UK Amex Platinum – car rental insurance

[Luca M]

Afternoon all,

Hopefully I can get a definitive answer from the collective knowledge out here as I have read contrasting stories:

Is there a Car Rental insurance automatically included in the UK Platinum card? If so, would it cover the excesses specified in the car rentals?

I am travelling to Catania this month for 4 days and we will be visiting Siracusa and Taormina so wanted to rent a car. In the past I have always signed up for a separate (independent) “Vehicle Hire Excess Policy” before travelling and picking up the car (cheaper then taking up equivalent insurances from the car rental company) but if Amex Platinum covers this then I rather do not take up a separate insurance.

[Wiseoldman]

Amex car rental insurance is automatic. Just pay using Amex preferably. No need to buy additional insurance.

[Luca M]

Wiseoldman wrote:

Amex car rental insurance is automatic. Just pay using Amex preferably. No need to buy additional insurance.

Many thanks, and that will cover excesses, right?

[Wiseoldman]

Luca M wrote:

Wiseoldman wrote:

Amex car rental insurance is automatic. Just pay using Amex preferably. No need to buy additional insurance.

Many thanks, and that will cover excesses, right?

yes

[Luca M]

Wiseoldman wrote:

Luca M wrote:

Wiseoldman wrote:

Amex car rental insurance is automatic. Just pay using Amex preferably. No need to buy additional insurance.

Many thanks, and that will cover excesses, right?

yes

Great, thank you very much

[dougzz99]

What do you mean not covered, I asked the Internet and they said I was.

[Luca M]

dougzz99 wrote:

What do you mean not covered, I asked the Internet and they said I was.

Tried to call Amex Insurance but the office is closed, so asked on this forum where there should be enough knowledge.. the confusion comes from some posts made on similar forums by International Amex Platinum Cardholders, but the intention is to confirm it With Amex Insurance over the phone tomorrow.

If the consensus was that there was no cover, the. I would not have been bothered calling in the first place again tomorrow..

[elguiri]

It’s also a relatively simple process to claim. Just gone through it myself, provided the details on online form but needed to clarify something over phone. They also agreed to pay the FX transaction fee I had on amex plat without a fuss.

[Reney]

don’t think you need to pay with an amex for this one.

[Luca M]

As a final confirmation I have spoken to Amex/AXA insurance who confirmed that Car Rental Benefit include damages and excesses up to $50,000, so I would be covered.

Some of the tariff i am looking at are fully pre-paid from the UK, so I will be using the Amex a platinum to pay for it as well.

[nycvisa]

Hi – i am struggling to find the car rental insurance benefit listed anywhere on the amex Platinum list of benefits for the UK. Can someone help me find it?

[FFoxSake]

nycvisa wrote:

Hi – i am struggling to find the car rental insurance benefit listed anywhere on the amex Platinum list of benefits for the UK. Can someone help me find it?

https://www.americanexpress.com/en-gb/benefits/insurance-and-protection/the-platinum-card/travel-insurance/
If you are renting a vehicle:
Car Rental Benefits
– Theft, Damage and Liability
– Up to £50,000 for theft or damage to vehicle (including any applicable excess)
– Up to £500,000 (Up to US$1 million in USA) for damage to another person or their property
Key exclusions and limitations
* Commercial vehicles, motor homes, caravans and trailers
* Cover applies only when rental agency allows refusal of their insurance
* An insured person must be named on the rental agreement

(always check the latest policy doc, which as at today is…)
Full policy:
https://icm.aexp-static.com/Internet/internationalcardshop/en_gb/pdf/platinum-card/UK_Platinum_Charge_Insurance_Documentation_v1_0.pdf
See page 12 (section 1.5 CAR RENTAL BENEFITS– THEFT, DAMAGE AND LIABILITY)

1.5 CAR RENTAL BENEFITS– THEFT, DAMAGE AND LIABILITY
YOUR BENEFITS
The Car Rental Benefits under this Section provide cover in place of the additional or optional insurances
offered by Your car rental companies such as:
• Collision Damage Waiver (often referred to as CDW)
• Loss Damage Waiver (LDW)
• Removal/reduction of excess (Super CDW/LDW)
• Theft Protection (TP)
• Top Up/ Supplemental Liability (SLI)
• Personal Accident (PA) (See Personal Accident benefit, Section 1.7)
Where mandatory rental insurance must be purchased from or via the rental company in respect of any vehicle
hire, the rental company’s insurance cover shall apply. The Car Rental Benefits provided with Your Card shall
apply where rental insurance is not offered by the rental company or You are able to decline optional rental
insurance offered.
These benefits apply to drivers named on the rental agreement which You are named on, subject to a
maximum of 5 drivers. You may have no more than one rental agreement at any one time. You will be covered
for the following:
1) The excess and any items You are responsible for under Your rental agreement which are stolen
or damaged (including but not limited to the rental vehicle). This will apply whether or not You are
responsible for the accident. You will be paid no more than the value of the rental vehicle up to £50,000 in
respect of any one accident or occurrence.
2) Legal expenses and assistance – Following an accident involving Your rental vehicle, You have the right
to select and appoint a legal representative of Your choice to represent You in respect of any claim
submitted, any legal inquiry or legal proceedings (a legal representative may only be appointed on a
contingency fee basis, where lawful and applicable to do so). You shall provide the Insurer with details of
the name and address of the legal representative You have selected. The Insurer may provide information
about legal representatives in Your local area if requested to do so by You, or may appoint a legal
representative to act on Your behalf should You so wish. Where You wish to appoint a legal representative
of Your own choosing, You must obtain pre-approval in writing from Us of that legal representative’s costs.
We will cover Your appointed legal representative’s costs to the extent that such costs do not exceed the
costs that would have been incurred had We appointed a legal representative on Your behalf.
3) Any related compensation and legal costs up to £500,000 (or US $1,000,000 in the USA) arising directly
or indirectly from one cause if You are found legally liable for injuring another person or damaging their
property.
EXCLUSIONS
General Exclusions to Card Travel Insurance listed in Section 1.9 apply to all travel insurance benefits.
The following exclusions apply only to this Car Rental Benefits – Theft, Damage and Liability Section
1.5.
You will not be covered in respect of the following:
1) Amounts that are already covered under any insurance which is included in the rental agreement or
covered by insurance mandatorily purchased from or via the rental company as a term of the hire.
2) Claims made against You, by Your family, or any Cardmembers or Supplementary Cardmembers on
Your Card Account and their families, or any passenger, or anyone who works for You.
3) Claims made by You, against Your family, or any Cardmembers or Supplementary Cardmembers on
Your Card Account and their families, or any passenger, or anyone who works for You.
4) Use of the rental vehicle outside the terms of the rental agreement.
5) Mopeds and motorbikes, commercial vehicles, trucks, motor homes, and vehicles not licensed for road
use including but not limited to trailers or caravans.
6) Vehicles used off-road, in or in-training for, racing competitions, trials, rallies or speed testing.
7) Any fines and punitive damages.
8) Any costs where You admit liability, negotiate, make any promise or agree any settlement.

[DangerMouseUK]

Just to restart this thread

Are we sure that the car hire/rental needs to actually be on the Platinum Charge Card?

Was sure that benefit wasn’t tied to being spent on the AMEX . . .

[LittleNick]

DangerMouseUK wrote:

Just to restart this thread

Are we sure that the car hire/rental needs to actually be on the Platinum Charge Card?

Was sure that benefit wasn’t tied to being spent on the AMEX . . .

Not sure about the charge version but on credit, I think it can be on any amex card you hold. But if in doubt just put it on plat?

As another question for the legal experts out there is there anything significant the car hire insurance does not cover particularly for driving in the States? Don’t want to get stung in the unlikely case something bad happens

[e14]

DangerMouseUK wrote:

Just to restart this thread

Are we sure that the car hire/rental needs to actually be on the Platinum Charge Card?

Was sure that benefit wasn’t tied to being spent on the AMEX . . .

Why do you think it does?

[Luca M]

I think the general feedback on this and other forums has been that it is not necessary to pay with the Platinum or even an Amex card to be fair. I generally pay with the Platinum as an extra measure (particularly when booking prepaid tariff paid full in GBP, so no forex fee to be worried about) but occasionally have paid with the BAPP if I had a special offer on that card.

[e14]

Luca M wrote:

I think the general feedback on this and other forums has been that it is not necessary to pay with the Platinum or even an Amex card to be fair. I generally pay with the Platinum as an extra measure (particularly when booking prepaid tariff paid full in GBP, so no forex fee to be worried about) but occasionally have paid with the BAPP if I had a special offer on that card.

If paying in non GBP I’ll use a FX free card, but then ensure that any deposit required is paid on an Amex

For clarity there is no requirement to pay for anything to do with the rental on an Amex – I would accept that if you’ve binned the car you might need a little help with the credit line

[anthrotype]

Apologies if this has been asked before..

I have an Amex Euro Basic (Charge) Card which I used for paying a car rental in Italy (also to avoid FX). By reading this thread I got the impression that I am still covered by my other Amex Platinum Card car insurance, despite not having used that to pay for the rental.

Can anybody confirm that they successfully managed to claim on Amex Platinum car insurance while having paid for the car rental using a different (Amex or not) card?

[Helloboy]

Sorry can you explain why it’s not required to pay with the Amex card if it’s Amex card that is offering the insurance ?

Why would Amex cover you when you don’t use their card for the transaction? Just got being their customer ?
That doesn’t sound right

e14 wrote:

Luca M wrote:

I think the general feedback on this and other forums has been that it is not necessary to pay with the Platinum or even an Amex card to be fair. I generally pay with the Platinum as an extra measure (particularly when booking prepaid tariff paid full in GBP, so no forex fee to be worried about) but occasionally have paid with the BAPP if I had a special offer on that card.

If paying in non GBP I’ll use a FX free card, but then ensure that any deposit required is paid on an Amex

For clarity there is no requirement to pay for anything to do with the rental on an Amex – I would accept that if you’ve binned the car you might need a little help with the credit line

[Alan T]

Maybe that’s what you’re paying the yearly fee towards?

There are no exclusions regarding the type of payment card in the T&Cs for the rental car element of the insurance, unlike some of the other travel insurance elements where it clearly indicates an Amex must be used.

[tbtb31]

to add to the confusion, I had asked the below question on the Master Thread of this forum, but haven’t received an answer:

Car rental cover – I read the insurance docs and there is no mentioning of having to pay for the rental with your Platinum card in order to enjoy the benefit of the Platinum insurance cover, as mentioned by several members further above.

However, in the Amex Experiences app in section Insurance -> Car rental benefits -> Required Documents (where you can file an online claim), one of the documents required is “Proof of purchase on your American Express Card of the car rent or the name and address of the merchant if your chosen provider would not accept your Card”.

So which one is it now? How can they ask for this doc if the t&cs make no mention of such requirement? Does anyone have first-hand experience of a claim?

[PeteM]

Alan T wrote:

Maybe that’s what you’re paying the yearly fee towards?

There are no exclusions regarding the type of payment card in the T&Cs for the rental car element of the insurance, unlike some of the other travel insurance elements where it clearly indicates an Amex must be used.

To expand:

The following benefits are dependent on use of the Card:
• Cancelling, Postponing and Abandoning your Trip;
• Cutting Short your Trip;
• Travel Inconvenience;
• Personal Belongings, Money and Travel Documents;
• Purchase Protection;
• Refund Protection;

[Helloboy]

Maybe Rob can opine over here ? Would be great to get the most accurate information as I am looking to rent a car in Costa Rica next month.

Thanks

[PeteM]

The above is from the T&Cs, what more do you want?

[Helloboy]

The below quoted that says when filing a claim need to show evidence of proof of purchase with the Amex card.

“However, in the Amex Experiences app in section Insurance -> Car rental benefits -> Required Documents (where you can file an online claim), one of the documents required is “Proof of purchase on your American Express Card of the car rent or the name and address of the merchant if your chosen provider would not accept your Card”.