Two of the coverage options that are often available on auto insurance policies are rental car coverage or rental reimbursement and roadside assistance. Rental reimbursement provides coverage when your vehicle is inoperable, being repaired, or totaled. Rental reimbursement covers the cost of renting a car when the car that is insured is being repaired or is otherwise inoperable due to a covered reason. These reasons include being in an accident, theft of the vehicle, and fire. Rental reimbursement coverage provides a predetermined amount for rental per day, along with a maximum number of days or total cost.
Rental reimbursement coverage
An example of rental reimbursement is if your insurance policy provides rental car coverage of up to $25 per day for 30 days, and a maximum of $750 per accident. This coverage typically costs about $50 per year, which might seem like a great deal at $50 for $750 worth of coverage. If you get into an accident or your vehicle is inoperable due to a covered reason, then it’s worth it. If the rental car was needed because of an accident, you would only need the rental car coverage if you were at-fault in the accident, although you may have to pay the rental car costs until fault in the accident is determined. Rental reimbursement coverage is usually only available if you have comprehensive and collision coverage.
Roadside assistance coverage
Roadside assistance provides coverage for towing your vehicle to a repair shop. Additionally, roadside assistance provides coverage for mechanical and/or electrical breakdown, towing, flat tires, being locked out, dead batteries, and running out of fuel. If you happen to leave your lights on and your battery dies, or if you accidentally lock your keys in your car, then roadside assistance is pretty useful to have.
In short, rental reimbursement and roadside assistance coverage are great to have if you actually end up using them from time to time. Alternatively, you could go years without using either one of them, but still be paying $50 or more per year for something that you aren’t even using. You can always go without these coverage options, but you may just end up needing them after all. Accidents and vehicle problems are unpredictable, so it is really up to you to decide if paying the extra money each year is worth the uncertainty of every needing the coverage.