Your Liberty Mutual car insurance should cover your rental as long as the vehicle is worth similar to what it already has. But if you have a 230,000-mile Chevy Spark and rent a luxury SUV, you may be underinsured. Even when you have a good level of coverage, it's sometimes better to buy additional rental car insurance. Or, put another way, insurance companies use the expression “total” to justify paying less than you deserve for damage to your car.
When liability is being discussed or when the insurance company delays determining fault, this usually means that you'll have to find another way to pay the initial costs of your rental car if you need it right away. If you have rental coverage under your own policy, you can request payment from your car insurance company. If you have minimum liability insurance for your personal vehicle, for example, you only have minimum liability insurance for your rental vehicle. If you can't afford a rental car, you can consider filing a claim with your own insurer to determine if you have rental car insurance coverage.
If your car was damaged in an accident, expect the worst from the insurance company and hire an experienced lawyer to demand the best from you. An experienced lawyer can help you collect and present evidence to the insurance company in a way that forces the insurance company to face the facts and to treat you fairly. Two claims in one year can significantly increase your insurance rates, so you may want to exercise caution and purchase insurance. An experienced car accident lawyer can advocate for you in court and present evidence that shows that the insurance company hasn't treated you fairly.
Instead, the driver delivers the damaged car to the insurance company, which pays the driver a settlement that, in theory, is equivalent to the total market value of the car before the accident and allows him to purchase a comparable vehicle. It may give you peace of mind to shell out car rental insurance and know that you won't pay more than that amount. If you were to have an accident in a rental car, you would pay the deductible on your car insurance policy before the rental car insurance takes effect and covers the rest. Simply rejecting the position of the insurance company and the opinion of the body shop recommended by the insurance company can pay off.
