Car Rental Insurance Benefits From Credit Cards

When you rent a car, what type of extra coverage do you take before you drive it off the lot?

When you rent a car you are usually given a few options on what to do to make sure the car is covered in case you are in an accident.

Use Your Own Insurance

If you have a good car insurance policy and proof of insurance on you, you may be able to use your own car insurance policy to take care of the coverage you need while you are using the rental car. If you consider his route you need to make sure you know just what your insurance policy covers and that the coverage you have is enough to take care of the requirements of the rental company

Use Their Insurance

In case you don’t have the best insurance coverage, most rental companies do offer their own, for a price. They have either made an agreement with an insurance company, or are willing to take on the risk themselves and will allow you to purchase a waiver that will grant you coverage, just in case something happens while you are driving their vehicle.

The Third Option

For some people there is a third option, letting their credit card cover them.

Many credit cards actually offer a rental car insurance policy to cover you while you have a rental car. This is most common with travel rewards credit cards, but many regular credit card companies have extended the program beyond the travel rewards cards and offer it with all their cards.

In addition to just covering the basics if you are in a wreck, many of them have a full replacement value for the rental car company of up to $50,000. That means even if the car was totaled, you would likely have the coverage you need to pay for the damages without going broke. This also should kick in if the car were to be lost or stolen.

Many of the best credit cards these days also offer a little more for your money. They have 24/7 roadside assistance policies. This means if you are in your rental car in a strange town, and you break down, have a flat tire, or some other similar problem, they will come to your rescue and get you back where you need to be.

Not all cards have these services. If you are in the market for a new credit card, you should do you research to see that the one you get is the best credit card deal around and will give you a few of the extras you deserve.

Stephen Sikes is the owner of the credit card comparison site
www.CreditCardWave.com
Visit the site to read articles and reviews on the best ways to utilize credit cards.
You can compare and apply online for top personal and business credit cards.

Which credit cards to close? When to apply for a personal loan?

I have two store credit cards and four bank credit cards. I don't use the store credit cards and I only use two of the bank cards. I was wondering if it would hurt my credit if I closed both store cards and two bank cards.

I have a personal loan and would like to apply for another loan to cover that loan plus an outstanding balance on my bank card. I just paid a large amount of the bank card. Should I wait until that balance has cleared my credit report before applying for the personal loan?

Answer
If you are carrying balances on other credit cards, you may want to wait till you have all those cards paid off before closing any. Closing an account would lower your overall limit which would increase your overall debt to limit ratio. Carrying balances of more than 30% hurts your score. Pay off the balances and your score will rebound.

Accounts closed in good standing remain on your credit report for at least 10 years. They just don't count as much in your score as open, active accounts. The actual closing of the account won't ding your score much.

It is no longer good advice to keep all credit cards open. A stack of unused credit cards in your sock drawer is just asking for problems with ID theft and fraud. You have to secure those cards and monitor the statements. Some credit cards are now charging monthly fees for inactive accounts. All the more reason to close unused accounts.

If you do decide to close the extra accounts, do it by letter and request written confirmation that the accounts are closed and 0 balance. Keep that written confirmation forever. You never know when a closed account will come back to bite you.

Powered by Yahoo! Answers

Think you can give a better answer? Please help others and answer below.