Are all off MCO car rental companies dishonest?

[Dean1953]

I prefer to drive to Orlando, even though it is a 19 hour drive and there are no family members that can help driving. I tend to stay for at least 2 weeks and driving is the cheaper alternative. I have rented occasionally for shorter stays and have rented at the airport, and off site twice. The first time off site, I brought my car insurance policy with me as proof of insurance but they said the amount of my coverage was not adequate for them. They upgraded me to a larger car, which I took for 4 days, paying their insurance price. For a trip three weeks ago, I had found an off site company that offered a price online which included rental and insurance (clearly stated) which was still about $40 less than Dollar. At midnight, I got to their off site office and was told that the insurance that was offered by the third person company would not be honored by them. I told them no thanks, called for an Uber and used Uber and Lyft to get from my hotel to Disneyworld for the next 5 days, and to get back to the airport. i’m not sure when my next trip will be but it’s unlikely that it will involve renting a car. It will definitely never involve renting a car off site at MCO. Has anyone ever had a good experience dealing with them?

 

[kaytieeldr]

You have rented from either one of two agencies in Orlando.
There are at least a dozen off-airport rental agencies in Orlando.
Rental car company employees get commissions from upselling.
Knowing all the conditions of any contract is the smartest thing a consumer can do.
"No" is a complete sentence (although, "no, thank you" is longer but more civilized.)

 

[AngiTN]

No help with honest ones but there is a 3rd option for insurance. You may have a credit card that includes all necessary coverage as long as you pay for it with that credit card.

 

[Chief Powhatan]

In Orlando I always rent from Alamo. If you go to the Alamo website and register, you can then check-in online, and bypass the counter and foolishness of dealing with the agents who are getting paid to up-sell you on insurance coverage most of us don't need.

 

[SgtTibbs]

No help with honest ones but there is a 3rd option for insurance. You may have a credit card that includes all necessary coverage as long as you pay for it with that credit card.

Many cards just cover damage to the vehicle. The car rental company will also charge you for "lost rental time" each day the vehicle is out of service. Guess how long it takes them to fix a car when they are making money from it being broken? (hint: Long!)

 

[AngiTN]

Many cards just cover damage to the vehicle. The car rental company will also charge you for "lost rental time" each day the vehicle is out of service. Guess how long it takes them to fix a car when they are making money from it being broken? (hint: Long!)

I'm not worried between that and my own insurance. Others could be I guess.

 

[cedricandsophie]

I’ve never had a rental company ask for the terms of our policy. We just decline politely and move on. And only one co has ever asked for an insurance card to prove coverage and that was in Hawaii. We didn’t have a copy but they took our word. Now I have a photo of the card I carry in our car with the policy number.

 

[AngiTN]

I’ve never had a rental company ask for the terms of our policy. We just decline politely and move on. And only one co has ever asked for an insurance card to prove coverage and that was in Hawaii. We didn’t have a copy but they took our word. Now I have a photo of the card I carry in our car with the policy number.

Just for info, Probably a good idea if you ever drive out of state too. Here in TN, it's required that you have a card in your wallet with your policy info. Not just in the car but in your wallet. (laws are written so oddly sometimes)

I bet there may even be an app for that (never looked )

 

[sponica]

Just for info, Probably a good idea if you ever drive out of state too. Here in TN, it's required that you have a card in your wallet with your policy info. Not just in the car but in your wallet. (laws are written so oddly sometimes)

I bet there may even be an app for that (never looked )

My insurance info is in my app, but since I live in the land of anything goes (including car insurance) I never print out the email with the insurance information....

 

[seashoreCM]

... The first time off site, I brought my car insurance policy with me as proof of insurance but they said the amount of my coverage was not adequate for them. They upgraded me to a larger car, which I took for 4 days, paying their insurance price. For a trip three weeks ago, I had found an off site company that offered a price online which included rental and insurance (clearly stated) which was still about $40 less than Dollar. At midnight, I got to their off site office and was told that the insurance that was offered by the third person company would not be honored by them. Has anyone ever had a good experience dealing with them?

Which rental company? Who was the third person and who would not honor them?

Read the terms and conditions on the rental agent's site before booking. A few companies reserve the right not to rent to you if you decline their coverage and do not have proof of comparable coverage on your own car back at home. Some credit card coverages exclude some models of cars for example Jeep type vehicles and convertibles. But if their advertising says coverage is optional and the terms and conditions do not clarify it then the company has to rent the car to you without your selecting their coverage.

Double check your own car insurance to see (or to make sure) it covers rental cars.

Yes, some agents will give various excuses including altruisms to try to convince you to select their coverages. Example: (agent) Our cars go out with insurance. (You) "I am declining the coverages that cost me extra." (Agent) Would you like the basic coverage or the deluxe coverage? (You) I' will take only the free coverage.

Check the paperwork to be sure that blanks you did not want to check off are not checked off and that dollar amounts match what you booked.

Caution: If your own insuraance does not cover the rental car and you do not have a credit card that covers the rental car then you should accept the rental company coverages.

 

[spiders]

Okay, so it's been (fortunately) a long time since I've worked in car rental but (unfortunately) I still remember way too much about it. Again, it's been about 10 years so things may have changed.

You do not need to show any proof of insurance. You will automatically have secondary insurance. So what that means is if you have minimum coverage and rent your car in Alabama and let's just pretend that it's minimum coverage is 30/20/10 but then you drive to Florida and it's minimum coverage is 35/25/15. If you get in an accident in Florida then you would be required to use your policy to cover the 30/20/10 and then the rental company as secondary insurance would be required to cover the remaining 5/5/5/. If you simply don't have any type of insurance then it would be to the amount of the minimum coverage in the state that the accident occurred.

Also, keep in mind that the primary product they are trying to sell you will be the loss damage waiver. That will cover the actual rental car only. It is also not insurance but rather the company is waiving it's ability to hold you responsible for any damage to the vehicle as long as you're not drunk, etc... per the agreement.

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There are many ways you can get on the rewards program that will allow you to skip the counter or have an accelerated process. That would be my best advice to you. Once you're at the counter as a regular customer, the representative is actually really sales. His/her wages are dependent on their ability to sell you optional services (waivers, liability, upgrades, fuel) and their performance and job continuity also depends on it.

 

[Darklord77]

In Orlando I always rent from Alamo. If you go to the Alamo website and register, you can then check-in online, and bypass the counter and foolishness of dealing with the agents who are getting paid to up-sell you on insurance coverage most of us don't need.

Bingo. I always use Alamo and the counter bypass at every airport that offers it. The locations that don't have counter bypass usually have kiosks that are 5 times quicker than dealing with a person at the counter.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

When the rental car company said your insurance wasn't adequate did you ask them what they meant by that? Was it the BI/PD limits? Was it issues with either Comprehensive or Collision coverage? Was there a provision in your paperwork you brought with you that stated rental car usage was not covered?

Knowing this information may help you in understanding the root cause of the issue.

Personally we like Avis the best though my husband also likes National.

 

[BabiesDaddy]

I've used Hertz at MCO multiple times, no issues with them.

 

[sethschroeder]

Many cards just cover damage to the vehicle. The car rental company will also charge you for "lost rental time" each day the vehicle is out of service. Guess how long it takes them to fix a car when they are making money from it being broken? (hint: Long!)

That's why you should carry auto insurance that covers you for all vehicles. There is zero difference between Alamo, Hertz, or your friend. My auto covers all those vehicles.

Had an issue with my house as an example with a bad neutral wire from the power company. The insurance company took them to the cleaners and I didn't have to worry. Would be the same thing with the rental company. They push the line and my insurance company would swat them like a fly.

 

[bumbershoot]

"No" is a complete sentence (although, "no, thank you" is longer but more civilized.)

Agreed.

 

[EACarlson]

I've just decided to stick with the big names. The last two times I've rented from the "discount" chains I had issues. Once in MCO and once in DEN. No such issues with Hertz, National or Enterprise.

 

[MIChessGuy]

I use the add-on insurance product offered by American Express, where I rent with their card and AmEx charges an additional $25 for each full rental period. This works better for me than adjusting my personal auto coverage to be acceptable for rental purposes. I am not sure whether AmEx would go to bat for me in that 'loss of use' scenario that was mentioned upthread, but on the other hand, my personal auto coverage might not, either.

 

[MillauFr]

Bingo. I always use Alamo and the counter bypass at every airport that offers it. The locations that don't have counter bypass usually have kiosks that are 5 times quicker than dealing with a person at the counter.

Yes. This is what I always do when I rent cars. Sign up for the loyality program that allows you to bypass the vultures at the main counter that upsell you. I just use the kiosk or go straight to the car.

 

[EACarlson]

I use the add-on insurance product offered by American Express, where I rent with their card and AmEx charges an additional $25 for each full rental period. This works better for me than adjusting my personal auto coverage to be acceptable for rental purposes. I am not sure whether AmEx would go to bat for me in that 'loss of use' scenario that was mentioned upthread, but on the other hand, my personal auto coverage might not, either.

My understanding is that the AMEX add on product works as primary and would cover loss of use, just as the Chase Sapphire protections do. Some personal policies will cover it, and some won't. Mine with State Farm covers everything, just with a large deductible.