There appear to be a lot of car hire deals around lately and certainly the US is a great place to embark on a road trip. Before you book the car & pick up the keys however, have a read through our top tips on driving in the US as well as our tips for getting the best from your car hire insurance.
Top tips for driving in the USA
Under no circumstances should you ever pass a yellow school bus from either direction when it is stopped to allow children to get on or off. It will be displaying a stop sign and flashing lights and this must be obeyed.
You are allowed to turn right on a red traffic light at most junctions. It will be signed if for any reason you can’t. This greatly improves the flow of traffic but watch out for pedestrians if there are any.
Keep your driving license, rental agreement and passport on you when you drive. If you are stopped by the Police it is an offence not to be able to show these documents (you don’t get 7 days to produce as in the UK).
Click here for loads more useful tips for driving in the USA
Top tips for car hire insurance
Do your homework before you travel. Don’t be caught out at the car rental counter travel weary and jet lagged being faced with the decision between paying a lot of money to reduce the size of your car hire excess or taking the chance that you will return the car undamaged.
Check very carefully to see what a car insurance policy covers. Whether you have bought your car hire through a consolidator or direct from the car hire company, make very sure you know what you are covered for and what is included within the price. This can be tricky!
If you feel you are underinsured in any way, do something about it before you travel. If you feel you are in any way under insured or exposed to an excess risk greater than your comfort level, shop for additional insurance in the UK before you travel. This will be far more economical than buying additional cover at the car rental desk.
Some good places to look for additional car hire insurance are…
Worldwide Insure offer car hire excess insurance as well as specific policy for the US with combined SLI (supplemental liability insurance) and excess reduction insurance.
Insurance4carhire.com also offer a range of car hire excess insurance on a daily and an annual basis. They have worldwide policies and a specific policy for the USA and Canada offering additional SLI (supplemental liability insurance) and CDW (collision damage waiver) insurance.
Remember, we know a lot about insurance but we don’t know much about you! To make sure you get the right cover, it is important that you check any policy carefully and if you have any questions you should talk to an insurance advisor.
