Car hire excess is one of those things relating to rental car insurance conditions that can sound complicated and frightening.

In fact, it is very easily explained. As it could make a very large difference to your financial health, it is also something that it may be worthwhile thinking about.

When a car is rented, the car hire company may include some forms of basic insurance cover in the rental price. This would typically include third-party liability (for damage and injury you may cause others) and Collision Damage Waiver (CDW) covering any damage you may do to the rented car itself.

This isn’t always the case though. They may at times include very little if any insurance ‘in the price’ and may offer it subsequently as chargeable extras. What is or is not included in the rental price will depend upon the country you’re renting in and the rental company concerned. It is usually advisable to check this thoroughly in advance and before committing to any rental.

In one sense it doesn’t matter whether the rental company’s insurance is included in the basic price or purchased as an extra separately because in both cases their insurance policy is very likely to contain what’s called car hire excess.

The excess is an amount of money, usually between 500 and 1500 pounds, that the car rental company will expect you to pay towards the cost of an accident even if you have their basic insurance in place.

It works as follows. If you have excess on the car rental company’s policy of say 1000 pounds and you have an accident that results in 1500 pounds’ worth of damage, the car rental company will charge the 1000 pounds excess to your credit card and their insurance company will pay the other 500 pounds. If the damage were valued at say 750 pounds, you would have to pay it in total.

If you don’t like the idea of having to pay the car hire excess, you can cover it through insurance in one of two ways.

It is usually possible to pay the rental company extra for what they may call ‘top-up’ insurance. This could reduce or remove altogether the excess but this form of insurance is usually several times more expensive that similar insurance purchased through the Internet from a direct specialist insurance provider.

The specialist car hire insurance providers often offer not only far cheaper car hire excess insurance but also other advantages. If you have to pay the excess following an accident, your direct policy would simply reimburse you. In addition, as the policy is sold to you on a daily or annual basis, it would also cover any vehicles rented by you during the lifetime of the policy (subject to terms and conditions). This could offer further financial advantages as well as saving time as it would no longer be necessary to have to think about and organise this sort of insurance on a rental by rental basis.

So if you are uneasy about the risks and exposures that come with the car hire excess on your car rental policy, why not investigate the direct insurance providers further? It could be well worth the effort invested.

Young drivers motor insurance can be quite expensive. Unfortunately due to statistics you find yourself in one of the most expensive categories of driving insurance; you may be the safest driver in the world, but the boy-racers of the world skew the odds against you.

However, it’s not all doom and gloom. Here are some tips that can help you keep the costs of insurance down both now and in the future:

1. Specialist young persons motor insurance: Probably the easiest way of reducing your costs is to find specialist coverage, tailored to reducing the high costs that younger drivers face. Whilst standard insurance packages may not count you as eligible for no-claims bonuses until you’ve been driving for 3 years (or until you’re 21 years old…), young persons car insurance deals often let you start building this up straight away.

2. Ask for higher deductibles: A deductible is the amount of money you pay when you make a claim before the insurance ‘kicks in’. Whilst this might sound counter-intuitive, if you ask for higher deductibles, you’ll receive lower premiums. Of course this does have one drawback – if you actually have to claim on your insurance, then you’ll end up paying more. Make sure you can afford to pay the deductibles in the event that you need to, or this could backfire badly.

3. Buy a “low-profile” car: Effectively, don’t buy a sports car. If your car is expensive to repair or an attractive target for car thieves, you’ll pay for it in your premiums. Older and secondhand cars usually cost less than newer models, though you can also save money depending on the safety rating of your vehicle.

4. Take advantage of low-mileage discounts: Some insurance companies offer discounts to drivers based on a predetermined number of miles driven per-year. By driving fewer miles than this figure, you can benefit from low-mileage discounts. Of course this does limit your freedom slightly, but driving less saves you money in parking, petrol and maintenance costs too. Rather than driving to work, you could carpool with a friend – or if you’re just being lazy, walk. You’ll have a car for when you need it, and you could save a substantial amount.

5. Don’t “front!”: This isn’t so much a tip on how to save money, but a warning on a method you shouldn’t try. ‘Fronting’ is when young car owners name their parents as the main driver of their vehicle – hoping to cut insurance costs and gain benefits from their parent’s possible bonuses. However, this is illegal and if discovered, can lead to both your insurance being invalidated. You may even be prosecuted by the Crown Court or your provider.

Each of these tips in my articles that I’ve listed can all take little slivers out of your insurance policy costs. They may sound small but put them all together and you stand to save at the bare minimum a few hundred dollars. Ask anyone at all and you’ll see that no one likes paying for insurance but its something we all must do but we can all be smart about it by using tips and advice like this.

#1 Drive safely

You will most likely be able for a price break on your policy if you keep a clean driving record without accidents throughout a given amount of time. Usually its around three years, A clean record means without accidents, driving convictions, drunk driving during that time period. Just simply drive smart and carefully and defensive at all times.

#2 Changing of residence

Living in a rural community with minor traffic congestion and crime will usually afford you a lower premium than if you lived in a urban environment where it has a higher risk of being vandalized, stolen or involved in an accident. Of course you should not move to lower your insurance costs but it should be a factor for when you are deciding about relocating.

#3 Have security and safety devices installed

It is possible that you may receive discounts on your insurance if you have equipped your car with one or a few of these options. They are anti-lock brakes, airbags, and automatic seat belts. Anti-theft devices such as tracking systems and car alarms also may get you discounts because of the reduced risks they give you of your car being vandalized or stolen.

Need to add a friend to a car insurance policy for a couple of days or borrow someone else’s vehicle? Short-term car insurance could be the solution – but how can you find a policy to meet your needs?

Most polices will cover you for a year however, there are many circumstances in which you may need a policy for a shorter period. For these situations there are specialist policies known as short-term insurance offered by a number of providers.

What is short-term car insurance?

Short-term car insurance can cover you for a period ranging from one day to 28 days (periods vary depending on the insurer). Generally it is available for drivers above the age of 24 although it is possible to arrange temporary cover for learner drivers too, to cover them until they have passed their test. This is normally classified separately as learner driver insurance.

Typically short-term insurance can cover the following scenarios:

- You need to add additional drivers to a policy.

- You need to add additional cars to your policy.

- You are lending the car to someone you know.

- You need car insurance on a courtesy car or for a vehicle demonstration.

- You need drive-away insurance after buying a car before you have had time to shop around and settle on the right long-term policy.

Where can you find short-term insurance?

If you already have a policy, give your existing insurer a call and see if it can offer you a short-term deal for whatever circumstances you require.

However, if that isn’t possible then shop around online for a short-term insurance provider. Generally rates are cheaper online and a specialist provider should provide the policy options you need.

Most of us really don’t want to take the time to shop for auto insurance, but when you realize how much money you could save, it makes it seem a little more interesting. By shopping online for a new auto insurance policy, you could end up saving hundreds of dollars every year, and some people save upwards of one thousand dollars. Imagine saving all of that money just by visiting a website!

That being said, choosing the absolutely lowest priced car insurance agency is not always a good idea. If you are strapped for cash and looking for a short-term way to save money, then feel free to go with the lowest price, but a car insurance agency that offers more than minimum coverage and sub-standard service will be important to you in the long run.

When you are evaluating a car insurance agency, of course you have to look at the price first, but you also have to look at their track record. In today’s tough economic times, it is not unheard of for an insurance company to go under, so make sure the company you are dealing with is sound, especially if you are looking at smaller, local insurance agencies.

The car insurance agency you choose should also have a good reputation among people who are already using them. Do your research online and see what people have to say about the company. How quick were they to react after an accident? Did they put up a fight or did they pay a claim immediately, without asking? Will you be able to bring your car to any repair shop, or will they determine where you have to bring it? These are all important questions to ask before you sign up for your next insurance policy online.