Here’s a general guide on what you need to do to make a claim on excess insurance.
Making a claim on Excess Insurance
This is a general guide on what you need to do to make a claim on excess insurance. Hopefully, you won’t ever need to use this information but it’s always better to be clued up than not!
In the event that you actually do need to make a claim, do read all the information in your specific policy to ensure you’ve got everything covered. Do also read our guide to what you should do in case of the breakdown or accident.
If you’re still considering whether to purchase additional, see our guide to car hire insurance.
Most insurance companies enable you to make claims online. You just need to make sure you have all the relevant documents to hand electronically. You can scan any documents that aren’t already in electronic form. And if you can’t do that, you should also be able to send all the documents by post.
Steps for making a claim on Excess Insurance
1. Notify the insurance company
First of all, we would advise that you contact the insurance company as soon as you’re aware of the need to make a claim to notify them of this, quoting your Policy Number. They will then confirm the procedure for submitting a claim.
2. If relevant, report the incident to the police and ask for a written report
If the car has been involved in a collision or has been stolen, report it to the police within 24 hours of the incident. Both the rental company and your insurance company will need to see a police report in either of these circumstances. Make sure the police report includes any personal possessions that have been damaged or stolen in the incident. You will also need to report lost or stolen car keys to the police.
3. Gather the documents required to submit a claim
To submit a claim, you’ll need to gather the following documents (you may already have them or may need to obtain them from the rental company):
- Certificate of Insurance: This is your insurance policy document for your car hire and should cover the rental period.
- Vehicle Rental Agreement: You’ll receive this when you pick up your car rental. This is effectively your contract with the car hire supplier and the document you will have signed at the desk. The paperwork should include information about the condition of the car when you collected it.
- Damage/Loss Report from the rental company: This should include evidence of the damage or loss to the car.
- Police report of the incident: This usually only applies if your car was involved in a serious incident or if the car was stolen.
- Invoices and receipts confirming any amount you paid in respect to your claim.
- Copy of the Driver’s Licence of person driving the car at the time of the incident: If the damage or loss occurred whilst the car was parked, you should send the driver’s licence of the main driver on the agreement. Make sure both sides of the driver’s licence is printed/scanned for submission.
- Credit Card statement: This should show proof of payment for the damages/loss being claimed.
- Detailed account of what happened: Include any photographs or video evidence you have.
And if any personal possessions damaged or stolen as part of the incident, you’ll also need to submit:
- An estimate for repair of all damaged items or or any stolen items.
4. Submit your claim
As already noted, you should be able to do this either online or by post.
What happens next
Claims are passed onto the insurance company’s underwriter for assessment. How long the assessment process takes will depend on the individual claim. The best thing you can do to speed things up is to make sure you’ve submitted all the relevant documents and information. If the claim is approved, you should receive notification with regard to the payout. In general, this takes the form of a reimbursement so payouts are usually on the main driver’s credit card.