Heathrow Airport Car Hire Zero Excess
The choice between taking zero excess and not is a hard one, many people seek reducing their excess to zero for peace of mind. We receive no extra commission for selling zero excess so we can give you a neutral point of view on whether to take the excess reduction policy or not and if there are adequate alternatives.
Heathrow being one of the busiest airports car hire there is the same, and several of the vehicles at the airport are returned damaged each day, some people take the zero excess some don’t. If you don’t take the zero excess the highest amount you will have to pay is around £500-2,000, unless of course you are in a prestige vehicle which can range to as high as £5,000 and anyone will admit these digits are scary. Do you take the chance or do you get covered?
What Is Zero Excess?
Rental companies offer their zero excess policy for an extra fee per day, this as it describes in the name reduces your excess to zero meaning in the event of an accident you don’t have to pay out anything towards the car. This can range anywhere between £10-30/p day in order to get your excess reduced however there are two options and we will help you find the best one suited to you at Heathrow airport.
Method 1 – Through The Rental Company
Majority of suppliers allow you to reduce your excess to zero for a price like that mentioned above (£10-30/p day). One of the main suppliers Avis only allow you to reduce your excess to £100 but they are the only large supplier that does this. The cost of reducing the excess on top of the cost of the car hire can cause problems for several people because at times it can almost double the total cost.
Method 2 – Zero Deductible
There is a company that we work in affiliated with which offers an excess reimbursement deal This is different to zero excess as you will still have to pay out of your own pocket given that you have an accident however like the name suggests you will be reimbursed for this. The way this policy works is you pay a yearly fee which is £39.99 for the UK and Europe, £49.99 if you opt for the worldwide option.
This covers
• Excess on damage and theft: up to £4,000 per claim or £5,000 per year
• Unlimited number of rentals per year
• Damage to the windows, undercarriage, roof, tyres and headlights
• Towing costs associated with mechanical breakdown
• Damage caused by using the wrong type of fuel: up to £500 per claim and £2,000 per year
• Rentals within your home country, including those made within 150km of where you live
• Car rental key cover up to £500 per claim and up to £2,000 per year
• Up to 60 days per rental
• You (the policyholder), plus up to seven additional drivers named on your rental agreement
• Drivers aged 21 to 85 years old (inclusive)
• Buy now, start your policy up to 364 days
• Family and Partners policy allows two policy holders, who must be family members (defined as spouse, partner, parent, brother, sister, adult child or fiancée), travelling together or separately
We do receive a small commission for this however this genuinely can save you quite a bit of money, however it may not always be the best option. We did a small case study around this which you can find here granted it was about Pisa airport but the concept is the same.
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Excellent customer service. My first time experience of hiring a car so easy and straight forward. I'll definitely be using this car hire company again when I return next year for another trip. Thank you.