Will admitting fault void my LDW on a rental car?
November 7, 2015 7:53 AM Subscribe
Returned a rental car recently, had some damage in a crowded parking garage. Seems like the rental agent was trying to get me not to admit fault, but I was dumb and did so. Can they void my LDW by saying it was "reckless"? I'm worried: only light body damage, but will be hella expensive, plus downtime charges, if I'm on the hook.
Does the credit card you used to rent the vehicle provide insurance? You might be covered.
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 8:12 AM on November 7, 2015 [1 favorite]
posted by Johnny Wallflower at 8:12 AM on November 7, 2015 [1 favorite]
Response by poster: Jairus, the terms say "no reckless or wanton driving" and they specify street racing and things like that. Well I definitely wasn't street racing or even going fast! I'm afraid that because it's so nebulous a category they'll get to lump me in there.
posted by ArgyleGargoyle at 8:19 AM on November 7, 2015
posted by ArgyleGargoyle at 8:19 AM on November 7, 2015
Response by poster: Johnny Wallflower: no coverage from cc, as I used my visa-branded bank card to pay.
posted by ArgyleGargoyle at 8:23 AM on November 7, 2015
posted by ArgyleGargoyle at 8:23 AM on November 7, 2015
Was this an accident with another driver? Or did you just hit a curb or wall or something? If it's the former, the rental agent may just have not wanted you to admit fault so that the rental company would be in a better negotiating position with the other driver and/or with the other driver's insurance company.
When I got into a very minor accident (no damage to my car, a few scratches/paint damage to the other car) that was 100% my fault, my insurance company seemed to do the same thing and I had to insist a few times that it really was my fault (and then when I did they paid for the other driver's repairs)
posted by car s at 8:29 AM on November 7, 2015
When I got into a very minor accident (no damage to my car, a few scratches/paint damage to the other car) that was 100% my fault, my insurance company seemed to do the same thing and I had to insist a few times that it really was my fault (and then when I did they paid for the other driver's repairs)
posted by car s at 8:29 AM on November 7, 2015
Response by poster: No, I hit a pylon in a very narrow space trying to back out. No one else. No police.
posted by ArgyleGargoyle at 8:36 AM on November 7, 2015
posted by ArgyleGargoyle at 8:36 AM on November 7, 2015
Best answer: I once knocked the driver side mirror completely off a rental car by pulling into a garage spot that was too small. The LDW covered it and the rental company did not seem bothered at all. Calm down.
posted by joan_holloway at 9:08 AM on November 7, 2015 [5 favorites]
posted by joan_holloway at 9:08 AM on November 7, 2015 [5 favorites]
Yeah this is probably not that big a deal. But also check with your own auto insurance. Mine gives me the same coverage in a rental car as I have with my own car.
posted by The Deej at 10:00 AM on November 7, 2015
posted by The Deej at 10:00 AM on November 7, 2015
Best answer: Disclaimer: I am an auto insurance liability and bodily injury adjuster; I am not your auto insurance liability adjuster.
The simple answer, without seeing your rental contract, is: no. No they cannot disclaim LDW coverage to you for being 'reckless' based on what you've described.
"Reckless" is a very specific term (a term that would have to be defined in the policy contract, since it's a word and therefore open to interpretation, and policy contracts are not written to be ambiguous) and no insurance adjuster in their right mind is going to apply it to some minor cosmetic damage that you got in a parking lot. Seriously. Even if we wanted to, we don't have time for that. Also, even if that were the case, every fender bender, tap, bump and scrape committed by every human being would now be deemed 'reckless' and no one would qualify for coverage under their insurance/rental car's insurance. (Keep in mind the rental company clerk is not the liability adjuster. He doesn't make decisions about whether or not something is a covered loss under an insurance policy contract. The rental company's insurance carrier does that. And it's the rental company's insurance that has to formally issue a disclaimer of coverage if they find you "reckless", for which there currently appears to be no corroborating evidence that you ever were.)
Yes, if you admitted to the rental company that it happened when you were parking and hit a pylon, you are "at fault" and therefore "legally liable" but that does not make you "reckless". Were you in the commission of a felony at the time, like evading the police? Were you DUI? Were you speeding? Sounds like no, no, and no. You're fine. You're not 'reckless' in insurance terms. You're just at fault.
I don't know what state you rented the car in or what state you were driving it in when the damage occurred, nor the terms of your rental car contract, so I can't say any of this with 100% certainty. More like 95% certainty.
So, some questions:
What state did you rent the car from, and what state were you driving the vehicle in when the damage happened?
And, in the event that your LDW coverage is disclaimed for any reason (again, highly highly doubtful based on what you've told us):
Do you own a car that you have personal auto insurance on? If so, does that policy have Collision coverage?
Also, what was the reason for using the rental? As a temporary substitute for your personal owned auto while it was in repairs/out of commission, or for pleasure?
You can Memail the info if you prefer, and I can give you some more insight. Knowing what rental company it is may help, but I think it's wise not to name them here in the comments.
posted by nightrecordings at 10:28 AM on November 7, 2015 [6 favorites]
The simple answer, without seeing your rental contract, is: no. No they cannot disclaim LDW coverage to you for being 'reckless' based on what you've described.
"Reckless" is a very specific term (a term that would have to be defined in the policy contract, since it's a word and therefore open to interpretation, and policy contracts are not written to be ambiguous) and no insurance adjuster in their right mind is going to apply it to some minor cosmetic damage that you got in a parking lot. Seriously. Even if we wanted to, we don't have time for that. Also, even if that were the case, every fender bender, tap, bump and scrape committed by every human being would now be deemed 'reckless' and no one would qualify for coverage under their insurance/rental car's insurance. (Keep in mind the rental company clerk is not the liability adjuster. He doesn't make decisions about whether or not something is a covered loss under an insurance policy contract. The rental company's insurance carrier does that. And it's the rental company's insurance that has to formally issue a disclaimer of coverage if they find you "reckless", for which there currently appears to be no corroborating evidence that you ever were.)
Yes, if you admitted to the rental company that it happened when you were parking and hit a pylon, you are "at fault" and therefore "legally liable" but that does not make you "reckless". Were you in the commission of a felony at the time, like evading the police? Were you DUI? Were you speeding? Sounds like no, no, and no. You're fine. You're not 'reckless' in insurance terms. You're just at fault.
I don't know what state you rented the car in or what state you were driving it in when the damage occurred, nor the terms of your rental car contract, so I can't say any of this with 100% certainty. More like 95% certainty.
So, some questions:
What state did you rent the car from, and what state were you driving the vehicle in when the damage happened?
And, in the event that your LDW coverage is disclaimed for any reason (again, highly highly doubtful based on what you've told us):
Do you own a car that you have personal auto insurance on? If so, does that policy have Collision coverage?
Also, what was the reason for using the rental? As a temporary substitute for your personal owned auto while it was in repairs/out of commission, or for pleasure?
You can Memail the info if you prefer, and I can give you some more insight. Knowing what rental company it is may help, but I think it's wise not to name them here in the comments.
posted by nightrecordings at 10:28 AM on November 7, 2015 [6 favorites]
Best answer: This is what LDW (which is NOT insurance) is for. You can inattentively drive off a cliff and it's still the rental company's problem. Only damage you intentionally cause or damage that occurs because you were so reckless you may as well have intended to damage the car will void your LDW contract.
If you filled out the requested forms when you returned the car and they aren't some shady piece of crap company, you will likely never hear of this again, assuming you were renting in the US, where LDW typically has zero liability to the renter.
My SO's had multiple coworkers who severely damaged more than one of Hertz's cars and never had any difficulty beyond the wait for Hertz to bring them another car to the site of the crash.
The only way you are likely to get screwed here is if you were using a corporate code that includes LDW that you were not entitled to use or where the included LDW applies only to rentals for business purposes.(With my preferred vendor, some corporate codes apply LDW to all employee rentals, including leisure, while others only cover business rentals)
Even then, if the damage is minor, they probably won't even bother to check that you are actually eligible and that the rental was for business purposes. The problems there typically arise when it is major damage that costs a couple thousand dollars or more to repair.
posted by wierdo at 6:55 PM on November 7, 2015 [1 favorite]
If you filled out the requested forms when you returned the car and they aren't some shady piece of crap company, you will likely never hear of this again, assuming you were renting in the US, where LDW typically has zero liability to the renter.
My SO's had multiple coworkers who severely damaged more than one of Hertz's cars and never had any difficulty beyond the wait for Hertz to bring them another car to the site of the crash.
The only way you are likely to get screwed here is if you were using a corporate code that includes LDW that you were not entitled to use or where the included LDW applies only to rentals for business purposes.(With my preferred vendor, some corporate codes apply LDW to all employee rentals, including leisure, while others only cover business rentals)
Even then, if the damage is minor, they probably won't even bother to check that you are actually eligible and that the rental was for business purposes. The problems there typically arise when it is major damage that costs a couple thousand dollars or more to repair.
posted by wierdo at 6:55 PM on November 7, 2015 [1 favorite]
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by Jairus at 8:09 AM on November 7, 2015