Im renting a car next week, should I purchase the additional insurance?

yes

Yes,you never know what might happen.

Ok, can you tell me why I should? Thank you.

If you have an accident, then its your insurance policy that takes the beating. If you purchase the theres, its on them to pay

I would and go for the best plan they offer.

You sure picked a risky time to travel.....

Some credit cards have a built in insurance policy for car rentals. Call your CC company and ask.

My husband rents cars for business a lot, he said don't buy it.

Yes!!!!!! Believe...YES get the insurance on the rental car!

Did he say why?

a guy recently reported on the news had rented a $495,000 car and didnt buy the policy; he wrecked the car. His insurance wont pay for the damages. He now owes 495,000, buy the policy.

Yes! Even if your insurance covers the rental if you are in an accident they can charge you the daily rate for everyday the car is not "rentable". Make sure you have that covered in their insurance.

What is your reasoning?

If you're planning on driving like an idiot, or allowing another idiot driver to crash into your car... YES.

Otherwise, NO.

Check your own insurance.

Decide what kind of driver you are, in an objective reality.

Calculate the odds of a car crash in the area where you will drive most.

Then, after wasting all of that time, don't buy it.

I rent cars often and never purchase insurance because I use an AMEX card and they will cover if anything happens. I had a fender bender and they covered it, no questions asked. I was very impressed!

No, you don't need to purchase the insurance. It is over $20 bucks a day. I called my insurance agent and talked to them about it the first time I rented a car. They said a rental was covered with my policy.

Two years later, we had switched insurance companies. I called them to see if it was covered. They said I was covered if it was wrecked, but not for their loss of use while the vehicle was being repaired. So for an extra $50.00 we went ahead and upgraded our policy to fully cover the rental. The upgrade was added onto our policy for the whole year. We saved over $100.00 doing this because we rented the car for five days.

Bottom line, call your agent. You may already be covered.

pay with a card that covers rentals read...

Yes, buy the insurance. Simple rule: Insurance stays with the car, not the individual. For example, if I borrow a neighbor's car and get in a wreck, the neighbor's insurance will respond since insurance is on the car. I may end up getting a ticket if I caused the wreck, but the neighbor's insurance will pick up the bill.

Like someone said above, the rental companies will try to charge you for "loss of use" too if their vehicle is in the body shop for days/weeks. I think it is easier to just buy the insurance, or at least look into the CC companies (i.e. American Express) that may automatically afford coverage

Agree. Call the agent...there is probably an endorsement you can add on your personal auto policy like referenced above. Most commercial auto policies already have this endorsement, but not so sure personal auto polices have this

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Check the policy...most car insurance doesnt cover nuclear anything...accident or war!!

I picked up some friends from the airport last year.
They were rented a 2012 brand new snazzy car that took
forever to check out as they went over it with a fine
tooth comb. I was in the car in front of them. Within
an hour they had been in a catastrophic car wreck so
bad, they made the nightly news. It was a nightmare,
and the lady who was on her cellphone did not have
anything but cheap liability. If my friends had not
gotten the rental insurance, PLUS, what they had on
their own policy, I do not think that accident would
have been finally paid for. It took a lot of time too.
Plus, ambulance rides, the nightmare at the hospital.
Litigation...blech.

Especially after witnessing that entire traumatic
event, I have vowed to always get the insurance.

Otherwise, are you a gambling man? Do you feel
lucky? Are you driving in a city or the country?
If its the city, you are driving among people
who are numbed and dumbed, and sometimes, illegal.
Then toss in the texting and cell phone issues...

good luck--