they make from the insurance.Granted that he is right in a way, that it will be a bit of a hassle getting paperwork
etc if you need to make a claim but that is why you get it so much cheaper than
their waiver (they can’t call it insurance).
I think we should name and shame companies like this as they are fighting back
(unfairly) to try regain their outrageous profits that they make from the insurance.Granted that he is right in a way, that it will be a bit of a hassle getting paperwork
etc if you need to make a claim but that is why you get it so much cheaper than
their waiver (they can’t call it insurance).
If I were you I would write him a very firm letter stating that you will not be using his services again.
Ultimately that is what capitalism is all about and it sounds like his service was unsatisfactory to you.
PS do you mind if I put you anonymous email on our blog along with my answer?
Thanks again for the feedback
Des
Tripcover Team
Would your rental car be covered in this incidence?
Last October we reserved a car through Enterprise and collected it from Locauto Rent-a-car at Pisa Airport in Italy. We took out Locauto’s own Zero Excess Package (ZEP) – at a cost of almost £300 – knowing we would be covered for any eventuality. Unfortunately, on a very wet day in Viareggio, as my husband was driving away from a parking space, an Italian woman drove around the corner and into the side of our car. (She was on her mobile phone and clearly not concentrating.) more >