Credit Cards with Car Rental CDW (Insurance)

[galahad15]

The Wells Fargo BILT card has primary coverage CDW, all with no annual fee (which was the primary reason I added it to my current card collection) 

Why use an AF-based card for primary CDW coverage purposes when you can get the same level of coverage with the BILT card for no AF?  

[Horseshoez]

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@galahad15 wrote:

The Wells Fargo BILT card has primary coverage CDW, all with no annual fee (which was the primary reason I added it to my current card collection) 

Why use an AF-based card for primary CDW coverage purposes when you can get the same level of coverage with the BILT card for no AF?  

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The $95 annual fee for the CSP more than pays for itself if you do any traveling at all.

[SpaethCo]

I think it's worthwhile to note that if you live in a state with laws that force auto insurance companies to include rental cars in Property Damage Liability coverage, this might be meaningless to you.

I paid for the Amex per-rental coverage several times before learning that Minnesota statute 65B.49(5a) requires that any personal auto policy written in Minnesota must cover rental cars (including loss of use) as part of standard liability coverage with zero deductible, even if you don't otherwise carry comp/collision on any of your vehicles.  

What this means is that any card-derived "primary" CDW coverage will only act as co-primary coverage and Amex (or Chase or whoever) will engage with my personal auto insurance company to share claim costs, but no matter what I'm going to have a claim against my personal auto insurance.

There are a handful of other states where this is the case, so make sure you consult with someone familiar with your own state's laws.

[masscredit]

So is it the card itself or the type of card that offers coverage (Visa, MasterCard or AMEX)? I received my new Cap 1 Quick Silver card yesterday. When I called to ask about this, the woman mentioned MasterCard benefits. I later started to read the info that came with the card. It has a few sections that cover rental car insurance. Plus there is trip cancelation, baggage delay, lost luggage and a few other things. I don't know what any of my cards offer. I need to go through them all and maybe make a spread sheet so I can use the card that best suits my situation when I make a purchase. 

[Aim_High]

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@masscredit wrote:

So is it the card itself or the type of card that offers coverage (Visa, MasterCard or AMEX)? I received my new Cap 1 Quick Silver card yesterday. When I called to ask about this, the woman mentioned MasterCard benefits. I later started to read the info that came with the card. It has a few sections that cover rental car insurance. Plus there is trip cancelation, baggage delay, lost luggage and a few other things. I don't know what any of my cards offer. I need to go through them all and maybe make a spread sheet so I can use the card that best suits my situation when I make a purchase. 

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It's generally the card itself, @masscredit.  While Visa and Mastercard may advertise their benefits for each level of their cards, whether your particular card includes all (or any) of those benefits is ultimately up to the issuing lender.  For example, AOD FCU doesn't include any of the Visa Signature benefits on their card although it does have very low APRs and fees as well as great cash rewards.  

It's also a question of whether the benefit is primary or secondary.  More cards include secondary, which only kicks in after you file a claim on your personal auto insurance. It reimburses your deductible, but then you're stuck with a claim filed on your insurance policy which may affect your rates.  Primary insurance is much more rare, but it pays completely independent of your insurance, meaning there is $0 out-of-pocket and no effect on your rates.  Most Visa Infinite cards have primary insurance, including Chase Sapphire Reserve.  Chase even includes primary on their Visa Signature Sapphire Preferred. 

Yes, checking with your lenders and reading the brochures is the only way to know your specific benefits. 

AMEX is a different animal from Visa/Mastercard.  They no longer have any automatic coverages on their credit cards but you can sign up for coverage at an additional fee which is activated and charged as each car is rented.