Which Credit Card Provide Primary Rental Car Insurance
Credit card car rental insurance is one of the unsung heroes of rewards card perks. Many rewards cards offer multiple types of travel insurance as a free benefit, including coverage for lost or damaged luggage, unexpected trip delays or cancellations, and a car rental policy to protect cardholders when they rent a vehicle.
Rental car insurance is an underrated and underutilized benefit that often creates confusion, so we're here to set the record straight and help you maximize your benefits when you travel.
Plenty of cards offer secondary rental coverage, which supplements your personal auto insurance policy. But there is also a selection of travel-focused rewards cards that provide primary rental coverage, providing a host of benefits over and above secondary coverage.
How Does Primary Coverage Differ from Secondary Coverage?
Secondary rental insurance only kicks in to cover costs that your personal rental insurance won't pick up. You still need to file a claim with your insurance provider and pay the deductible, and the coverage is small enough in some cases it may not cover the entire cost of fixing or replacing the car. Secondary coverage is often limited to 15/20 consecutive days, the policy may not cover you in some international destinations, and secondary policies don't always cover administration fees or 'loss of use' costs.
Primary rental coverage, on the other hand, kicks in before your personal auto insurance, so there's no need to notify your insurance company and take a hit on your yearly premiums. Primary rental car coverage is also typically more comprehensive than secondary, and much more likely to cover the entire cost of the car in the case of theft or total loss from flood or fire. The primary policy offered with many cards also covers cardholders for longer rental periods—up to 30 or 40 days.
Neither Primary Nor Secondary Coverage Include Liability Insurance
Auto rental insurance provided by your credit card does not include liability insurance, and will not cover damage to other people's property, vehicles, or personal liability in the case of injury. This is such an important aspect to understand.
If you're at fault, and you hit another vehicle, building, or person, neither the primary or secondary coverage offered by your credit card will cover damage or costs from the other party .
If you find a card that provides such coverage, please let us know!
Some countries, like Australia, build partial-liability insurance into the rental cost. This may cover medical expenses and rehabilitation if someone is hurt, but not damages to personal property. Regardless, if you plan to use primary credit card rental coverage, you will still need to provide your own liability coverage in case of damage to another person's property. This can come from your own personal auto insurance, additional coverage supplied by the rental-car company, or purchased as part of a travel insurance package.
Personal Credit Cards That Offer Primary Auto Rental CDW
We haven't covered every card in the U.S. with primary coverage; instead, we have focused on rewards credit cards that provide top value. And after Citi decimated the travel protections on its entire range of rewards cards, including removing Car Rental cover, most cards on the list are now issued by Chase. Some of the cards on this list don't cover specific countries or car types, and the policies differ by card. It's essential to check the benefits guide for your card and gain a thorough understanding of the T&C's, so you're covered in the case of a mishap.
| Credit Card | Conditions |
|---|---|
| Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card | Primary coverage in the United States and most foreign countries (no stated exclusions) - Catch all the details in our post covering Chase's Auto Rental CDW |
| Chase Sapphire Reserve® | Primary coverage in the United States and most foreign countries (no stated exclusions) - Catch all the details in our post covering Chase's Auto Rental CDW |
| United℠ Explorer Card | Primary coverage in the United States and most foreign countries (no stated exclusions) |
| United Quest℠ Card | Primary coverage in the United States and most foreign countries (no stated exclusions) |
| United Club℠ Infinite Card | Primary coverage in the United States and most foreign countries (no stated exclusions) |
| United MileagePlus® Club Card | Primary coverage in the United States and most foreign countries (no stated exclusions) |
| The Ritz-Carlton™ Credit Card | Primary coverage in the United States and most foreign countries (no stated exclusions) |
| U.S. Bank Altitude™ Reserve Visa Infinite® Card | Primary coverage when you charge your entire rental amount to your card and decline the rental agency's collision insurance |
| Barclaycard Arrival Plus® World Elite Mastercard® | Secondary coverage in the US unless you have no insurance and then it is primary, primary coverage internationally. |
Business Credit Cards That Offer Primary Auto Rental CDW
The coverage supplied by the cards listed differs by card type, but business card rental insurance has one overarching difference from personal cards: You are only covered when renting a car for business purposes.
| Credit Card | Conditions |
|---|---|
| Ink Business Preferred® Credit Card | Primary coverage in the United States while renting primarily for business purposes, renting outside your country of residence for personal reasons or if you do not have automobile insurance. This benefit is available in the United States and most foreign countries (no stated exclusions) - Catch all the details in our post covering Chase's Auto Rental CDW |
| Ink Business Unlimited® Credit Card | Primary coverage in the United States while renting primarily for business purposes, renting outside your country of residence for personal reasons or if you do not have automobile insurance. This benefit is available in the United States and most foreign countries (no stated exclusions) |
| Ink Business Cash® Credit Card | Primary coverage in the United States while renting primarily for business purposes, renting outside your country of residence for personal reasons or if you do not have automobile insurance. This benefit is available in the United States and most foreign countries (no stated exclusions) |
| Ink Plus® Business Credit Card (no longer open to applications) | Primary coverage in the United States while renting primarily for business purposes, renting outside your country of residence for personal reasons or if you do not have automobile insurance. This benefit is available in the United States and most foreign countries (no stated exclusions) |
| Marriott Rewards® Premier Plus Business Credit Card | Primary coverage in the United States while renting primarily for business purposes, renting outside your country of residence for personal reasons or if you do not have automobile insurance. This benefit is available in the United States and most foreign countries (no stated exclusions) |
| United℠ Business Card | Primary coverage in the United States while renting primarily for business purposes, renting outside your country of residence for personal reasons or if you do not have automobile insurance. This benefit is available in the United States and most foreign countries (no stated exclusions) |
| United℠ Explorer Business Card (no longer open to applications) | Primary coverage in the United States while renting primarily for business purposes, renting outside your country of residence for personal reasons or if you do not have automobile insurance. This benefit is available in the United States and most foreign countries (no stated exclusions) |
| United Club℠ Business Card | Primary coverage in the United States while renting primarily for business purposes, renting outside your country of residence for personal reasons or if you do not have automobile insurance. This benefit is available in the United States and most foreign countries (no stated exclusions) |
| Southwest® Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Credit Card | Primary coverage in the United States while renting primarily for business purposes, renting outside your country of residence for personal reasons or if you do not have automobile insurance. This benefit is available in the United States and most foreign countries (no stated exclusions) |
Amex Premium Car Rental Protection
You may have noticed American Express is notably absent from our list of credit cards with primary rental car insurance. Amex provides freesecondary coverage on most of its credit card portfolio, but you can purchase primary coverage for a flat fee. For between $19.95 – $24.95 per rental, you're covered for up to 42 consecutive days (dependent on the issuing state of the card), and the policy covers you for up to $100K on almost any car—including luxury vehicles, SUV's, and pickup trucks.
American Express premium car rental protection is an opt-in program which cardmembers sign up to on the Amex Car Rental Insurance Coverage page. You'll be presented with a couple of options when signing up for the Amex coverage. You don't pay anything upfront; the payment is applied automatically when you rent a car. You'll be billed this one-time fee each time you rent a car until you request to remove the benefit from your account.
What Do You Need to Do to Make Sure You're Covered?
Although the exact process will differ between cards, ensuring you get the coverage offered by your credit card is normally a straightforward affair.
- Register as the primary renter of the car.
- Decline the rental car company's collision damage waiver (CDW).
- Pay for the car in-full with the credit card that offers the best Auto Rental CDW
If you're planning to rent with a company you haven't used before (or rent for the first time in a new country), ask your credit card provider for a letter stating you're covered in your destination country (how to get proof of coverage). There are plenty of unpleasant stories out there about travelers being denied rentals when declining the rental agency's CDW insurance, normally due to misunderstandings of how the coverage works. A proof-of-coverage letter should help you avoid this issue.
Final Thoughts
Primary credit card rental car insurance is not typically the first item taken into account when appraising a travel rewards card, but it should definitely be on your list. The perks and insurances can provide more value on some cards than the rewards points you earn, and it only takes one claim after damaging a vehicle to highlight the value of primary rental coverage.
Check the T&C's on each card's benefits guide before you apply for your next card and see whether it provides primary or secondary CDW/LDW auto rental insurance. It could potentially save you thousands of dollars and will make travel a more enjoyable experience.
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Which Credit Card Provide Primary Rental Car Insurance
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