Cover type

Rental Car Insurance in South Africa

"Rental car insurance" can mean two things: protecting yourself when you hire a car, or getting a hired car through your own insurance while yours is being fixed. Both can save you a lot of money, and both are easy to get wrong. Here's how each works.

1. Insuring a car you rent

When you rent a car, the rental company's own insurance covers the car, but you're liable for a share of any damage or theft. The rental agreement usually offers:

Standard damage and theft waivers, which limit what you pay if the car is damaged or stolen, down to an excess that can still be large.
Super or reduced-excess waivers, which you pay extra for each day to cut that excess further, sometimes to zero.
Extras such as tyre and windscreen waivers, because standard waivers often exclude tyres, glass and underbody damage.

Check what you already have

Before you buy extra waivers at the counter, check whether your bank card or car insurance already covers rentals. For example, FNB lists a car rental benefit for its car insurance clients that waives the excess on rental car accidents, up to R30,000 per claim. Benefits like this usually have conditions, such as paying for the rental with a specific card, so read them first.

2. Car hire on your own car insurance

Car hire cover is an optional extra on most policies. If your car is in for repairs after a claim, or has been stolen, the insurer provides a rental car for a set period. Nedbank, for example, lists optional car hire of up to 60 days.

How many days of car hire you get, and whether it covers theft as well as accidents.
The size of car: usually a small group, not a like-for-like replacement.
Who pays the fuel, deposit and any rental excess.

Is car hire cover worth it? If you depend on your car for work and couldn't easily get around for a few weeks, usually yes. It's typically a small addition to the premium.

Tips before you sign a rental agreement

Photograph the car, including tyres, windscreen and wheels, before you drive off.
Read which parts of the car the waiver excludes.
Check whether additional drivers are covered, and add them if not.
Report any damage or accident to the rental company immediately, and get a police case number for theft or hijacking.

Rental car insurance questions

Do I need extra insurance when I rent a car in South Africa?+

Rental companies include basic damage and theft waivers, but these usually leave you with a large excess. You can reduce it by buying the rental company's super waiver, or you may already have cover through your bank card or car insurance policy. Check before you get to the counter.

Does my own car insurance cover a rental car?+

Not automatically. Some policies and bank cards include a rental car benefit. FNB, for example, lists an excess waiver on rental car accidents for its car insurance clients. Check your policy wording or ask your insurer.

What is car hire cover on my car insurance?+

It's an optional extra on your own policy that gives you a rental car while yours is being repaired after a claim, or after it's stolen, usually for a set number of days.

What is a collision damage waiver?+

A waiver the rental company offers so you aren't liable for the full cost of damage to the hired car. You still pay an excess unless you buy an extra waiver to reduce it.