Question: I am planning a self-drive vacation in Ireland and have seen many postings on Trip Advisor, Frommers, Fodors, etc. about travelers using a credit card CDW insurance coverage to get a lower car rental rate. Is that true? Are there and problems I should be aware of?
Answer: What a timely question! A definition here: CDW means Collision Damage Waiver). Many of those folks that rely on their Mastercard (Visa, Amex, etc. no longer provide this benefit in Ireland to their card holders), have been doing so for many years. It was very popular years ago. The idea that your 'free' Mastercard would save you $200 a week on CDW insurance premium was a great benefit! As long as you didn't get into an accident! The Credit Card Insurance is underwritten by an insurance company. When you get a damage claim from the car rental company, they charge your credit card. You have to then process a claim through the credit card insurance company to get your money back. That process can take up to 18 months and you usually settle for 50% of the damage cost. In recent years that 'free' benefit was taken away and now only applies to the 'Worldcard' which carries a very high annual credit card fee. So much for the free benefit. The coverage for damage claim is limited to $25,000 up to $50,000. Keep in mind that $25,000 will buy you a nice car here in the USA but in Ireland all new cars are subject to a VRT (Vehicle Registration Tax) of 40% of the cost of the car. It doesn't take a math wizard to figure out that a $25,000 car in the USA will cost €35,000 in Ireland plus the exchange rate ($1.200) or $42,000. And that's for a mid-size automatic!
Imagine if you wrecked a BMW? You'd be out of pocket at least $17,000 even IF the credit card insurance paid a 100% of the claim.
I have also been advised that when you file an auto accident claim with the credit card insurance company that it is reported to the national insurance bureau showing that you had an accident in Ireland. This could affect you own personal auto insurance policy premium at renewal time.
Most folks when they realize this risk scenario usually add the CDW coverage and the Super CDW coverage at the counter so that they don't have a car rental 'hangover.' Taking out those additional insurance at the counter becomes EXPENSIVE!
I would recommendation is to reserve the Fully Inclusive Rate through ConnsIrelandCarRental.com and Hertz. All the features at a discount guaranteed in euros. Compare and you'll see it is a great value and offers 'peace of mind.'
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