The simple car hire hack that saves travellers £610 this summer
As thousands head off on their summer holidays, many will want to hire a car to explore the local area. However, recent research from Gigasure found that in many cases, customers will be paying up to £610 more than they need to by purchasing car hire excess insurance from the car rental company. This is often more than the cost to hire the car itself. Gigasure says that purchasing a separate standalone policy saves travellers hundreds of pounds and is urging travellers not to get caught out by car hire companies.
Buying car hire excess insurance as a stand-alone policy rather than through a car rental company can save holidaymakers up to £610 on a two-week holiday and up to £360 on a week's break.
Research from Gigasure, the car hire insurance experts, found that car hire excess insurance can often cost more than hiring a car.
For example, 8 days of car hire rental for a standard compact vehicle in Spain with Europcar costs £291.41. The cost of Europcar’s Compact+ insurance purchased for the same duration is £348.43 – this amounts to 54% of the total hire car cost of £639.57. For comparison, a European single trip standalone car hire excess policy with Gigasure for the same duration costs £27.24.
Gigasure’s analysis of car hire excess costs shows that the car hire excess cover offered by rental companies can be an expensive way of getting cover. Their research looked at the cost of car hire excess insurance across popular rental companies in Europe and found that purchasing a separate standalone policy from a specialist provider can be up to 96% cheaper, in some cases saving the hirer over £700 in insurance costs, and often offering more superior cover.
Ernesto Suarez, CEO, Gigasure, says: “Purchasing a separate standalone policy saves you hundreds of pounds, and offers a higher level of protection at a fraction of the cost.
“Taking out car hire excess insurance when hiring a vehicle is vital protection in the event that something happens while using the hire car, but purchasing this directly through the rental company is extremely expensive and we urge travellers not to be bullied into purchasing this at the rental desk. Instead take out a standalone policy before you travel.
“As well as using confusing language to get you to buy the car hire excess insurance direct from them, many policies sold by major car hire companies often have gaps in the coverage for example, stone chips on a windscreen, flat tyre etc. A standalone car hire excess policy will offer more extensive coverage ranging from losing your car keys to accidentally using the wrong fuel.”