Vehicle accidents can be chaotic and confusing experiences, especially if you are driving a rental vehicle at the time an accident occurs. Do you know what steps to take if you get into an accident while operating a rental vehicle? Will your insurance cover your losses? Do you need rental car insurance coverage?

Here, we want to discuss the most common insurance issues that arise in crashes involving rental vehicles. The reality is that you should be able to recover compensation figure losses, just like you would be able to in a traditional vehicle accident in your personal vehicle.

Insurance Issues After a Rental Car Crash

If you are renting a vehicle, then there is a good chance that you are on a business trip or on vacation. Alternatively, you may even be in a rental after your personal vehicle was involved in an accident or if your vehicle is being repaired. Regardless of why you are inside of a rental vehicle, any crash is likely to create a stressful situation. However, there are various insurance options that you may or may not be aware of after a rental car collision occurs.

When you rent your vehicle, you are contractually obligated to return the vehicle to the rental company in good working order. This is true even if the damage is caused by another driver. If you get into an accident inside of a rental vehicle in Arizona, there are a few possibilities of insurance in these situations – the rental company insurance options, your personal auto insurance coverage, or insurance available through the credit card company.

Rental Company Insurance in Arizona’

Anytime a person rents a vehicle, the rental companies will ask if the renter wants to purchase additional insurance coverage for the duration of time they have the vehicle. There are various types of coverages that the rental carrier will offer, including:

• Collision damage waiver. This is also referred to as a loss damage waiver. With this type of coverage, the rental company will waive any vehicle repair or replacement costs if you get into an accident and the vehicle is damaged or stolen. There are various exceptions to this policy, including a person who rented the vehicle and drove in a reckless manner.
• Liability coverage. The liability coverage offered by rental carriers will usually pay for property damage or medical expenses to other individuals as a result of the vehicle accident that the renter causes.
• Personal accident insurance. This type of rental coverage will pay for any injuries to the individual who rents the vehicle as well as the passengers inside the rental vehicle if an accident occurs.
• Personal items coverage. This type of coverage will help pay for any damaged or lost property as a result of the rental vehicle collision. This can include cell phones, laptops, in any other personal valuables.

A Driver’s Personal Auto Insurance

If you rent a vehicle and you have your own automobile insurance coverage, this will typically come with all the same types of coverage provided by the rental company that we listed above. No, not every auto insurance policy looks exactly alike. Some people have comprehensive and collision coverage in Arizona, while other individuals may not.

If an individual chooses not to carry the insurance options offered by the rental company, they will typically have to provide proof that they have their own auto insurance that will cover expenses in the event a collision occurs.

Credit Card Insurance

Every rental company requires that you use a credit card to pay for the vehicle. Most major credit card companies have automatic car rental insurance built into their policies so that when you swipe that card, you will automatically have some type of coverage. This type of credit card rental car insurance is designed to help pay for any damage that occurs to the vehicle while you are operating it