Does Chase Freedom Unlimited Have Rental Car Insurance?
Last Updated on November 14, 2022
The Chase Freedom Unlimited card is one of America’s most popular credit cards.
With 3% back on restaurants, flexible reward options, and a $0 annual fee, the Chase Freedom Unlimited card could be the right card for you.
Like all other Chase Freedom credit cards, the Chase Freedom Unlimited card comes with a car rental collision damage waiver, which covers certain costs when renting a vehicle.
Keep reading to find out everything you need to know about Chase Freedom Unlimited’s rental car insurance and how it works.
Table of Contents:
- How Chase Freedom Rental Car Insurance Works
- Chase Freedom Unlimited Rental Car Requirements
- What Does Chase Freedom Unlimited Rental Car Insurance Cover?
- Primary Versus Secondary Coverage
- What Does Chase Freedom Unlimited Rental Car Insurance Not Cover?
- Chase Freedom Unlimited Rental Car Insurance Restrictions
- How to Make a Chase Freedom Unlimited Rental Car Insurance Claim
How Chase Freedom Rental Car Insurance Works
Chase offers three Chase Freedom credit cards. All three cards come with a collision damage waiver for rental cars. That means you can safely turn down the rental car company’s collision damage waiver, save money, and enjoy peace of mind while renting a vehicle.
The three Chase Freedom credit cards include the following:
- Chase Freedom Flex
- Chase Freedom Unlimited
- Chase Freedom
All three cards provide reimbursement for damage to your rental car caused by a collision or theft. If your rental car is damaged or stolen, then you will not pay a deductible, nor will you need to make a claim through your personal insurance policy; instead, you can make a claim via Chase.
All three Chase Freedom credit cards, including the Chase Freedom Unlimited card, function as secondary coverage when renting a vehicle in your country of residence and primary coverage when renting a vehicle outside your country of residence. With secondary coverage, you make a claim through your personal insurance company first while Chase covers all remaining expenses.
Chase Freedom Unlimited Rental Car Requirements
You must meet certain requirements to activate rental car insurance on your Chase Freedom Unlimited credit card, including:
- You must pay for your entire rental car purchase using your Chase Freedom Unlimited credit card (or your Chase Ultimate Rewards account)
- Your name must appear on the credit card or be listed on the rewards account
- You must decline the rental car company’s collision damage waiver
If you meet these requirements, then your Chase Freedom Unlimited credit card extends a collision damage waiver to you (the cardholder) and all authorized drivers on the rental car agreement.
What Does Chase Freedom Unlimited Rental Car Insurance Cover?
Chase Freedom Unlimited rental car insurance covers similar things to any other collision damage waiver.
Whether you have Chase Freedom Unlimited, Chase Freedom Flex, or Chase Freedom, you get the same rental car coverage, which includes:
- Damage to the rental vehicle
- Theft of the rental vehicle
- Loss of use charges
- Towing charges resulting from damage or theft of the rental vehicle
- Additional administrative fees or other penalties imposed by the rental car company after an accident or theft
Primary Versus Secondary Coverage
Your Chase Freedom Unlimited card provides secondary coverage when renting a vehicle in your country of residence. That means your personal auto insurance policy covers you first. Then, Chase covers any remaining costs or incidents not covered by your personal policy.
If renting a vehicle outside of your country of residence, your Chase Freedom Unlimited card provides primary coverage. That means you file a claim with Chase first without alerting your personal auto insurance provider. That means the incident does not appear on your driving record and you will not pay a deductible.
Chase may cover your deductible even when functioning as secondary coverage.
If you do not have a personal auto insurance policy, then you can still make a claim through your Chase Freedom Unlimited card, effectively making it primary coverage. However, your Chase Freedom Unlimited card may not cover all expenses related to the accident – like medical bills and property damage to other parties that personal insurance would normally cover.
Chase’s higher-end credit cards offer primary car insurance coverage as an added perk. The Chase Sapphire Preferred ($95 annual fee) and Chase Sapphire Reserve ($550 annual fee) cards, for example, both offer primary coverage, which means you can avoid dealing with your own insurer when renting a car within your country of residence or elsewhere.
What Does Chase Freedom Unlimited Rental Car Insurance Not Cover?
Chase Freedom Unlimited rental car insurance does not apply to all situations.
If you were driving your car in violation of your rental car agreement, for example, then Chase may deny your claim.
Your Chase Freedom Unlimited rental car insurance does not cover medical bills, damage to other vehicles as a result of your actions, and certain other costs. You can make a claim through your health insurance company or personal auto insurance company to cover these expenses.
Items not covered by your Chase Freedom Unlimited rental car insurance include:
- Damage due to acts of war, terrorism, insurrection, invasions, or rebellions
- Any injuries experienced by the driver, passengers, pedestrians, other drivers, or anyone else involved in the accident
- Personal liability, including damage to other property or injuries to other people for which you are liable (say, if you were at fault in the accident)
- Damage to other vehicles
- Damage caused when driving the rental vehicle in a prohibited area (say, when off-roading)
- Depreciation of the rental vehicle
- Damage that occurred when driving the rental car under the influence of drugs or alcohol
- Loss or theft of personal belongings from the vehicle
- Rental cars that you did not rent from a rental agency (say, if you paid a friend to rent a vehicle or used a peer-to-peer car rental service)
- Certain exotic, unique, high-value, or alternative rental cars (see below)
Chase Freedom Unlimited Rental Car Insurance Restrictions
Your Chase Freedom Unlimited rental car insurance does not cover certain types of vehicles, including non-standard rental cars, motorcycles, mopeds, limousines, RVs, and more.
Restricted vehicles include:
- RVs
- Motorcycles and mopeds
- Passenger vans with a total capacity of more than nine people
- High-value vehicles (like luxury sportscars), exotic cars, or antique vehicles
- Cargo vans, trucks, moving trucks, or any vehicle with an open cargo bed (pickup trucks are covered)
If you are unsure if your rental car is covered, contact Chase before you rent the vehicle. Otherwise, you could be left underinsured.
How to Make a Chase Freedom Unlimited Rental Car Insurance Claim
Chase makes it easy to file a rental car insurance claim:
- For incidents occurring within the United States, call 1-888-320-9656
- For incidents occurring outside the United States, call 1-804-673-1691
- Alternatively, you can file a claim online at Chase’s official online portal, https://www.eclaimsline.com/
To file a claim, you’ll need a copy of the police report (if applicable), a copy of the rental agreement, photos of the damaged vehicle, an itemized repair bill, an accident report (if applicable), and any additional information from the rental car company pertaining to the vehicle or accident.
Chase may also request a credit card account statement proving you charged the full rental car amount to your Chase Freedom Unlimited card. You may also need to submit proof of a personal insurance policy to Chase.
You must send documentation to Chase within 100 days of the incident. Otherwise, Chase could deny your claim.
Final Word on Chase Freedom Unlimited
Your Chase Freedom Unlimited card comes with collision damage waiver coverage. If you rent a car, pay for that rental car using your credit card, and decline the rental car company’s collision damage waiver, then Chase extends a collision damage waiver to your rental car.
The Chase Freedom Unlimited card has identical rental car coverage to the other two Chase Freedom cards, including the Chase Freedom and Chase Freedom Flex cards.
Contact Chase or check your Chase Freedom Unlimited card documentation today to verify your rental car insurance coverage.
