Most of you use Autoeurope and I have also in many trips to France but I decided to explore other rental agencies for my three week trip to Tuscany .Autoeurope provides no deductible collision and theft in Italy while others have an 750 to 800 euro deductible but my VISA Signature Reward credit card will cover the deductible so I do not need Autoeurope's complete coverage..The lowest quote from Tirreno Prestige was some 35% lower and several others were 20 % lower for equivalent cars/dates/etc..has anyone used Tirreno Prestige which is a large rental company??
This message has been edited. Last edited by: Kim,
Check with the agency about the Visa coverage...I'm under the impression it will not cover in Italy...or the agencies in Italy require you to purchase from them. Maybe others can add to this.
Many credit cards will not cover your deductible in Italy - call your company to be sure. I called mine about this, but it was several years ago - and they did not cover Italy (other European countries, but not Italy).
Consider this even if they do cover the deductible in the event of an accident your card is charged, it is up to you, probably when you are back in the states to try to get your money back,proving fault etc. My father(on the trip where i was concieved in Italy)had this "accident" nightmare happen where he was accused of hurting someone, he had to appear in court etc. etc. better to have full coverage without worries.RR
Posts: 6508 | Location: Culver City, CA, USA | Registered: 08 November 2002
I asked Autoeurope about this insurance issue especially as to how they consider the "no deductible vs competitor's deductible" when deciding to match a lower rate and below is their response.. "Hello Roger: Thank you for your email. As for the credit card coverage, most credit cards do cover for collision and theft insurance in Italy, but the reason we make it mandatory in Italy is that the rental agencies we use (Hertz, Avis, Europcar, etc.) do not accept it locally. They would only accept coverage either purchased through Auto Europe or coverage bought at the counter through the individual supplier. We did allow credit card coverage in the past, but it became such a hassle for our clients (the car would be damaged so the rental agency would bill the client using credit card coverage and then the client would dispute the charge through the credit card company but to no avail and the client would end up being responsible for the damage done to the rental car) that we began to include in our rates with a zero deducible. This way, the client does not have to deal with disputing any charges and does not have to have any responsibility if anything happens to the rental car. As for competitor's rates and deducible, when we proceed with a match rate against a competitor we do take into account the deductible amount. However, the President of my company personally looks at all match rates, so it is up to his discretion about what to do when we match rates in Italy when our competitors have deductible amounts. You best bet is if you found a lower rate with a competitor in Italy, submit the beat rate and we will come back to you with our offer. Any other questions, please email back."
Topic Closed
