Why is Irish car rental insurance so confusing, and what do CDW and excess mean?
It reads as insurance and behaves like a contract. CDW, Collision Damage Waiver, is usually already inside the quoted price, and it is not cover for the car: it is the rental company agreeing that if the car is damaged or stolen, you owe not its full value but a fixed first slice called the excess. In Ireland that excess commonly runs from about 1,500 to 3,000 euro depending on the company and the car, and it is held on your credit card for the rental. Super CDW, sold by the day at the desk, buys the excess down to zero or a token amount. Credit card cover is the third path, and the trap: many cards exclude Ireland, or are not accepted at the desk without a letter proving the cover. The choice between the three paths is easier made before the counter, with a queue behind, than at it.
Useful pages: Driving in Ireland: the full guide · An Ireland road trip · Dublin · County Kerry · Scenic drives in Ireland · Killarney · Healthcare and emergencies · Plan your journey · Northern Ireland
More in Driving in Ireland
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