When you rent a car for use either in the UK, Europe or elsewhere worldwide, it’s nice to think that when you arrive to pick up the keys you can simply drive off secure in the knowledge that you have all the insurance you need. This including things such as the car hire excess insurance.

In the case of a rented car, it may be advisable to have two types of insurance. Collision damage waiver (CDW) to cover damage to the car itself and Third Party insurance, which covers damage or injury that you may do to someone else while responsible for the hire car. Your rental agreement may include these basic forms of cover.

If you just jump in and drive off though, you may be in for an unpleasant surprise if you then have an accident. This is because typically the standard cover, as supplied by the car rental companies, will not be at a level to free you of all responsibility for paying damages or repair costs. So, damage the car and you could find yourself being presented with a hefty bill for repairs.

The amount you would be expected to pay would typically correspond to the excess that existed on the CDW policy. This varies according to the company you rent from and the country you rent in and may be between £500 and £1600.

This is where car hire excess insurance comes in. It is an additional insurance policy, which would refund you for any excess charges levied by the car rental company.

If you purchase this insurance from the car hire company, that’s probably all it would do but if you have a look at the specialist providers of rental car insurance operating on the Internet, you may be able to find car hire excess insurance that may typically offer a number of very useful additional features.

These could include;

• replacement of lost of broken keys;

• theft to, or damage of, baggage left in the vehicle;

• personal injury cover;

• cover for parts of the car often excluded by many standard CDW policies – such as the glass and tyres.

Car hire excess insurance bought from car hire specialist insurance providers can also be bought as an annual policy rather than for a specific number of days based on the duration of your rental. What this means is that your annual policy could cover you each time you rent a car in the course of the 12-month period.

Policies of this type generally have restrictions on the types of vehicle that can be covered. Very high value cars for example are not covered and neither are sports or vintage models. You may also find that motor homes, motorcycles, trailers, caravans and trucks or commercial vehicles are similarly excluded.

Arriving to pick up your hire car with your own car hire excess insurance policy may not only save you time at the hire desk but also provide much wider cover and at a cheaper price.