If you are renting a car, you will need car insurance and if possible, the cheapest car insurance. If you already have insurance on your private car and it includes collision, then this may be adequate cover to rent a car. You might not be aware but a car insurance review might be just the thing you needed to make an informed decision.
Before renting a car, you will need to find out exactly how much coverage you have within your own policy. In most cases, your coverage and the deductibles that you have on your car insurance policy will be enough for a rental car. This is only if you use the car for pleasure and not for business.
If you’re not comprehensively covered (or not covered for collision), then you won’t be covered in if your rental is stolen or involved in an accident. Individuals who don’t have any private car insurance at all have two further options. They can either buy coverage for the rental car at the counter or buy a non-owner insurance policy. If all that seems too much for you, then you will definitely want to read a car insurance review that will facilitate your understanding. And yes, it will help you find the cheapest car insurance.
Buying car insurance from the counter will cover a car for being damaged or stolen (although the policy may be void if speeding, driving illegally or under the influence of drink or drugs). The usual cost ($9 to $19) for this insurance is calculated by the day. Individuals who have comprehensive cover on their own vehicle will not have to buy this insurance when renting a car.
You can also buy other policies from the counter such as:
• Liability insurance
• Personal accident insurance
• Personal effects coverage.
Some car rental companies do put all of these into a single policy, so always make sure you check the terms and conditions and make sure you’re covered for what you need. Also, with a car insurance review, you can browse through some of the existing offers and get a general idea, especially when it comes to finding the cheapest car insurance.
If you decide to purchase the non-owner rental insurance, this will cost around $300 a year. This may be extremely useful for frequent travellers or those who intend to rent a car for a long time. However, this type of rental car insurance does not include collision coverage. What collision coverage will do is protect you if you crash into a car or someone crashes into you. Check with your credit card company as sometimes they offer this type of insurance if you pay with your card.
If you use your own insurance when renting a car and have an accident, you may affect the future price of your insurance premium. You are effectively driving your own car so you need to be as alert and as careful as you would be in your own vehicle.
Knowing the opinions of others can be helpful in many cases and that is also valid for those trying to obtain the cheapest car insurance. A car insurance review presents all aspects related to holding such a policy and might provide you with useful insight!
Archive for March, 2009
Car Insurance for Rental Cars
Sunday, March 29th, 2009A Look At Health Insurance Options
Friday, March 27th, 2009When comparing health insurance quotes, make sure you are comparing similar plans. Health insurance comes in two basic forms – indemnity plans and managed care plans. Both indemnity and managed care health insurance are further broken down into several different types of health insurance so it is important to take the time and compare health insurance plans to determine what best fits your health care needs.
Indemnity Health Insurance
Indemnity health plans put you in charge of choosing your doctors, hospitals and other health care providers. You pay a set monthly premium and your health insurance pays your medical care, often after you pay a deductible and possibly a percentage of the bill.
A common employer-sponsored form of health insurance is a cafeteria or flexible spending plan. This type of health insurance allows employees to create a benefit package taken from a number of options. You need to contact the employee benefit department at your company for more information on the exact mix of choices available to you.
If you are looking for lower cost health insurance, a “basic and essential” plan may be the best option. Do keep in mind this type of health insurance is limited in what services may be covered so it is important to carefully read the policy so you understand what treatments the plan does cover. Another type of health insurance known as catastrophic health insurance or high-deductible health plans do just what it sounds like they would. The deductible is high, but this type of health insurance protects you against catastrophic illness with a very high total cost.
Health savings accounts are fairly new and an alternative to traditional health insurance. This plan involves putting money into a tax-free savings account to cover your medical expenses.
Managed Care Health Insurance
The two most common types of managed care health insurance are health maintenance organizations (HMOs) and preferred provider organizations (PPOs). HMOs give you access to a group of participating doctors, hospitals and health care providers. HMOs come with fewer out-of-pocket expenses, but visits to the doctor, prescriptions and other services usually come with a co-pay or fee.
PPOs are fee-for-service health insurance and medical services are paid by the insurer on a negotiated and discounted fee schedule. PPOs allow participants to choose medical providers outside the plan’s network, although this can result in higher out-of-pocket costs.
One other type of health insurance is point-of-service (POS) plans. This type of health insurance is similar to indemnity plans, and your primary care physician can refer you outside of the plan without any extra costs to the insured. If you refer yourself outside a POS plan you will be charged a co-pay.
Annual Travel Insurance Vs Single Trip Travel Insurance: Which Is Better?
Thursday, March 26th, 2009Travelling and taking holidays can be a lot of fun, but it can also be scary. If something goes wrong, you may find yourself in a foreign land amongst foreign people with no idea where to turn for help. Travel insurance prevents this from happening by helping you through all of the unforeseen circumstances that may befall you on a trip. Travel insurance can help cover expenses if you become ill or injured, lose your luggage, have a car accident or have to change your plans due to weather or illness.
There are two basic types of travel insurance: annual travel insurance and single trip travel insurance. Annual travel insurance is purchased annually and covers all of your travels for the entire year. Single trip travel insurance is purchased at the beginning of each trip and is only good for that trip.
There are benefits and drawbacks associated with each type of travel insurance. The following two sections will address the pros and cons of each.
Pros and Cons of Annual Travel Insurance
When you purchase annual travel insurance, you pay a one-time fee. This fee covers the cost of the insurance for the whole year. If you travel a lot, this price is almost always less than you would pay for multiple single-trip policies. But the price for annual travel insurance is also more than you would pay for one or two single-trip policies. So you need to have a clear idea of how often you will use the insurance before you spend the money for it.
Annual travel insurance is ideal for people who travel a lot. Business professionals, people with family living abroad, and families with holiday homes usually benefit the most from such a policy. Students who have to travel back and forth from school may also benefit from this type of policy.
Pros and Cons of Single Trip Travel Insurance
Single trip travel insurance is the most cost effective way to purchase travel insurance if you only have need of it a couple of times a year. It is spontaneous. You can purchase travel insurance prior to any trip even if it is spur of the moment. It is also inexpensive. Single trip travel insurance normally costs about four to seven percent of the entire cost of any prepaid trip.
If you make a lot of spontaneous trips, however, you could end up spending more than you bargained for if you purchase a separate policy each time you leave town.
Both annual and single trip travel insurances offer the same coverage. The only real discrepancy between them is cost. Therefore, you need to choose the most cost effective way to purchase the insurance that best meets your needs. If you have any doubts, talk to a travel agent. They will be able to help you compare prices and coverage options. The most important thing is that you always travel while insured. You need to be prepared for everything that may happen.