Anyone uses AMEX over CSP for primary insurance when renting cars?
Is AMEXs $17/rental fee consider primirary coverage like the CSP?
My CSP AF is coming. I only use my CSP for car rentals. Eventually want to apply or upgrade to CSR.
@fltireguy wrote:
I don't have a CSP or CSR. But I have an Amex, and, since I live in Florida, the coverage is $12.xx for the rental period
BUT
The trick is to reserve with Amex, put the deposit for the rental on Amex, and, as long as there is no damage to the card, switch the payment card to a different card when you return it. Amex won't charge you for the insurance, since the rental wasn't charged to their card... IF there was a damage issue, obviously leave it on Amex...
This is interesting, and very useful if it works consistently. 
I can't put my finger on the thread(s), but I (vaguely) recall reading that in the past Amex would bill the fee for the Premium Car Rental Protection as soon as the authorization hit for the rental itself... specifically I remember a report of someone purchasing as atlas from the rental booth and having to get Amex to reverse the PCRP fee that was triggered (which was said to not be a problem).
That said, my data isn't recent, my memory is imperfect, and I don't have personal experience with the product. It's very possible Amex has made a positive change in the interim that has remedied the old problem of billing the fee in error, which would allow this "loophole" to work.
In any case, the Amex coverage seems to be popular with many people.
@UncleB wrote:
@fltireguy wrote:
I don't have a CSP or CSR. But I have an Amex, and, since I live in Florida, the coverage is $12.xx for the rental period
BUT
The trick is to reserve with Amex, put the deposit for the rental on Amex, and, as long as there is no damage to the card, switch the payment card to a different card when you return it. Amex won't charge you for the insurance, since the rental wasn't charged to their card... IF there was a damage issue, obviously leave it on Amex...This is interesting, and very useful if it works consistently.
I can't put my finger on the thread(s), but I (vaguely) recall reading that in the past Amex would bill the fee for the Premium Car Rental Protection as soon as the authorization hit for the rental itself... specifically I remember a report of someone purchasing as atlas from the rental booth and having to get Amex to reverse the PCRP fee that was triggered (which was said to not be a problem).
That said, my data isn't recent, my memory is imperfect, and I don't have personal experience with the product. It's very possible Amex has made a positive change in the interim that has remedied the old problem of billing the fee in error, which would allow this "loophole" to work.
In any case, the Amex coverage seems to be popular with many people.
I use AMEX's primary insurance quite frequently. AMEX smacks you with the coverage charge a day or two after the final charge is made the day the car is returned. The insurance charge on the statement references the original charge.
I guess it could make sense that they would not charge you the insurance if you switch the card. I'll be in Flordia next week so when I return the car and I hear those famous words of "...and you want to charge the AMEX card on file?" I'll say NO! and charge it to my Blue Business Plus 
As an added note... AMEX will sometimes smack you twice if you charge the car AND you get hit with some other type of rental charge. Enterprise charged me for the 1,000,000,000 toll booths Flordia has and AMEX hit me with that primary insurance charge since it saw it as a 'rental car charge'. Just a heads up to keep your eye out for that too!
Haven't had the opportunity to use either as we rarely rent vs lyft and the one time I did rent after picking up my CSP I opted to just pay the $20 for enterprise coverage since it was a one day rental and to me it was worth twenty bucks not to be dealing with calls to chase claims and adjusters instead of just dropping the car and letting enterprise handle it. That said if it were for a longer rental and a matter of saving more than $20 I'd be using CSP, I've heard nothing but good things from people who ended up filing a claim.
@fltireguy wrote:
Just a quick data point.
IF the initial authorization is put on Amex, and then there is no physical rental charge (since you used a different card to pay when the car was returned), they will NOT charge you for the insurance, provided you swap out the payment card, and there is no damage to the car obviously.
I have tried this twice in the past few months, and haven't gotten hit with the insurance charge..
Great data point... thanks for sharing!