Here’s a simple step-by-step guide for using your Chase credit card’s Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver:
- Step 1: Use your Chase credit card to pay for your entire car rental. This means from booking to paying the final bill.
- Step 2: When you’re at the rental counter, they’ll ask you if you want to buy their collision damage waiver. Politely decline. Your Chase card already gives you this coverage. If they insist, don’t worry. Just call the Benefit Administrator: call 1-877-445-4153 or 1-888-320-9656 for help.
- Step 3: Before you hit the road, take a few minutes to check the car for any damage. If you spot anything, let the rental company know.
The protection from your Chase card stays active the whole time you have the car. It ends when you give the car back to the rental company.
This benefit works in the US and in most other countries.
But, there are some places where it can’t be used. If you’re not sure if it will work where you’re going, call the Benefit Administrator before your trip. Call 1-877-445-4153 for help.
Know Your Coverage: Which Cars are Covered and Which Aren’t?
While your Chase card offers coverage for most rented vehicles, there are exceptions.
The no-go list includes high-value cars, antique cars (older than 20 years or not made in the last 10 years), cargo vans, trucks (except pick-ups), motorcycles, limos, RVs, and large passenger vans (seating more than nine people).
For example, fancy cars like an Alfa Romeo, Aston Martin, or Ferrari aren’t covered. But some models from Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Cadillac, Infiniti, Land Rover, Lexus, Lincoln, and Range Rover are okay. If you’re not sure, just ask the Benefit Administrator.
The Nitty-Gritty: What’s Not Covered by the Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver?
The Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver from your Chase card doesn’t cover everything. For example, it won’t cover:
- Any agreements you make with the rental company, except for the deductible on your personal car insurance.
- Injuries to people or damage to things inside or outside the rental car.
- Lost or stolen personal items.
- Your responsibility if you get hurt.
- Anything the rental company or its insurance pays for.
- Any extra insurance you buy from the rental company.
- The rental car losing value after an accident.
- Anything your insurance, employer, or employer’s insurance should pay for.
- Damage or theft caused on purpose, by drunk or drugged driving, illegal activities, or carrying contraband.
- Normal wear and tear, mechanical breakdowns, or damage from off-road driving.
- Damage from war, rebellion, insurrection, or terrorist activities.
- Anything confiscated by authorities.
Also, the Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver doesn’t cover rental periods longer than 31 days, leases, mini leases, or damage from not taking care of the rental car.
If you leave the car running and unattended, for example, and it gets stolen, that’s on you.
Damage reported more than 60 days after it happened, or claims not made within 100 days of the incident, or without all the needed paperwork within a year, also aren’t covered.
Damage to the bed of a pick-up truck, unless from a covered loss like theft or collision, and damage from loading or unloading stuff into the bed of a pick-up truck also aren’t covered.
Navigating the Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver with Your Chase Credit Card: A Deep Dive into Karen’s Journey
Karen is your typical busy professional, always on the move, constantly jetting from one city to another for her work commitments.
On one such occasion, she found herself needing to rent a car in Atlanta.
She turned to her trusty Chase credit card: Chase Freedom Unlimited, Chase Freedom Student, which came with a feature she found incredibly useful: the Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver.
Let’s delve into Karen’s story and see how this feature played out in real life.
Tapping into Chase Credit Card Benefits: Karen’s Car Rental Adventure
Karen had just landed in Atlanta. She was there for an important business meeting and she needed a reliable means of transport to get around the city.
Armed with her Chase credit card, she decided to rent a car.
By doing so, Karen activated the Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver feature that came with her card.
This feature would provide her with reimbursement for damages caused by theft or collision up to the actual cash value of most rented cars.
And all she had to do was use her Chase credit card for the entire rental transaction.
The Smart Move: Karen Skips Extra Coverage
Upon reaching the car rental counter, Karen carefully reviewed the rental agreement. She found a section where the rental company offered their own collision damage waiver, at an extra cost.
But Karen knew better. She had done her homework and knew that accepting this extra coverage would cancel out the benefit she had with her Chase credit card.
So, she confidently declined the rental company’s collision damage waiver. This is a crucial point to remember: if you’re using your Chase credit card to rent a car, you don’t need to purchase extra coverage.
A Proactive Approach: Checking the Rental Car before Departure
Karen wasn’t one to just jump into a car and go. She took her time to inspect the rental car before leaving the rental company’s premises.
She checked for any existing damage and made sure to notify the rental company if she spotted any. This is an important step to prevent any possible disputes about damages later on.
Understanding Coverage Limits: A Glimpse into Karen’s Knowledge
The Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver benefit is there for you for as long as the rental car is under your control.
It stops being in effect once the rental company reassumes control of their vehicle. This means that as soon as Karen returned the car, the coverage stopped.
Karen also knew that this benefit is available in the United States and most foreign countries.
However, there are places where coverage is not available due to local laws, rental agreement terms, or prohibitions by individual merchants.
What Vehicles are Not Covered? Karen’s Guide to the Exceptions
Karen was also aware that not all vehicles are covered by the Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver.
Certain high-value cars, exotic or antique cars, cargo vans, motorcycles, and larger passenger vans aren’t covered.
However, her choice of vehicle, a standard Lexus sedan, fell within the covered categories.
A Reality Check: What the Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver Doesn’t Cover
Karen was also well aware of what the Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver doesn’t cover.
Personal belongings, off-road damages, personal liability, and damage or theft due to negligence or intentional acts are some of the exclusions.
The waiver also doesn’t cover the cost of any insurance or collision damage waiver offered by or purchased through the car rental company.
Things You Should Remember
Karen remembered some important things about the Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver. For example, you can only use it for up to 31 days of renting.
And, if something bad happens, you have to tell the company within 60 days. You also have to give them all the needed papers within 365 days.
Karen’s story shows how the Auto Rental Collision Damage Waiver on her Chase credit card helped her.
So, the next time you rent a car, use your Chase credit card. You’ll feel safer knowing you have this extra protection.
