If you have any questions about car hire excess insurance, we are happy to help. You can find answers to our most frequently asked questions below. It's often the fastest way to find help – including how to make changes to your policy, what's covered and how to make a claim. If you can't find the information you need below, please get in touch via email at info@chewinsurance.com or call us on 0208 770 2755 (open Monday to Friday 9am – 5pm, closed on Saturday and Sunday).
No. To purchase a CHEW Insurance policy you must be resident of UK, Jersey or the Isle of Man. You must also hold a valid full UK, EEA [European Economic Area] or Swiss driving licence.
The minimum age is 21. The upper age limit is 84.
Up to 9 seater vehicles, less than 10 years old and up to a maximum value of £60,000. This policy does not cover the hire of a van, motorhome, minibus or commercial vehicles. This policy does not cover any claims arising from car sharing services, ride-sharing services, peer-topeer car rentals, or any hire agreements where the rental period is less than 24 hours.
If you rent a car on holiday, you will typically have to pay an 'excess'; if your hire car is stolen or damaged. Car Hire Excess Insurance is designed to cover that excess.
If your hire vehicle is stolen or damaged in an accident, the person who has rented the vehicle will be required to pay the first part of the loss, known as the “excess” usually between £500 and £2,000 depending on the value of the vehicle.
- United Kingdom and Europe: UK (Including the Channel Islands), Continental Europe, Mediterranean islands, Madeira, Canary Islands, the Azores, Republic of Ireland, Iceland, Russia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Belarus, Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia.
- Worldwide: Worldwide.
For rentals in the country of residence you must have booked commercial accommodation for at least one night for Single trip and three nights for Annual policies.
You may purchase CHEW insurance before or after you have arranged to hire a vehicle, but before you have taken legal control of the hired vehicle. Cover will take effect from the time you take legal control of the hired vehicle and will cease at the time the hire company assumes control of the hired vehicle whether at its business location or elsewhere.
This insurance is provided for one hired vehicle at any one time which may be driven and operated by you or include up to a maximum of seven drivers for each trip, as long as each additional insured driver is named as a driver on the hire agreement and meets the eligibility criteria outlined in the Policy Wording - page 1.
When purchasing a daily policy, the policy must coincide with the period shown on the hire agreement.
You can include optional extras at any time during the period of insurance:
We can also upgrade a policy from European to Worldwide, subject to the terms and conditions of your policy.
Your policy automatically covers up to 7 drivers for each trip, provided they are named as drivers on your hire agreement and meet the eligibility criteria outlined in the Policy Wording. The lead driver indicated on the hire agreement must coincide with the policyholder and lead driver's name on the Certificate of insurance.
You are not required to provide the additional drivers' names to us. This is included under normal terms free of charge.
If, however, you would like to add another person to your annual policy, to drive independently, this could be arranged under an additional option called 'Dual lead driver'. This could be arranged before issuing policy through the website or by contacting our Customer Services Team on email to info@chewinsurance.com or telephone 0208 770 2775. Additional premium required.
Email us at info@chewinsurance.com. A member of our team will be happy to help you. We will respond within 2 working days.
If you change your mind, you can cancel your policy by letting us know provided you have not taken legal possession of the vehicle.
Your premium will be refunded minus an administration fee of £5. Please contact us at info@chewinsurance.com.
Refunds are only applicable from the point you contact us to cancel the policy. No refunds will be provided for periods that have already elapsed.
No refund will be given if you have reported or intend to report a claim.
FOR ALL POLICIES ISSUED FROM 01/07/2024:
You can contact your Insurer's claims team: on 0345 040 5975 or email at claims@acastaeurope.co.uk
You will be required to provide some information and documentation to support your claim. This includes:
- A copy of your hire agreement.
- A copy of the local police report (if required).
- The hire company's accident damage report and photos of the damage.
- Invoices, receipts, and other relevant documents.
- Your bank details for reimbursement.
To make sure your claim is valid, you might be asked for additional information. Don't worry, you'll only be asked for what is absolutely necessary and the requests will be fair.
Yes, we'll cover your lost, stolen, or damaged hire vehicle keys - including replacement locks and locksmith charges unless only the parts need to be changed.
Yes, the car rental company must approve a locksmith coming out to you, but we'll cover the cost.
We'll cover personal possessions owned by you if they're lost following a visible, forced entry to your hire car. But terms and conditions apply – for example, they're not covered overnight (8pm-8am) or if they're not in a locked boot or glove compartment. See policy wording for full details.
This insurance covers accidental damage as a consequence of theft or attempted theft, subject to the terms and conditions of the policy. It also provides cover for the theft of a hired vehicle.
The theft of a hired vehicle is normally included under the car hire insurance policy as part of an agreement with a car hire company. You should always check the policy wording to ensure the policy meets your needs.
Yes, we can cover the cost of flushing the engine, your additional travel expenses and vehicle recovery.
No, regretfully there would be no cover for this type of damage under the CHEW policy.
You're covered for the cost of cutting your vehicle rental agreement short, provided you have a medical certificate or letter from a medical practitioner confirming the instruction not to drive, and you are confined to bed in a hospital, hotel or private accommodation. The Vehicle Hire must be confirmed for a minimum of seven (7) days.
If you're hospitalised, we'll also cover the cost of recovering the vehicle, if there's no other authorised driver to drop it off for you.
Terms and conditions apply, see policy wording for details.
When hiring a car in the UK, Ireland, Europe, Africa, New Zealand, Australia and most of the Middle and Far East, all rental agreements generally include CDW (Collision Damage Waiver), Theft and Third Party Liability. This means that the car you're driving is insured, however there is almost always an Excess (also referred to as Super CDW, Non Waiver or Deductible) which you have to pay in the event of theft or damage to the rental vehicle, and this can range from £500 - £1500.
Car rental companies will offer you Excess insurance to protect you against this excess, but this costs on average between £10 and £20 a day, and it doesn't cover you for damage to the tyres, windows, roof or undercarriage and many other items CHEW Insurance protects customers from these excess payments at a price much lower than the car rental excess insurance. With CHEW Insurance you pay from just £1.59 a day, compared with the average £9 daily rate that the rental companies charge, and we DO cover you for damage to the tyres, windows, roof and undercarriage. We also cover loss of keys, lock out, drop off fees, mis-fueling, theft from the vehicle (see policy wording for full details).
When hiring a car in the USA, Canada, the Caribbean, Central and South America, you are required to have CDW (Collision Damage Waiver) / LDW (Loss Damage Waiver) - covering damage, theft and loss of use of the rental vehicle. Rental companies may insist on your buying a policy from them unless you can prove that you already have a suitable alternative policy in place (such as a stand alone policy from CHEW Insurance). Purchasing this cover directly from the car hire company usually costs between £10 and £25 per day, depending on the location, the type of car and the rental company. The Worldwide CHEW Insurance policy is from just £4.23 per day, or £45.61 for an annual policy.
Sometimes additional liability protection called Supplemental Liability Insurance (SLI) - covering Third Parties; i.e. other vehicles and individuals, may be required. This is often in states or countries where the statutory levels of liability insurance that must be provided with the rental vehicle are considered insufficient to protect you in the event of a serious claim. CHEW Insurance does not offer Supplemental Liability Insurance and you should check directly with your rental company if you are unsure of the level of third party liability cover that you already have as part of your rental agreement.
Car rental companies usually have their own insurance to offer you that will cover your excess. However, these can come at a high price – especially as it's often a last-minute purchase at the hire desk.
An alternative is to purchase your Car Hire Excess Insurance separately from us. It could save you hundreds.