What happens if you crash a rental car without insurance?

If you crash a rental car without insurance and you are at fault, you will have to pay out-of-pocket for damage to the rental car. If you are not at fault, the other driver’s liability insurance is responsible for paying to repair or replace the rental car.

Note that you must have at least the state-mandated minimum level of liability insurance when driving, even when driving rental cars. In every state except California, the state-minimum level of coverage is already included in standard rental car fees. Thus, you are protected against a basic level of liability claims while driving a rental car. However, this will not cover damage to the rental car itself.

You Have to Pay Out-Of-Pocket to Repair a Rental Car If:

1. You are at-fault,
2. You do not have collision or comprehensive coverage,
3. And you decide not to buy a collision damage waiver from the rental car company.

You may also have to pay out-of-pocket if you cause an accident that costs more in repairs and/or medical bills than you have in liability coverage. You can prevent this by purchasing higher liability limits through the rental car company.

To learn more, check out WalletHub’s guide to rental car insurance.