Damaged a rental car

This is the reason we have the Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card. It has Primary Rental car insurance as a benefit.

If you were on a business trip, your employer's insurance should cover it. If not your personal car insurance will cover it in most cases.
 
Last night, while on a business trip, I hit the curb in the median with a rental car. Flattened the tire, and broke the lower ball joint, which actually surprised me. The thing had low profile tires and 21 inch rims. The car drove OK on the flat as I pulled off the road and into a parking lot. That's where things got interesting. While installing the spare, the lower ball joint separated. Clearly, it was over stressed. I called the rental company and they send a flatbed to pick it up.

Yes it was raining and dark out and the headlights really were not doing a good job of illuminating the road. I simply did not see the curbed median, and drove on to it squarely at about 35mph. Thought I was moving into the left lane.

Unfortunately, I did not select the coverage, as I am under the impression the company credit card covers rental insurance. I'll find out, for sure.

I figured I'd ask the good folks here if they have any good suggestions as to how to handle this. Of course, I was thinking all night about how this could go, and got little sleep.
Your own car insurance if full coverage also covers what credit card does not. Good luck , don’t fret.
 
Most rental car companies will require to pay your detectable when you turn the (damaged) car in.
 
Thank you guys for the input. I will provide the insurance information from the company truck instead of using my personal insurance.

Since somebody asked, there was absolutely no intoxication involved. I don't drink or use drugs, and am on a drug/alc testing program for aviation. It was raining, at night and I never saw the median, not even a last minute "oh crap". I simply moved over into what I thought was the left lane. The inside of the windshield had a bunch of water spots on it on the drivers side, and the headlights were not great in the rain. But the vehicle was intact until damaged.
 
Thank you guys for the input. I will provide the insurance information from the company truck instead of using my personal insurance.

Since somebody asked, there was absolutely no intoxication involved. I don't drink or use drugs, and am on a drug/alc testing program for aviation. It was raining, at night and I never saw the median, not even a last minute "oh crap". I simply moved over into what I thought was the left lane. The inside of the windshield had a bunch of water spots on it on the drivers side, and the headlights were not great in the rain. But the vehicle was intact until damaged.
I know this all happened an eternity ago but how did it end?
 
No interesting updates, other than the cost to repair was 8K. No body damage, just expensive 22 inch wheels, rubber band tires, and a lower control arm, along with an CV axle.

Hertz uses an external company to manage this, and they add insane fees, all of which are "agreed to" on the contract. Plus they charge for loss of use and loss of vehicle value. Grand total, just over $20 grand, yikes!

My company has so far refused to use their insurance to cover the damage. They did suggest I use mine, which I would prefer not to do. As I'm 100% sure I'll be paying a higher premium for the rest of my life from that.

My company credit card does provide rental car coverage, and I've filed a claim with them. Unfortunately, they also expect someone's insurance to cover the claim, then if I qualify, I get reimbursed. So at the moment, I'm waiting to see if the two parties can work it out. If not, I'll simply put the entire charge on the company credit card, and retire.
 
A rock hit the windshield of my Hertz rental car near Dinosaur, CO last summer.

I had declined the coverage, since my AMEX stated that they cover rental cars.

I filed the claim when I turned in the car. By then, the chip had become a crack and spread across most of the windshield, and a new one was needed.

AMEX took the report. Paid the claim ($550 or so, not outrageous) a couple days later.

Never heard another word about it.
 
Cujet sounds like your company card provides secondary insurance vs primary (like Astro's example above). Adds red tape for sure.
 
Last night, while on a business trip, I hit the curb in the median with a rental car. Flattened the tire, and broke the lower ball joint, which actually surprised me. The thing had low profile tires and 21 inch rims. The car drove OK on the flat as I pulled off the road and into a parking lot. That's where things got interesting. While installing the spare, the lower ball joint separated. Clearly, it was over stressed. I called the rental company and they send a flatbed to pick it up.

Yes it was raining and dark out and the headlights really were not doing a good job of illuminating the road. I simply did not see the curbed median, and drove on to it squarely at about 35mph. Thought I was moving into the left lane.

Unfortunately, I did not select the coverage, as I am under the impression the company credit card covers rental insurance. I'll find out, for sure.

I figured I'd ask the good folks here if they have any good suggestions as to how to handle this. Of course, I was thinking all night about how this could go, and got little sleep.
Report to the rental car company. And report to your company about this incident and your company will advise how to handle this.
 
Cujet sounds like your company card provides secondary insurance vs primary (like Astro's example above). Adds red tape for sure.
Only complication is that his company is not doing the right thing by recognizing it's responsibility to be liable when an employee is on a business trip. That's why they have their own insurance, which is often a legal requirement. But they don't want to use it and they don't want to pay out of pocket.

To put Cujet into the awkward position where he does them a favor by using his own insurance on the premise that it was his fault and not fair to them, is disrespectful.

Simply, when you are an employee, the company assumes the liabilities for your mistakes made in the course of carrying out business.
 
Loss of use, admin fee and diminished value can be negotiated. Definitely don’t put this on your insurance or credit card if you were traveling for work purposes.
 
A rock hit the windshield of my Hertz rental car near Dinosaur, CO last summer.

I had declined the coverage, since my AMEX stated that they cover rental cars.

I filed the claim when I turned in the car. By then, the chip had become a crack and spread across most of the windshield, and a new one was needed.

AMEX took the report. Paid the claim ($550 or so, not outrageous) a couple days later.

Never heard another word about it.
AMEX platinum card also offers for I believe $35 per rental, premium all one can use rental car damage coverage. It is a great value, and covers premium cars. $35 flat rate per rental. The only downside, is one has to sign up for this program in advance, and every car you rent and use the AMEX card, you will be charged $35.
 
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