American Express Rental Car Insurance Question

[riverdees05 Platinum Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close riverdees05]

To use the American Express Rental Car Insurance do you have to use the American Express Card to rent the car?

[bigfrank Administrator Find all posts View Profile Close bigfrank]

I believe you need to pay with Amex

[vinolover Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close vinolover]

To use the American Express Rental Car Insurance do you have to use the American Express Card to rent the car?

Yes. The charge for the insurance will automatically show up on your Amex bill if you use that card to pay for the car rental.

[riverdees05 Platinum Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close riverdees05]

Hotwire Rental

I rented a car with Hotwire, used my American Express Card, but the insurance charge did not show up. Do I need to call AMEX and tell them the Hotwire charge was a rental car?

[Carolinian Super Moderator Find all posts View Profile Close Carolinian]

It probably never hurts to document those things ahead of time.

I have used Amex for car rental insurance in Europe and the US, and am happy with it. I have had two instances of damage, and in neither one did I have to front any money until the Amex insurance came through. In both cases, the rental car company said that in working with Amex they were confident they would get their money. In one instance, someone broke a side window into the backseat to steal a light jacket I had left in the car while it was parked overnight in France. Dealing with the rental company was a breeze, but the long delay in waiting for someone to take the police report at the police station was a real pain. In the other instance, in Greece, a local who had been drinking ran into the rear of the car on one side doing substantial damage, but leaving the car drivable. I drove it to the local office of the rental car company, and they gave me another car with little fuss. When I turned that one in back in Athens, it also was a quick process, again with the comment that they had a good claims history with Amex so they did not want any money from me.

[vinolover Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close vinolover]

I rented a car with Hotwire, used my American Express Card, but the insurance charge did not show up. Do I need to call AMEX and tell them the Hotwire charge was a rental car?

Have you already returned from your trip or just booked the car for sometime in the future? Amex doesn't put through the charge until after you've taken the trip and returned the rental car.

[grest Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close grest]

I rented a car with Hotwire, used my American Express Card, but the insurance charge did not show up. Do I need to call AMEX and tell them the Hotwire charge was a rental car?

I've never had to tell Amex. The charge showed up soon after completion of the rental.

[swilshire Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close swilshire]

Definitely automatic. In fact, if you sign up for the AMEX insurance, any American Express card you use for a car rental will trigger the charge. Works OK for me. If I do a rental where I don't want the insurance (such as those covered by the company), I just use a Visa.

Sheila

[riverdees05 Platinum Contributor Find all posts View Profile Close riverdees05]

Thanks, leaving this coming Saturday for San Antonio, TX.

[davhu1 Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close davhu1]

I thought I read one time that you need to use the card to reserve and pay. Which make sense because it prevents you from returning a damaged car and then pay with AmEx, and also one is not required to use the same card to pay as the one used to reserve or checkout.

Suggest you check with AmEx.