Car hire in Brazil - insurance

benjus

Looking at hiring a car in Brazil. I think I can get a better deal booking directly with the provider rather than via a broker, but I'm a bit unsure as to the insurance situation.

Anyone here with experience of this? I'm looking at the insurance options on the Unidas website, but it's all in broken English and doesn't help much. There appear to be 5 different levels of cover for the car.

I'm used to the situation in Europe where insurance is included but with a high excess - which can either be left as is, covered by a separate policy, or reduced by paying extra to the hire company. Is it the same in Brazil? If I cancel all insurance options, will I still be covered albeit with a high excess? Or is it more like the USA, where a lot of people get insurance provided via their credit cards and so opt out of the hire company's insurance completely?

NiftyDigits

Had a quick look. They offer insurance for the vehicle and also for passenger liability(PAI).

Listed quite clearly here

You don't have to take one of their options, but then they'll need to block between R$7000 to R$15000 via your CC.

Meaning for certain groups, Worldwide Excess Car Hire Insurance might be sufficient, as they tend to cover from £2000 to £4000 worth of claims. Just make sure that Brazil is not excluded.

benjus

That's the page I was referring to in broken English... I don't think it's particularly clear - for example, if I select the "no cover" option they block 7000 BRL on my card - but is that an excess, or would they come after me for the full cost of any incident including 3rd party claims?

Having looked around a bit, I think that if you deselect all insurance options you have no cover at all, so I have the choice of:

• No cover at all with the hire company, excess cover with SLI from a car hire excess cover specialist (about £6/day)
• Partial cover (excess 2000 BRL) with the hire company, normal excess cover with a car hire excess cover specialist
• Full cover with the car hire company

Looks like the first option is cheapest.

NiftyDigits

benjus wrote: »

That's the page I was referring to in broken English... I don't think it's particularly clear - for example, if I select the "no cover" option they block 7000 BRL on my card - but is that an excess, or would they come after me for the full cost of any incident?

Having looked around a bit, I think that if you deselect all insurance options you have no cover at all, so I have the choice of:

• No cover at all with the hire company, excess cover with SLI from a car hire excess cover specialist (about £6/day)
• Partial cover (excess 2000 BRL) with the hire company, normal excess cover with a car hire excess cover specialist
• Full cover with the car hire company

Looks like the first option is cheapest.

The problem with having no cover at all, is that the pre-authorised amount might not cover all of the amount. Also the car hire excess insurance is usually dependent on you taking CDW. Since you will have none, the likelyhood is that the excess insurance will be null and void.
So perhaps you should choose Partial and take an Excess policy.

benjus

NiftyDigits wrote: »

The problem with having no cover at all, is that the pre-authorised amount might not cover all of the amount. Also the car hire excess insurance is usually dependent on you taking CDW. Since you will have none, the likelyhood is that the excess insurance will be null and void.
So perhaps you should choose from Partial or Full.

Looks like https://www.carhireexcess.co.uk would cover it if I add the SLI option:

If you are hiring the car in the USA Canada, the Caribbean and South America, it is generally the case that your car rental will not include insurance. The renter must purchase CDW (Collision Damage Waiver)/LDW (Loss Damage Waiver) and Supplemental Liability Insurance. The CDW/LDW cover is included in our worldwide cover up to $75,000 and our Supplemental Liability Insurance is available upon payment of additional premium.

I need to investigate how a claim would work though, as I can't be expected to put the full cost of damage to the rental car and a 3rd party on my card and then claim it back later...

benjus

NiftyDigits wrote: »

I don't think so.



You have to purchase Partial if you want to be able to purchase Excess Insurance.

The paragraph I quoted covers both CDW/LDW and SLI:

The CDW/LDW cover is included in our worldwide cover up to $75,000 and our Supplemental Liability Insurance is available upon payment of additional premium

Adding SLI increases the premium from £4/day to £6/day.

Whether I'm comfortable relying completely on that cover is another question, but it does seem to offer the required level of cover.

NiftyDigits

benjus wrote: »

Looks like https://www.carhireexcess.co.uk would cover it if I add the SLI option:



I need to investigate how a claim would work though, as I can't be expected to put the full cost of damage to the rental car and a 3rd party on my card and then claim it back later...

I don't think so.

The renter must purchase CDW (Collision Damage Waiver)/LDW (Loss Damage Waiver) and Supplemental Liability Insurance.

You have to purchase Partial if you want to be able to purchase Excess Insurance.

Actually...not sure. Taking another look.

NiftyDigits

Yes, you are right. It is covered under Section 5.2 and 5.3.

https://www.carhireexcess.co.uk/common/CHE-Policy-doc-UK_12.06.14.pdf

So they may just block the 7,000 to 15000 Reals on your card.

NiftyDigits

Please ensure you have the following documentation
Copy of your Certificate of Insurance
Copy of Rental Contract
A copy of your Charge Receipt (if seperate from the Rental Agreement)
A copy of the Law Enforcement / Police Report (if applicable) for Damage / Loss over €75.00/€75.00
Renters' copy of the Vehicle Rental Company accident damage report
Invoices/Receipts/other documents confirming the amount you have paid in respect of Accident/Damage/Loss etc. for which the Vehicle Rental Company holds you responsible
Copy of your credit card statement showing payment of the damages claimed
Copy of the driving license of the person involved in the accident (the driver)
Name and address of your bank together with the sort code and account details. This will facilitate reimbursement as the insurance company prefers to make payment directly to your bank.

Failure to follow these steps may jeopardise the reimbursement of your costs

Perhaps worth giving them a call. I'll be there in a few weeks, but not renting a car.

NiftyDigits

Quidco offer 25% cashback for using Direct Car Excess

benjus

I just had a chat with a Brazilian guy at work. He says that motor insurance isn't mandatory over there, so at least I wouldn't have to convince a police officer that my printout from Direct Car Excess or whoever is valid. However, I'm still not sure I'd want to have a UK company responsible for settling an insurance claim in Brazil. I'm leaning towards taking the Partial Insurance with top-up excess cover.