PLANNING TO RENT A CAR Your Insurance or PARTICIPATE IN UBER? with Cathy Karas. HOW WILL YOUR CAR INSURANCE RESPOND? Cathy J. Karas, President, Certified Insurance Counselor, Karas insurance Agencies Inc., 321 So Riverside Ave, Croton-on-Hudson, NY 10520 914-271-5188 ph, 914271-9390 fx, email [email protected]. A t this time of year we find many of our customers questioning the coverage afforded on their personal auto policies when they plan to rent a car while on vacation. In order to fully understand how and why there is coverage, it is important to first look at the definitions in the policy to see who, where and what types of vehicles can be covered. WHO - The “named insured” on the policy declarations and spouse ( but only if resident of the same household), and family member who must be related to you by blood, marriage or adoption and a member of your household which includes a foster child. WHERE - U.S. its territories or possessions, which includes Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico and Canada. TYPES OF VEHICLES - private passenger, pick-up or van, or trailer. If you are renting a box or dump truck from a Home Improvement Center , such as Home Depot, or a moving truck from a rental center such as U-Haul, your auto policy will most likely not respond and you must purchase both the liability and physical damage (collision and comprehensive) coverages if they are available. Ask what the liability limits are and be sure to select the highest limits offered. The liability limits that are least expensive might be $25,000 bodily injury per person/$50,000 per accident 28 April 2015 and $25,000 for property damage. These days, those limits are not adequate when you consider law suit settlements for even minor injuries and the values of vehicles on the road , which you may be held responsible for causing damage to. New York has adopted a rental vehicle coverage endorsement which applies to rental vehicles. So long as you are renting in the name of a “WHO” (named insured or resident spouse, relative or foster child) on your policy, in an area that is in the “WHERE” section of your policy and it is a “TYPE OF VEHICLE” shown above, this endorsement applies. The endorsement states “The Rental Vehicle Coverage endorsement to this policy provides protection in the event of damage to, or loss of, a rental vehicle, including loss of use, as described in this endorsement.” There is usually no premium charge for this endorsement and it is available on policies that provide no collision or comprehensive coverages to any vehicles on the policy. Since the coverage is assumed under the property damage liability section, rather than collision or comprehensive coverage sections, there is no deductible and even pays the “loss of use”, which would be the money the rental agency would be out due to the car not being able to be rented for a period of time, which could be a huge expense, depending on the extent of damage and length of time it would take to repair the car. rented as those details are not shared knowledge, but you can see what can happen. It is also important you declare all drivers to the rental agency, as the contract you are signing most likely excludes unlisted drivers. UBER – this is new service you can participate in to offer to drive people who need rides and collect a fee. Sounds like a good way to earn extra cash? NO – your NY personal auto policy will not respond in this situation as this constitutes a taxi/ livery exposure, which is an excluded use. You are taking a big risk here as if there was ever an accident with injuries or property damage, you could be sued and lose everything you own. The assumptions are based on a standard New York State auto policy. We at Karas Insurance Agencies Inc have been in business selling auto, home, umbrella, boat, recreational vehicle and all types of commercial insurance for 42 years. We have licensed brokers with the knowledge to tailor a policy to your needs, provide comparisons of coverage and cost with many different companies, answer your coverage questions and help you with claims. You can reach us at 914-271-5188 or contact me by email at [email protected]. Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. For specifics on your own policy you should contact your current insurance broker or company. If your vacation is out of the country and you are renting in an area not in the “WHERE” section of your policy such as, Europe or Mexico, you have no coverage at all – liability, injury to yourself or passengers, or collision or comprehensive coverages. This is the case for the “standard” NY auto policy, however there are some companies that we represent that offer an enhanced version of the personal auto policy that does extend coverage out of the “WHERE” territory. Or perhaps your credit card company can provide some coverage. If you do need to purchase the coverage, again, ask what the maximum liability limits are you can buy, the minimum is never enough. Take the example of an accident involving the actor Matthew Broderick in Ireland in 1987. Driving on the wrong side of the road, he smashed head on into another car, killing the driver and passenger. How much liability insurance is enough in this case? I don’t know what he purchased when that car was boatingonthehudson.com boatingonthehudson.com April 2015 29
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