People were shocked when we told them we were planning a trip to Mexico and that we planned to drive around. And while it’s true that some parts of Mexico should be avoided, other areas are about as safe as driving elsewhere in the world. We were traveling to the Yucatan, a relatively safe area to visit. Having the freedom of a rental car is a wonderful way to explore this area, and we had set out a pretty awesome Yucatan driving itinerary. But there are some very important things that you should be aware of, such as the mandatory Mexican Liability Insurance. After lots of research, detailed comparisons, and our personal experience, we wanted to share with you what we learned about renting a car in Mexico.
Go Through a Reputable Rental Car Agency
If you just do a simple Google search for a rental car in Mexico, all kinds of companies will pop up. If you are from the States, then you may think that going with an agency you know like Hertz or Avis would be the best bet. But that’s not always true. Offices are franchised out and just because it is the same company doesn’t mean that the service or product will be good. Definitely look at the reviews of the agency.
Rental agencies on airport property will be more expensive than renting at an off-site agency. But if you rent off-site, be sure that they provide reliable transportation to and from the airport, again look at the reviews. In Cancun, we found that America Car Rental met our expectations.
They picked us up promptly when our flight landed and were very professional and kind to us. As with a lot of things in Mexico, the process was a bit lengthy to complete the paperwork, inspect the car and pick up the rental. So just be sure to allot yourself plenty of time.
Can You Avoid Paying Car Rental Insurance in Mexico? Mexican Liability Insurance is Required by Law.
This is IMPORTANT! Mexican Liability Insurance is mandatory in Mexico. If you do not have proof that you have this insurance and you happen to get into an accident, no matter how minor, you can be taken to a Mexican jail until the police can determine who was at fault (and who knows how long that may take).
I have heard other people trying to avoid paying for this extra Mexican Liability car rental insurance in Mexico, and I’ve even read other bloggers writing about how to avoid it! However, that doesn’t mean it’s correct legal advice. At the end of the day, it’s really up to you. Personally, I would prefer not to spend my vacation in a Mexican jail while they sort out the details of the accident. Having proof of the insurance can save you much of the headache. And yes, even thought it’s more expensive…to me it’s worth paying the extra to have piece of mind. You know what they say “penny wise, pound foolish.”
Mexican Liability Insurance is Not Always Included in Rental Car Quote
When you do a search online for a rental car in Mexico, you will be surprised at how cheap the quotes are. And yes, the rental is cheap…but the insurance is not! Many major online travel booking sites will deceive you when it comes to Mexican Liability Insurance. Their quote may say “including all insurance” but that may not include Mexican Liability – so be sure to read the fine print to see what exactly it does cover.
The cost of this insurance can easily double your total rental price, so be sure to check carefully. If to the total rental car price seems too good to be true, then it likely doesn’t include Mexican Liability Insurance.
Below is an example of a search that I did online for a rental car in Mexico – you can see the price seems great!
How to Buy Mexican Liability Insurance
There are some companies here in the States that will offer to sell Mexican Liability Insurance up front before you leave the States. However, that doesn’t mean that it will actually be honored in Mexico.
We have heard a lot of conflicting reports about this issue and the rules aren’t very clear. Your best bet is to buy the insurance from a Mexican agency, to be sure it will be honored in Mexico.
Before our trip, we actually reached out to some Mexican insurance companies that we found online. However, their service was terrible and they seemed a bit sketchy. In the end, we decided that we didn’t feel comfortable using them.
We were nervous that buying over the phone or internet could be a scam too. So in the end, we decided to save ourselves a lot of headaches and worry by just buying it direct from America Rental Car agency in Mexico when we picked up the car.
Update: While doing some research for a recent post about Why You Need Car Insurance in Mexico, I actually found a company called Sanborn’s Mexican Auto Insurance. They are technically a Mexican company, but they have multiple offices in both the States and in Mexico. While we haven’t used Sanborn’s ourselves, their information seems much more comprehensive and gives me a higher level of trust than what I found online a few years ago.
How Much Does Mexican Liability Insurance Cost?
The cost of Mexican Liability Insurance can vary between rental car agencies. In advance of our trip, we did some detailed comparisons between a variety of rental agency prices in Cancun. When we looked into the details of renting through Hertz, their Mexican Liability Insurance was crazy expensive! But with America Rental Car, it was actually must more reasonable. Not cheap, but reasonable. Overall, the insurance coverage was exactly the same too.
So this solidified our choice in America Rental Car as being our best option.
If you are interested in America Car Rental, click on the banner below to search rentalcars.com. America is currently one of their vendors in the Cancun area, and their quoted price includes the required Mexican Liability Insurance!
Renting a Car in Mexico is Worth It!
Overall, we don’t regret renting a car in Mexico. In fact, during our trip we believe that renting a car in Cancun made our trip a lot better! While there are many options for group tours in Cancun that will take you to see all the main sights (such as the famous Chichen Itza), having the car gave us such freedom to explore on our own, even while staying at an all-inclusive Mexico hotel. Doing your research in advance will save you time and money, but of course, you are already doing that if you are reading this post!
This post has been updated in 2019 but was originally published in 2014.
Read more about our adventure driving around the Yucatan and Tip for Driving in Mexico.
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Photo Credit: All photo falls under CC 2.0 – augustino, photos71, ban75
Check Out Our Complete Mexico Travel Guide!
Did you have to pay extra for America Car Rental to provide the airport transfer? If so, how much did it cost for both of you?
No it didn’t cost anything it was included in the rental rate. Highly recommended 🙂
Hello Liz, thanks for this blog post, learning about Mexican liability insurance from you here saved me a lot of heartache. I took the tip about America Car Rental and unfortunately had a bad experience. We arrived Cancun 8pm with 2 small children on 4 Feb 2017 and after searching a crowded area for 20 minutes we found the ACR rep, who told me in Spanish to use my own mobile phone to call the general company number. I called, and was told in Spanish they had no cars, I should come back to their lot in the morning and they might be able to give me a modest discount. A big struggle to get back to the car rental reps from international companies in the arrival terminal…we eventually rented w Alamo for $18/day rather than the $11/day we were due to be charged at America Car Rental from rental cars.com (all in, including MX Liability Insurance). Just a word of warning to balance the positive experience you had. And still: Thanks for your blog! 🙂
Hello Cora,
Thanks for the feedback. I’m glad our post helped you with the insurance aspect, but bummed to hear that you had a poor experience with the rental agency. It definitely seems like some people get different experiences, something the company should try to improve for sure! Thanks for letting us know and we hope you had a fabulous trip!
– Liz
I can not say enough about the wonderful staff at American Car rental! I was leery to say the least about all the comments about car rentals in Mexico. We had a great experience with American. They were on time picking us up at the airport ( no extra cost for this) and were delivered to the rental counter in less than a 10 minute drive. The staff was nice, and spoke enough English to explain everything thoroughly to both of us that didn’t speak any Spanish. When we returned the car the process was easy and quick. NOW, here is the kicker… We left our Go Pro camera under the seat of the car when we returned it and did realize it until 10:30 that night. When I called I spoke to several staff, again I speak no Spanish, and they asked that I call back in the morning to talk to the customer service rep. I thought, ” kiss it good bye” But I called in the morning and talked to 2 staff and finally was surprised to hear that the camera was found and turned in by Julio, when he checked in the car last night. We could come and pick it up. Shocked! This was a great company and great staff! Javier Franco was especially helpful and Julio honest to turn in the camera! I can’t say enough about them! Don’t be afraid to rent from this company or drive around in Mexico.
Kelly – WOW! Thanks for leaving a comment here to tell us your wonderful story! We are SO happy to hear that you had a great experience, but even happier to know that you got your GoPro camera back – that is incredible. That’s some great service, and definitely helps so that you don’t leave on a bad note. We’ve definitely had our scares on the road like this (leaving my bag with my computer on a terminal bus at an Indonesian airport…and a lovely woman tracked me down to bring it to me!).
There really are so many good people in the world, let’s remember that always. And I’m so very happy to hear your story!
Take care and happy travels to you!
– Liz
Hello… ive been to cancun n rented a car before and didnt have problems. But the more i read online, im scared to do it again. Did u book the car online? On their website? How were u transported to the rental place from the airport? Were there any charges on ur credit card? How was the deposit handled. I am aware that a rental will not be dirt cheap. I anticipate at least $50 per day. Your help would be greatly appreciated.
Hi Wendy!
I was a bit nervous too after reading online, but it turned out great. I booked the car on the America Car Rental website. They picked us up in a van at the airport (a nice guy was holding a sign with our names). After we returned the car, we got back in the van and they took us back to the airport. Very convenient. I can’t recall if we paid a deposit up front – I believe we didn’t pay until after we picked up the car. All the charges were correct (including all insurance).
Let me know if you have any other questions. We had a good experience with them!
– Liz
so what were the total costs?
It’s going to depend on the car you choose, and the length, and where (city) you rent it. I believe we paid roughly $300 for a week with fill insurance (if I remember correctly…) – it was a few years ago though.
Liz
Hi Liz,
I’m glad that you had a good experience renting a car and driving in Mexico. It’s such a great way to explore the country!
My husband I have rented for a month at a time, 2 x a year from Cancun for the last 8 years. We use our Amex & their $0 deductible option @ $24.95/rental contract.
This takes care of everything but the Basic Third Party Liability…Hertz and Europcar both include it in quotes. You do not need to buy the supplemental.
In fact, by law ALL of the rental companies are required to include it! All of them do but also have a requirement of you purchasing their Supplemental Liability coverage in the fine print of policy (except for Hertz & Europcar).
We have rented w/o the additional liability coverage 16 times in the last 8 years from either Hertz or Europcar & have had no bad experiences.
Don’t be talked into it next time!
Thanks Susan! Yes, it can be so confusing — but glad you had a good experience! Renting a car is definitely one of the best ways to explore, we love it!
Happy Travels!
– Liz
Hi Liz, I am so glad that I found your website. I am traveling into Mexico around the holidays. I need to rent a car. I will be heading to a small town about 11/2 hours north of Mexico City.. It is not typically a resort area. There are some areas I believe are semi frequented by tourists but thats about it. I am very apprehensive with this entire car thing. I will be checking into the company that you used and Airport accessible ones as well. If there is any added comfort you can give me that would be fabulous. I am anxious to go…….and I am anxious about going 🙂 Do you know of any Taxi services?
Hello Sherri – thanks for reaching out!
Unfortunately, we have not traveled to the areas north of Mexico City so we cannot attest to the safety there or the conditions of the roads. We have rented car and driven around the Yucatan, which is very different than other areas of Mexico. What is the name of the town? Are you staying in a resort or with family / friends? If so, perhaps they can make recommendations or arrange for a driver for you?
Overall, if you can link up with someone who is familiar with the area or a friend of a friend who lives there, then that would be most helpful. Having a local on your side to help you will be a huge benefit, especially if your Spanish is rough.
Thanks for reading, I wish I could advise more…but I haven’t been to that part of Mexico 🙁
– Liz
Sherri –
If you haven’t already, you may want to check out the US Bureau of Consular Affairs website for recent Mexico travel warnings. Below is a link. It has a state by state breakdown for Mexico and the warnings that are in place. This might be helpful for you, depending on the State where you are planning to travel.
http://travel.state.gov/content/passports/english/alertswarnings/mexico-travel-warning.html
Thanks!
– Liz
Hi Sherri,
Liz – I read your comments and it made me frown — Sherri was asking for reassurance and it sounds like you gave her the opposite!
I am also going to Mexico (to Puebla, which is about an hour south of Mexico City) around the holidays and renting a car for a 9 hour road trip to the coast. I have been to mexico 6 times and never been to a resort-y type area. I don’t think it’s worth your time to be worried. People in MX are very friendly, and you’ll meet a scammer or dangerous person about as often as you would in the US. The roads are also in great condition around cities (rural areas have dirt roads). Spanish will definitely also be useful, most people don’t speak english in non-resort areas, but you’d be surprised at how little you need to actually get by.
It’s true you should probably be *careful* in areas that are listed with travel advisories on travel.state.gov, but those are mostly in the north and west. The area around Mexico DF (Mexico City) should be fine.
Thanks for your help Jessica!
Truthfully, I have never driven in the areas that Sherri was asking about, so I could not truly attest to the safety in the area. I appreciate your input, since it sounds like you have driven in that area before. 🙂
– Liz
did they ask you to sign liability refusal form?
Hi Zee – thanks for reading!
I don’t recall signing any kind of refusal form. Unless it was online or buried somewhere when I picked up the car.
Liz
I agree with Susan, Hertz for sure has 350,000 pesos included for liability with rental rate. The ALI makes this 5,000,000. Spanish translation on the form. “the coverage is maintained for damages to third parties included in rate of 350,000 per event”
Thanks for the comment Brad. It is definitely confusing, and a number of car companies in Mexico mislead consumers on this issue. Very few rental companies include this in their quotes, so I am surprised that you found it in a Hertz agreement. However, it might not be included in all Hertz agreements — so it’s important that everyone check their quotes closely. I would recommend checking to be sure that the coverage Hertz is from a Mexican insurance company too and not US (otherwise it is void).
Thanks for the input and happy travels in Mexico!
– Liz
Susan brings up a great point….from my research, by law the ‘mandatory’ (3rd party) personal liability is already included in the rate. But, I’m personally wondering if I should purchase an additional (supplemental) amount to add on top of this? I am renting from Fox in Los Cabos. The rental shows included taxes and fees covering the Airport Fee and IVA (tax). For the list of vehicle add ons, it shows (among other things) Liability @ $14.99 day and Supplemental Liability @ $7.00 day. (When clicking on the details for each, it doesn’t provide text). So not entirely sure what is included or not. Naturally, I don’t want to be talked into something at the counter that I don’t need. Appreciate any feedback.
We are planning a trip to Tulum next month. I am still hesitant about renting a car. Researching is not going very positive. I understand the basic Mexican Insurance (PLI), what about all the extra? Is it mandatory? When visiting Cozumel, my friend got hit with additional charge of $600 on his credit card, which he fought ALAMO and finally got it refunded. And all the Police harassment?? Also, do you know if its true if you are in an accident they haul you off to jail until the dispute is resolved or does the insurance help with this situation? thanks for any advice.
Beth
Hello Beth – thanks for reading, and for the comment!
Beyond PLI, the other insurances are not mandatory — although, you may want to consider them just to save yourself a headache later if something happens. I can’t say what happened with Alamo and your friend, but I know they do get a lot of complaints for various reasons. We never had any surprise charges with America — and we did purchase the extra insurance. ** and YES, it is true that if you are in an accident in Mexico the police can haul you to jail until the dispute is sorted out. That’s why you MUST have proof of your PLI insurance to avoid this situation.
As far as harassment from the police, we never had any during your time in the Yucatan. This is a very popular area for tourists, and many people rent cars to drive around. We did drive through numerous check points, but they never stopped us. I think if you are friendly and smile, and DON’T look suspicious, then you shouldn’t have a problem. We never felt unsafe or harassed during our time driving in this part of Mexico.
Cheers & enjoy your trip!
– Liz
Susan,
We have the American Express with the $O liability option. Do you buy anything besides that coverage when you rent? The cars are really cheap to rent but I don’t want to have an issue that can ruin our vacation. We to are going in December for 15 days. Renting a car in Cancun and staying down by Akumal. After reading some of the dire warnings, it makes you think twice. I have appreciated the help and positive feedback and stories here.
Fred
Hello Fred – thanks for reading!
I see that you are asking Susan; however, I felt the need to jump in to clarify because I overlooked some of what Susan said. While rental car companies are required to provide you with third party insurance options, they are not required to include it on the online “quote” that they give you. Typically, the price they are quoting online is not the actual price when you include the mandatory insurance — so it’s kinda like a bait and switch.
In fact, I just did a search on Hertz’s website – and in the fine print it says that online price doesn’t include the third party liability. So you will be charged extra for that on arrival — and I couldn’t find anywhere on their site about how much that would be (so I would be concerned about sticker shock when I arrive)!
And while many of us can decline the car rental company’s insurance because of our AmEx card coverage (if you purchase that option through AmEx), everything I have read states that the AmEx car rental 3rd party liability insurance is NOT accepted in Mexico. From what I can see, they require it to be through a Mexican company.
Should there ever be an issue, law enforcement could ask you to provide proof of Mexican third party liability coverage. If you don’t have it, then it could be a problem. Perhaps others have been lucky and not been asked to prove it. But I would be wary.
We actually had the AmEx insurance coverage too — and we still opted to buy the coverage from America Car Rental — just to be sure we were covered. Since their online rental price included the full third party liability coverage and a much lower rate than other companies.
I hope this helps. Overall, it’s up to you if you want to risk it with the AmEx coverage — you may never be asked to prove who it is through. But technically, it sounds like that actually doesn’t meet the requirement.
Thanks for reading Fred – and I hope you enjoy your trip! We miss Mexico and will be going back soon ourselves!
– Liz
Thanks so much for your input Liz! That is kind of how I was leaning. One little mishap could ruin the whole two weeks when we are supposed to be relaxing. Really enjoy your discussions here. Thanks for all the great info. We were at the Bahia Akumal for a week at the beginning of the month. Loved it!! We are going to stay at the TAO condo’s at the Sian Kaan complex this time. That is why we thinking of renting a car.
-Fred
How do we do that with Amex? We have their cards.
Hello Susan – not all credit cards cover car rental liability insurance in Mexico.
I recommend checking with Amex for details and if this will work. We don’t use an Amex, so I am not able to explain if it works or not.
Feel free to add to this comment thread if you find out more!
Happy travels!
Liz
Renting a car in Cancun in March and traveling about 6hrs to Xcalac. There will be two drivers. Have any idea if one driver can pick up car and other drop off? This is because of different flight dates and times of arrival and departure. Most of the reviews I’ve read have been negative about all the car rental companies. America and Easy Way have both good and bad reviews.
Hi Michael – thank you for reading!
You shouldn’t have any problem if one person picks up the car and another person returns it. You should just be sure that the person who returns it has all of the appropriate paperwork needed (in case there is any issue). As long as both names are listed as drivers, it shouldn’t be a problem. However, I’ve never actually had them even check my name when I return the car. They will take all your credit card information when you rent the car, so it should already be charged and on file.
Thanks for reading & have fun!!!
– Liz
Hi I am on Isla Mujeres & a friend is coming the end of Feb, we are looking to rent a car for 9 days and exploring the Yucatan and so far i like America. My question is did you just take the insurance that was included in the quote or did you add the additional liability…if so how much did it add to your bill? Thank you.
Hi Katie!
From what I recall, we specifically quoted it with the extra insurance. I believe there should be an option to do that. So if you review the details of the quote and it specifically says “Mexican Liability” – then you should be fine. If it does not, then adding it will probably double the total cost (or close to it). When I had researched the prices, I found America to have the most competitive total price, including the full liability insurance.
Have fun!
– Liz
Hi, Liz! I’m so glad I happened upon this! I’ve just booked (twice) car rental for our upcoming trip to Puerta Aventuras. I booked through Hertz using Expedia and purchased their travel insurance, which appears to be comp/collision, and not the required 3rd party liability insurance. When I received the confirmation, I found that it was not the airport location, but one 17 miles away at Xcarat. I called Hertz to change to the airport which I did without additional fees. However, I was told that 1) I would need to purchase additional insurance ranging from $30-$40 per day, 2) that my credit card would have a hold placed on it for 15% of the vehicle worth and 3) that I would be required to have an International Driver’s Permit. Does any of this ring true to you? I’m wondering now if I should cancel and either rebook through American Car Rental or just ditch the idea of a rental car and go with private transport.
Thanks in advance!
Robin –
Yes, this is the exact situation that I have heard about many times in the Yucatan! Yes, the Hertz location is not actually at the Cancun airport. Neither is America Car rental, but it is very close by and we found their transportation to be prompt and friendly.
And yes, the extra insurance quoted from Hertz seems inline with what I found them to charge — it’s a lot! I recall that America’s liability insurance was less, which is why we went with them. But I have never heard of placing a hold on a card for 15% of the vehicles value…that’s interesting! We certainly did not do that when we rented with America. Also, while many countries require an International Driving permit, Mexico usually isn’t one of them and we never showed one when we rented there.
If you have the option to cancel, honestly I would. It doesn’t seem like a great deal to me.
We had a really good experience with America – and it is our honest opinion, we did not receive any “perks” or comps for being bloggers. They were really good and the prices were so much more reasonable than what we had quoted out anywhere else.
Thanks for reading. I hope you have a great vacation!
– Liz
Liz, my husband and I with our two teens are visiting Cancun at the end of January 2015. I’ve researched plenty on car rentals and insurance in Mexico and was warned by a friend. We wanted to drive to Chitzen Itza and then drive from there to Tulum the next day. We are then going to go to an all-inclusive for three days. Short trip but we wanted to explore outside of Cancun at the front end of our trip before going to our resort. The more I read, the more I get nervous. I’ve never felt that way anywhere else we traveled. We will be spending the night near Chitzen Itza in Vallodoid the first night. Your blog was the best answer to our questions. Do you think we should return the car after our first two days and then then just take buses around the hotel zone. Any advice. Marcia
Hello Marcia – thanks for reading and I’m glad our blog has been helpful!
Don’t be too worried about driving in that part of Mexico, you will be just fine — and you will really enjoy being able to drive to Chichen Itza, Valladolid, and Tulum! As for your time in Cancun, it depends on how much you are going to explore while you are in Cancun and where you are staying. The hotel zone is very big! On the northern part of the hotel zone, there are some places you can walk to, or you can take the bus. But the more south you go, the less there is to do right around your hotel — so it is a longer walk.
If your plans are to simply relax at your all-inclusive the whole time you are in Cancun, then there shouldn’t be a need to have a car. But of course, having a car is more convenient. We actually kept our car for the duration of our stay, including while we spent a few days at our all-inclusive. We only took the car out a couple times while in Cancun – mainly to get away from the hotel zone.
So if there isn’t big price difference, you may want to keep the car. But if you feel like you will mostly be staying at your hotel, then it may not be worth the extra expense. There are buses that go around the hotel zone.
Enjoy your trip!
– Liz
HI Marcia,
Having been to Cancun twice recently, there is definitely no reason for a car in the hotel zone! Use the bus system. It goes up and down the main roads and is very cheap and easy to use! The car would not be worth it in hotel zone!
Kelly
Thanks so much, Liz, that’s is what I was thinking too. Just wondering if you had ever used the road from Valladolid to Tulum or Valladolid to Playa Del Carmen. Is it decent or should we stay away? Thanks so much. Marcia
Marcia – those roads are fine to drive. I would recommend driving them during daylight hours, because they aren’t lit at night and there are some potholes. But if you drive during the day, then you shouldn’t have any problem on those highways.
Have fun!
– Liz
Liz,
I read your blog with interest having gotten quite alarmed with posts on other sites including TripAdvisor. We are traveling to Cancun in mid February with a group of family including an infant. We would be renting a car and driving to Tulum where we have a house for a week. When I went to the America Car Rental site as you advised, I got a quote for a Dodge minivan/SUV that include full liability with 0% deductible (EPC). Does that mean that there will be nothing added on at the rental desk when we get there? It would seem so, as it includes the PAI and PLI that you described as being mandatory. Can you clarify this for me?
Kathryn
Hello Kathryn – thank you so much for reading!
That sounds correct. You should not have anything else added to your quote, unless taxes are not included (but it should tell you if they aren’t). Of course as all rental companies do, when you arrive they will ask if you need anything else – like a GPS, carseat, etc. But those extras are totally optional.
You shouldn’t have any trouble driving from Cancun to Tulum. The highway is quite popular and well maintained. Plus, you should see plenty of road signs all the way to Tulum.
Have a wonderful trip!
– Liz
Thanks for the great post Liz, you give some awesome advice. My wife and I just got back from a trip where we covered several hundred kilometres by car as well – it was fantastic. That being said I wanted to share my experience of renting with Alamo to ensure your readers are aware of the corrupt business practices we experienced. I’d be happy to answer any additional questions if needed.
*DO NOT RENT FROM ALAMO*
I just returned from two great weeks in Mexico. After renting a car from Alamo in Puerto Vallarta my wife and I had a great time travelling up and down the coastline. Everything went smoothly when initially renting the car, it wasn’t until we brought the car back and were on our way home that I noticed something strange. When checking my Visa statement I realized that there was an additional charge from Alamo for $2,500 on top of our agreed upon rental charge which we paid upon rental. We had full insurance on the car and confirmed the completion of our transaction at the drop off point – so this charge came as a huge shock.
I have tried every avenue to follow up with Alamo to have this charge removed with absolutely no luck or progress. No returned communication or explanation of how these charges have shown up leaving us to have to resort to the legal process of reporting a fraudulent charge.
I would say we almost had a great experience with Alamo, but the combination of a massive extra charge on our account and terrible customer service will keep us away for the rest of our lives.
Thanks for sharing your story Tyrell. Glad to hear that you enjoyed your road trip around Mexico, but bummed to hear about that charge on your card – crazy! That definitely sounds like a fraudulent charge. Hopefully you can just dispute it with your credit card company. This is why it is better to use a credit card than a debit card for rentals!
Hope all works out for you. Thanks for reading!
– Liz
Hi Tyrell,
Found this when reading up on the Alamo website. The CC authorization amount is exactly $2,500 which rang a bell, since I only read this a few moments ago. It appears to be their policy if the customer declines to purchase the TPL. I hope that the pending charge held on your CC was removed eventually.
Third Party Liability Protection
In Mexico, 3rd party liability insurance is required by law on all vehicles. Customers can obtain coverage for damages and injuries to third parties under the local rental car company’s insurance by purchasing its Third Party Liability protection (TPL) and such a purchase is required unless the customer presents valid proof of current liability insurance specifying coverage in Mexico. Liability insurance purchased on third party travel websites and insurance that accompanies US credit or debits cards are not acceptable forms of coverage. If the customer provides acceptable proof of current liability coverage in Mexico and declines to purchase the TPL offered by the local rental car company, an additional authorization in the amount of $2500 USD will be held on his or her credit card.
Same thing happened to me with Alamo. I won my case. The credit card company took care of it all. I had proof of all the paperwork. It took almost 6 months to get it straightened out. Good luck and NO ONE RENT FROM ALAMO !!!!
Hello Liz,
So how much did America Car Rental charged you for the liability insurance per day with the car that you received? The range is from 12 to 30 which is significantly a wide range. We have been coming down to Cancun every year for the last 20 years and it is different every time we rent a car from the different companies. We just want a clear quote before we rent but never such luck. Thanks for you time.
Minh
Minh –
It’s been a couple years since our trip, but I recall that we paid roughly $15 – $18 per day for the insurance through America. The quote was inclusive of all the insurance, so that is compared to the total price to include the insurance through other agencies. We compared the total prices to see what the best deal was. But on their website, you can quote the price including the insurance. So you should know what you will be paying.
Thanks for reading!
– Liz
Thanking the original poster. We rented a car in mexico at Cancun airport in Dec 2014. Ran into the problem as described here. Our quote from rental online from agency did not include ther Mexico liability. we got extorted by Dollars company into paying the extra coverage which we already paid online. So in addition to the mexican liability we paid the extra stuffs twice. Rental was for one day, so the scam was not too expensive for us.
your info provide a clear picture of the process. We are going to Cancun again in Mar 2015. Will consider american rental and will be reseraching a bit more on this car rental situation.
very good info from you.
cheers
ken
Thank you so very much for your comment. Sorry to hear that your previous experience renting a car wasn’t very good, but luckily it was only for 1 day. Glad to hear that this information was helpful for you. Enjoy your next trip to Cancun!
– Liz
Does the rental car insurance online quote from America Car Rental cover “all” the insurance costs? (CDW, LDW, PAI, ALI, and Third Party Insurance) Can you give me what you think the rate would be for a week, picking up at the Cancun airport. I’m still confused as to whether the agency is at the airport. It says it is, but one person said it isn’t. The quote is for a VW Gol Sedan with standard transmission. They are quoting us $250. without tax. Thanks for your help.
Jeanne –
America Car Rental is not on airport property in Cancun. It is quite close and they will have a shuttle there to pick you up. Many hotels & car rental companies do this in Cancun, their drivers will be outside holding signs.
We had no problem finding our driver. He was very kind and helpful. We waited with him while looking for two more people, then they put us in the shuttle van to take us to the agency. Dropping off the car at the agency and getting a ride back to the airport was super easy as well!
The last time I checked, America’s online quotes included all the extra insurance costs. But things can change. There should be links to open the complete details of the policy and read through it to be sure. Also, most major credit cards will offer some of this insurance as well — it’s the Mexican Liability that they won’t cover. Which is why you have to buy that from the agency in Mexico (which is included with America).
I hope this helps. Have fun on your trip!
Liz
Liz,
Thanks for all the info. I sure wish I had seen this article before our recent trip to Cancun.
We rented a full-size car from Dollar thru Orbitz website. The 8-day rental was stated as total price of $145 (including taxes and fees with no * or caution of additional fees). However when I got to the counter at Dollar, I was completely shocked when they said I had to buy mandatory Mexican auto insurance. The options were: $27 US/day, $49 US/day, $59 US/day. Oh, and at car return, I learned those insurance fees were still understated as they added another 26% taxes to the insurance rates. I was extremely frustrated and asked that they put me on the phone with Dollar rental car. They said they couldn’t because they were just a franchise. It felt like a scam, but I was stuck. I went for the cheapest option (turned out to be $35/day), and he told me he had to pre-charge my credit card $4,000 US, and that I would be wholly responsible for any damages to our vehicle up to $18,000 US.
This fiasco took close to 1hr and I was so upset that I made a terrible error; I left in the car without thoroughly inspecting the vehicle. When we returned the car, they claimed we caused a scratch on the rear quarter panel at a fee of $140 US ($2088 pesos). I’m confident we didn’t do it but I had no proof that it was pre-existing. I would definitely recommend you do a thorough check and take pictures on your day of rental. In the end, my $145 rental cost us $540. I plan to follow-up with Orbitz and Dollar for false advertising but I fear it is a futile plea. I will certainly do more homework before our next trip.
Thanks again for the advice.
– Gregg
Gregg –
I am so terribly to hear about your experience! Your story is exactly what I have heard time and time again.
I really hope that this blog post (and everyone sharing their stories) can help other travelers avoid these headaches and crazy charges in the future!
I hope your next trip goes better!
– Liz
Gregg, I am not sure how they could possibly say the cheapest option was $27 per day. The website says SLI is 16.99 per day. Did they say what coverages were included for $27?
Thanks, Liz. Your response was so helpful.The last time we rented in Cancun we were going to Playa del Carmen and they told us Budget was at the airport. They picked us up and we drove over 30 min. towards Cancun to get to Budget, the one listed as “at airport.” We’re going to Playa again so I just wanted to check. Does the price sound about right?
Jeanne
Jeanne – Is the rental for 1 week? If so, then yes I’d say that the rate sounds about right (including the appropriate insurance).
– Liz
We went to Cabo from Feb 21-28 for 8 days. I had a quote from thrifty for $95 for the one week without insurance. I was planning on buying some coverage when I got there. Usually I don’t ever in the US because I use my AMEX. But in a foreign country, you can go to jail while they (slowly) sort things out or be tied up in red tape and I wanted to avoid that. When we arrived at Thrifty (with wife and 3 young children) it turned into a fiasco. The options they gave me were $450 for one week of insurance with a 3000 hold on my credit card or $675 for one week with full coverage and no hold. Looking back, I am most upset that thrifty or any car company makes no warning or provides no information prior to arrival. This is just bad business. I could have made a different decision or not rented all together. After much debate, we ended up going with one of those dumb time share presentations and they gave us a voucher that took the rate down to $320 all in for 8 days of rental with full coverage. I despise these presentations and it went for 2.5 hours not 90 minutes. Next time I am just going to cab it everywhere. It just isn’t worth the cost and the anger of dealing with these companies. I feel our consulate should get involved. Do Mexican citizens have to pay this? I know the average citizen could not afford 675 us dollars for a one week car rental? And we don’t charge those visitors coming to America that rate? maybe we should…
Thanks for sharing your story Lawrence – I’m sorry to hear that. How outrageous! I don’t know much about rental car options in the Cabo area of Mexico, but I would recommend anyone renting to inquire specifically about the cost of the extra insurance in advance. You may also be better off going with a Mexican auto rental company rather than an American one (operating as a franchise in Mexico).
This may just be the cost of renting in Mexico that you can’t always get around. When we rented in Ireland, it was a similar situation where the insurance was much more expensive than the rental rate — and they too put a massive hold on our credit card until we returned it. I would be interested to hear if any readers have good advice for renting in the Cabo part of Mexico.
Thanks!
– Liz
Just a quick follow-up to my just posted comment: when reviewing the location rental policy for the car to be picked up at Los Cabos Airport, it states:
“Mexico law requires all car rental contracts to include supplemental coverage. You will be required to select one of the following policies at time of rental. Fox Rent A Car Mexico highly recommends that U.S. customers purchase insurance to help protect them against personal liability in Mexico.” First listed is the RLP-Rental liability protection (e.g. personal liability), then Supplemental, and all the other options. So again, I can’t tell what if anything is indeed included and what I will be forced to purchase.
OMG. I have a saved vacation to an all-inclusive resort in between Cancun and Playa Del Carmen ready to book, and it includes a rental car from Alamo. Read the bad experience from one of the posters on this thread, and I hope he can recoup that $2500 charge soon! I think I’m going to remove the car rental from my booking when ib book it. The Alamo car rental portion of the booking (click on it and a window will open up) does say that a hold for $1400 will be placed on my credit card for the rental. But there doesn’t seem to be anything about insurance of any kind anywhere. Only that $70 rental for 6 days for not include taxes, which is payable at the time if rental ($18-$19 was the quote for taxes).
Thanks for the comment Aikwan – and we hope you have a blast on your trip! Yes, I would definitely believe that the $70 rental does NOT include the extra insurance, which they will no doubt tack onto the price when you arrive. If I were you, I would cancel it too and see if you can find something elsewhere that will quote you the price up front. It is sketchy when you don’t know what the final price will be after insurance – and you don’t want an expensive surprise!
Cheers!
Liz
Hi Liz, Thank you for sharing very helpful information!
I’ll be taking a family trip to cancun Mexico and I’m definitely considering America Car Rental company for my trip. I’m a big time Yelper, and noticed many complaints and negative reviews about America car rental.
http://www.yelp.com/biz/america-car-rental-canc%C3%BAn .
According to yelp, this people have 1 star out of 5 (yikes!)
I was wondering if this is the same place you rented your vehicle from?
Now I’m scared to book with them, I really wanted this car rental company to work for us. Now I feel the need to start from scratch all over again. Would you happen to know of any other reliable car rental company in Cancun Mexico?
Thank you in advance, hope to hear from you soon.
Rick – Honestly, every rental car company in Mexico has bad reviews of some sort. It seems more people are quick to complain about a bad experience than talk about a good one…and particularly travelers in Mexico.
Some people are picker than others, but in Mexico, I think it’s just a matter of finding the best of what is out there — which may not be the best in the world.
I can say that compared to other rental car companies in Mexico (and the Cancun area) I like America the best because they were the most transparent on their fees. The stickler is the additional Mexican Liability insurance – so at least you can get that in advance from America, where other companies will surprise you with a HUGE fee later.
The thing to keep in mind with your experience is that it is Mexico. Sometimes things happen on their own “Mexican time” — so build plenty of time into your itinerary. Also, be sure to take photos and inspect the car, and know that you may not get the newest, shiniest car on the lot. But we found them to be quite honest, helpful, and good to work with. They seemed to be more honest than some of the others we have heard about.
I hope this helps. I can only attest to my experience, and I had a good experience with America. And so many others have had bad experiences with other rental companies, that it has made me feel better about my choice.
– Liz
Thank you Liz.
I actually found them on facebook and will definitely study them a bit more and ask more questions.
Again, thank you for posting your experience it has been very helpful, I’m sure I speak for others as well.
take care, Rick.
Liz:
Congrats on a great blog. I recently went to Cancun and rented from Enterprise for a week. Prior to our flight I purchased car insurance from Allianz on the Orbit website. $99.00.
When I arrived at the Enterprise desk I was told that they were an independent franchise and did not honor Allianz even though I had booked my Enterprise reservation on the same (Orbitz) website.
Ended up buying a hugely expensive insurance policy with lots of taxes thrown in for good measure. This was an extremely frustrating way to start the trip.
We drove to Tulum to our rental house which was great as was the highway down from Cancun.
After two calls to Allianz they eliminated their fee; crediting my credit card.
Question: I am returning to Cancun next month and have confirmed that my credit card will cover all rental vehicle damage and theft. Do I need to provide specific documentation to the rental company? I am highly considering American.
Mitch
Thanks for sharing Mitch – sorry to hear about your troubles!
Yes, I have heard many times that Mexico will NOT honor any insurance that is not purchased through the proper companies in Mexico. However, I believe that even insurance on your credit card will NOT cover the additional Mexican Liability Insurance that is required. Your credit card will cover the basic insurance, but not Mexican Liability. So I believe you will still have to buy a Mexican policy too.
Liz
Just wanted to share. Fox flatly refused to rent me a car in January unless I paid for SLI and SLI2 for a total of 30 per day. I thought I would only be paying the SLI at 15 or 16. Wrong.
Hi Liz! Thank you so much for putting this information out there, it’s really helpful! I am wondering if you have any advice for me. We’re going to Playa del Carmen on April 20th and we’re looking to rent a car. We have been to the area many times, and rented for a day at a time, but never for the entire vacation. It sounds like your experience with America was good and we are hoping to use them. I understand that all the insurance is necessary and we’re fine with that. The online registry seems pretty straightforward and we are comfortable with the way it is all laid out for us. I am confused as to weather we should reserve online prior to arrival? And is the “airport” location on the online registry the correct one to choose? It includes an airport tax, so I wasn’t sure if this is actually on the airport property, or just outside of it as you have written about. Also, how much time should we allow for at the end of the trip to return the car and get back to the airport? Anything you have to offer would be welcome! Thank you! Kathy
Hello Kathy – thanks for reading!
I believe that you should rent the car online in advance, just so that you have the reservation in the system and so you know what the quoted price should be. If you are renting in Cancun, then the American Car Rental Agency is technically off property, but they may very well include an airport tax (I don’t recall on my reservation). But they do provide transportation from the airport.
As far as returning the car, the process was quite fast. We dropped it right off and did a quick inspection with the guy (maybe 10 minutes at the most), then we waited for the shuttle driver. There were a few other people dropping off cars too, so we waited maybe 15 minutes or so for them to join us. Just to be safe, I would give yourselves at least 30-45 minutes to drop it off and get to the airport — just in case there are any issues or if you have to wait for the shuttle to return from the airport to pick you up.
Have fun!
– Liz
Hola Liz! Thank you so much for all your wonderful guidance! We had a wonderful experience with America. They were waiting for us when we arrived, and we just had to wait for a few more people before we headed to the office. We reserved online in advance as you suggested and when we arrived at the office a nice lady checked us in, they had everything in order and it was a breeze! The only minor thing was a hold of $500 on our credit card for the duration of our rental, even with all of the recommended insurance. Which I understand is their standard procedure these days. The car was great, clean and sporty (small!) but we got great gas mileage and only spent $20 for gas for the entire week! When we brought the car back they were again very efficient, no extra costs or problems. They gave me back the $500 hold slip from my credit card and brought us promptly to our terminal. It was well worth the $250 for the week. We had freedom to go anywhere we wanted, and peace of mind that should there be an issue, we were completely covered by Mexican insurance. Thank you so much for this info, it really helped us! Kathy
Wow – thank you Kathy so very much for your kind words, and for letting me know that all went well for you! We really appreciate you taking the time to send us your “thank you.” We LOVE to hear that people had a good experience, and that we were able to help. That’s our goal – to help other people to have a great time!
We miss the Yucatan SO much! It is just such a wonderful place – we love everything about it! We are half-way across the world right now, but we can’t wait to get back to the Yucatan and go for another road trip.
Take care – and thanks again for reading and for your comments.
Cheers & happy travels to you!
– Liz
Liz–we are going to can fun and oaxaca in June. We only have a protected credit card with only $1500 worth of credit on it. Will we be able to rent a car?
Sarah – thanks for reading!
You will need to pay extra for the Mexican Liability insurance, your credit card will not cover this. You can buy it through the company, but be aware that it will cost about as much as the rental car itself – so whatever agency you use, please keep that in mind.
As far as requiring a credit card deposit, not all car rental agencies will put a hold on your card. But some will. So my best advise is to read the policies and terms / conditions of an agency in advance of your visit so that you know you will be covered.
Thanks & happy travels!
Liz
Just got back from Cabo and had horrible start to my vacation when dealing with Fox rent a car. I remember paying an exorbitant amount for insurance a few years back when we went to Cancun and rented with Eurocar. Thought I would be smart and pre-purchase Mexico car rental insurance policy (issued by BerkelyCare) through Expedia. Apparently they don’t honor this insurance and a guy at the counter types a figure out on a calculator screen to show me how much the daily required insurance will be. Then threatens me with a $20,000 USD hold on my CC if I don’t pay it. No rates listed in the office, no rates on the website, not even one of those little laminated menus you typically get to look at when making a decision on a purchase. Makes an old -school carbon copy of my Mastercard without any total charges and hands it to me to sign. This has to violate some sort of credit card merchant agreement, I called Expedia to get a refund on the worthless BerkelyCare insurance and I’m in the process of disputing the Fox charges with Mastercard.
Thanks for sharing your experience Mike, sorry to hear that it wasn’t a good one! It is a very important point that you make — Mexico will NOT honor any extra liability insurance purchased elsewhere from a different country, even Expedia. I have read this many places too. (they consider insurance from outside companies illegal)
You must buy this insurance from a Mexican company. There are some Mexican companies who sell the auto insurance in the States, and you can buy it through them in advance. But I haven’t tried this yet, so I can’t attest to whether or not they are legit.
I’d love to hear from anyone who has purchased insurance from a Mexican company in advance of their trip, and had it honored by the agency in Mexico.
Cheers!
– Liz
Hi,
I’m going to Mexico in late July for 10 days and am considering to rent a car from the Cancun airport. Looking at several reviews from different websites, I’m quite scare now… But I’ll definitly go for American Car Rental since this seems to be highly recommended by some of you. But I have a few questions to clarify if you could help or know the answers for:
It says in the terms and condition that not all insurances are covered in the cost.
INCLUDED COVERAGES
CDW (Collision and theft)
EPC (Extended protection or deductible)
PAI (Personal coverage of medical expenses)
PLI (third party damages)
COVERAGES NOT INCLUDED
TGI (Insurance for wheels and glass)
SLI (Civil responsibility complement)
SRA (Highway assistance)
Does that mean I will need to pay more to get the SLI insurance? I am also wondering if anyone knows renting a GPS is worth it at all? I wonder if bringing a GPS from here with Mexico maps downloaded into it would be good enough since $15/day is quite expensive on top of all the insurance charges.
thanks,
Ivy
Hey there Ivy!
Is this the quote from America? America should give you a quote that provides the SLI too. If not, you should inquire about it (perhaps something has changed). As far as the GPS, if you have your own that includes maps for Mexico, then that will be sufficient. We actually brought our own GPS with Mexico maps, and it worked great. If you have one, there is no need to rent one from the agency.
Thanks for reading and have fun!
Liz
I read this and other forums before deciding to go with America’s or Easyway. I made reservations for both online (no credit card required) and figured that since I didn’t put a deposit down, I wouldn’t be out of luck if one or both decided not to show – I could always walk down to the Budget or National desk and get a car at the airport if needed. America’s followed up via e-mail a few days before my trip to confirm the reservation and gave details on how a representative would be waiting for me at the airport (nothing from Easyway).
When I arrived, there was a mass of rental car and shuttle reps just outside the airport exit and it was a complete zoo. I kept walking around but couldn’t find reps for either America’s or Easyway. After a few passes carefully scanning the crowd (probably took me 10-15 minutes), I finally spotted the America’s rep, who had my info. He called the shuttle and it was there in 10 minutes. They had my reservation on file at the office, had the exact car I reserved, and pretty much gave me the price I was quoted (there was one optional theft insurance addition that I added because you can never have too much insurance in Mexico and it was only like $25 extra). Checking the car back in after a week was a breeze (no issues or attempts to upcharge for “damages”) and the shuttle picked us up in 10 minutes to take us back to the airport.
All in all, I was satisfied with America’s and would use them again. We had no issues other than the initial difficulty of locating the rep at the airport. I know Easyway has gotten some positive referrals, but they never showed up or contacted me.
This is so great to hear, thanks for letting us know Ryan! It is always good to know that recent experiences are still the same as ours (because we visited a couple years ago). Glad to hear nothing has changed. Compared to the alternatives, we still believe they are a great option in Cancun.
Cheers & happy travels!
– Liz
nice blog
Have been doing my research and enjoying your blog for our upcoming trip to Cancun/Akumal. Renting a car and am feeling pretty confident. What car was your La Roja? It looks compact, but appears to be big, if that makes any sense! need a car for 4 people. Thanks!
Hello Lisa – thanks for reaching out, we are happy that we can help you!
Yes, it was a just a compact car. There was enough room for 4 people to sit, but the back trunk for luggage was quite small. If the 4 of you are light packers, then you shouldn’t have a problem. However, if you are planning to bring 4 large suitcases, then they would not fit in this compact car.
Have fun planning your trip. We were just thinking about the Yucatan and how much we want to go back for another visit.
Cheers!
– Liz
Hi Liz! Thanks for your helpful input on the situation. What do you think about driving from Mexico City to cancun & Chichen Itza? My boyfriend and I are planning on doing that for 2 weeks but we are worried about what we’ve heard on car rentals. Moreover… I’m Canadian and I don’t have any insurance provided by my credit card and i don’t want to involve my actual insurance company since im afraid it wont be recognized out there. So my question is (with america rental as you suggested) am I fully covered with this 3rd party insurance? If anything happens, i dont want to spent a dime… so how expensive would be that insurance…. or do i even need more that the basic 3rd party?… for 2 weeks with cheapest car, they quoted me 450$. From your point of view, what should I expect to pay in the end?? Thanks a LOT you make a great difference in my planning!! 🙂
Vanessa – thanks so much for reading, and for the comment.
Wow – that sounds like such a great trip idea. You are correct, your Canadian insurance (or even if you had credit card insurance) wouldn’t cover it in Mexico. You must purchase the Mexican 3rd party liability insurance, which is what we did through America. I believe that we did not have a deductible to pay if something were to happen (but policies can change – it was a couple years ago that we visited). I do recall that when we arrived, they offered us a couple other kinds of additional insurance, for things like tire punctures and windows. It wasn’t very expensive, so we went ahead and added it onto our rental, just for the peace of mind (because some of the side roads can be rough and full of pot holes & rocks!).
So in the end, you could end up paying a bit more than the quote if you want that additional coverage when you arrive. Also, be sure to check and see if there is a one-way rental fee (if you are planning on dropping it off in another location).
Thanks and have fun on your trip!
– Liz
Hi Liz, thought my own recent experiences last month will also be helpful to your blog readers.
I also used America Car Rental after thorough research, though it was from their downtown Cancun premises, not the airport. The car was booked on-line from the UK (Scotland) for a 7 day rental period but returning it to the off-site airport location. All extra insurances were selected and I have my own annual ‘excess charge’ cover insurance. No money was taken from the booking process as this would be settled on pick-up.
The downtown experience – the small office is located in the centre of Cancun near a busy dual carriageway road junction. The process was fairly straight forward (as I am used to renting overseas) but there was some confusion over the ‘excesses’ etc. I assumed I had adequate cover but in common with others who have rented in Mexico, I was required to pay the Liability insurance which for the 7 days was approx. $8 (US) per day – so basically an extra £36 UK Sterling. The total cost for a ‘Compact’ sedan came in at approx. $353 (US) working out approx. $50/day. You will also be required to leave a ‘guarantee’ credit card payment of some $10,000 (MEX) but this is scrapped on return.
The pickup experience – the cars are stored in a bit of waste ground behind a very run down building 2 doors along from the office. A young guy was showing me over the car (Chevy Aveo) which thankfully was fairly new. I made sure both he & I checked the car for scratches dents etc. I spotted a couple of minor scratches that were not on the sign-off form. All else seemed fine and he showed me how much fuel was in the car and therefore how much I would need to return it with – very important this !
One irritating car issue not realised until first stop at Puerto Morelos – the central locking did not work and the drivers door could not be opened manually with the key. This was not pointed out at pickup.
The driving experience – do your road research well before you go – a GPS is an excellent and I would say vital requirement if you want to be certain of routes/directions etc. On the whole road signage in Yucatan is very good but do beware of one sign in particular ‘TOPES’ these are varying types of new/old speed bumps basically designed to damage your suspension if you do not slow down ! Don’t rely on the Topes always having signs either as some were missing out in the sticks ! There is a newish toll road going roughly East/West through Yucatan (as well as a very new direct route to Playa del Carmen) and it is expensive by most road toll standards, hence it being virtually deserted most days.
One irritating ‘Police’ issue – there are frequent police road blocks whereby they monitor each vehicle passing and if they take a fancy to you, will flag you to pull over. There then develops dialogue along the lines of “you were speeding sir” ….. “err no I wasn’t Senor” ….”yes you were because I say so” ….”no Senor I was in a queue of traffic slowing down so how could I be speeding” ….eventually after several iterations of this he gave up and waved me on. So beware they will see you are not Mexican and in a rental car (fender stickers give the game away) and they will try to extort money from you.
Of all the countries in the world I have driven in, Mexico did leave me feeling uneasy at times with the police stops, crazy drivers, crazier junctions and more worringly, dodgy looking individuals following you in pickup trucks, but in fairness nothing came of it and the roads are generally very quiet, especially out in the country. In the busy parts just be aware of those crazy drivers coming at you at speed as clearly it is a bit of a free for all out there.
Returning the car experience – the America airport off-site office is down an industrial turn-off (Av Chac Mool) near the Comfort Inn. No problems at all with returned car (though did mention the locking issue) and staff are pleasant to deal with – also got free shuttle back to airport.
Hope peeps find above useful and happy to describe more if asked.
Cheers ! Ralph
Ralph –
Wow, thank you so much for sharing your experience! I’m glad to hear that all went well for you and that you enjoyed your time in Mexico. Thanks for the update & happy travels!
– Liz
Great, informative blog. Love it.
We are headed to Cancun soon.
After my research, we are planning on taking your advice and using America Car Rental. I had a couple questions before we book.
1. We are going to add an ‘FREE’ additional driver to our reservation. Is there anything we need to be aware of in doing so?
2. As I was about to book our car, there is a check box PAY AT PICKUP. Do you know what this means…
Thanks soooo much for your help.
Joel
Hi Joel —
You shouldn’t have to do anything for the free driver, except be sure that they have their driver’s license with them at pick up. That box just means that you won’t pre-pay with your credit card, but instead, you will pay when you arrive and pick up the car. That’s what we did too.
Have fun on your trip!
– Liz
Hi Liz,
Thanks a lot for your post! I just made my rental car reservation with America car rental. Hope it’ll go well this coming weekend for my Cancun trip. 😀 I’m going to be there for a friend’s wedding but would also like to sightsee a bit while I’m there.
Sincerely,
Charity
That’s great to hear, I’m so glad to help. I hope that you have a blast — we miss it there badly.
Thanks for reading and for the comment.
– Liz
Hi! Thanks so much for this article. I’m looking into the company you use but I can’t tell if the Mex liability is included in the quote? Right now it says $220 for the 6 days we’re looking at but I’m concerned this will double in price because of what you’ve mentioned! Hewwwlp!
Hi there – thanks for reading!
Yes, that quote looks correct for 6 days including the Mexican (third party) liability insurance. To be sure, you should be able to review the complete terms about your rental on the website or in the confirmation email (I’m not sure if they send it by email or if you need to look on the site).
Have fun!
Liz
Thanks SO much for your response. On the site it says it includes: EPC, PLI, PAI, pickup/dropoff, federal and state taxes etc but no mention of the Mexican Liability unless that falls under EPC (full coverage 0% deductible)?!
Thanks for providing us all the all the rental car related information.
You are very welcome 🙂
– Liz
Thanks for this super helpful post! I am planning on renting a car when I am in Tulum to visit the Coba ruins and when in Merida to visit Uxmal and the other surrounding ruins. I am hoping that all goes well with the rental process! Do you know of any reputable rental agencies in Tulum or Merida? I have heard good things about Easy Way in Merida, but they recently closed their office in Tulum. Thanks!
Brittany,
Unfortunately, I don’t know any agencies in Merida or Tulum. But if you are planning to do a circle, many people rent in Cancun and do a loop – then return in the same place in Cancun. The area is very drivable – so there is no need to rent and drop off different cars for different areas.
Have fun!
– Liz
I am thinking of booking my reservation online but am still nervous!. Are all charges included such as insurance in the quoted price? I tried calling the reservations dept, but I don’t speak Spanish! I even selected the English line! HA
I also have read that some companies charge as much as $2500 as a deposit on the car. Is this true with American Rental? Who would think renting a car would be so difficult.
Hi Tiffany – thanks for reading!
If it is through America Car Rental, then they specifically show the quote including all the required insurance. However, there are many companies that don’t show those charges. Whoever you are renting with, you will need to review the price and the terms carefully to see what the quote includes.
Also in those terms, it will tell you if they will put a hold on your card. I believe America puts a hold of a few hundred dollars, but others can hold thousands. It is fairly standard in Mexico — but you should check with the company, because they are all different.
** Also, don’t use a debit card for the rental / deposit — instead use a credit card so actual money isn’t taken out of your hands.
Thanks for reading & have fun on your trip!
Liz
I am enjoying readying your readers posts and you replies. We (4 people) are traveling from Canada, to Mexico City and then plan to rent a car in Mexico City for 4 days maximum to go to Oaxaca and back to Mexico City, apart from the confusion on insurance, of which I am still not clear, do we need an international drivers license to complete this experience? If so where do we obtain one? Is there an extra charge if we want more than one appointed driver? Thanks.
Hi, Liz. I just went to book a car through America and in the terms and conditions it says they will take a $2500.00 deposit at the time of rental. Does that seem right to you?
Thanks for the info!
Hi Ernie!
They may have changed their policy since we rented our car. I do recall them putting a hold on our credit card, but I’m sure it wasn’t $2500. You can always contact them directly to confirm the hold amount. Perhaps you can ask them about waiving it, or if there is a certain kind of card that will guarantee the rental without putting a hold.
I hope this helps. Enjoy your trip!
Liz
Hello Liz,
Just wanted to say thank you for sharing your experience with a car rental in the Yucatan Peninsula. My family and I will be traveling to Tulum in mid February and wanted to rent a car but with all the horror stories I read online I was rethinking that option until I came across your post! I must say that it has provided a huge sense of relief, I called America Car Rental to ensure their online policies were clear and I understood what I was getting myself into beforehand. I was told that the Mexican Liability Insurance (PLI & CDW) that is mandatory in Mexico was included in the quoted price and a security deposit would be the only charges I would incur for the car rental. Fingers crossed and hope all goes as planned. Thanks again for all your help!
Roe
Thanks so very much Roe for your kind words. We are so happy to know that our advice has helped you with your trip planning, and to feel better about renting a car in Mexico. We hope that all goes well for you and that you have a wonderful trip.
Happy travels!
– Liz
@Liz
so what was the total cost per day please?
Hi Gene – thanks for reading and for the comment. The total price will vary greatly depending on a number of factors – including when you go, for how long, what kind of car, and whether or not the price includes the required liability insurance.
We recommend using America Car Rental because they include Liability insurance – and for a 1 week rental in February, the total price is around $78 — which makes it barely $11 per day. Below is the link to the search I did – if you want to check it out for yourself or modify the dates.
Happy travels!
– Liz
http://www.rentalcars.com/SearchResults.do;jsessionid=17CA68361C81CB8632F2E1CAFB6A968A.node034a?ftsLocationSearch=25186&dropCity=Canc%C3%BAn&cor=&ftsType=A&location=25186&driversAge=25&doHour=10&adcamp=&filterName=CarCategorisationSupplierFilter&dropFtsType=A&ftsSearch=L&doFiltering=false&ftsEntry=1472434&city=Canc%C3%BAn&distance=10&puHour=10&ftsLocationName=Cancun+Airport+%28CUN%29&preflang=en&dropCountry=Mexico&coordinates=21.0388%2C-86.8741&affiliateCode=peanutsorpretzels&puDay=9&dropCoordinates=21.0388%2C-86.8741&dropFtsSearch=L&filterTo=1000&doSearchInput=Cancun+Airport+%28CUN%29%2C+Canc%C3%BAn%2C+Mexico&dropLocation=25186&puMin=30&doDay=16&doMin=30&ftsInput=cancun%2C+mexico&enabler=&country=Mexico&dropFtsLocationName=Cancun+Airport+%28CUN%29&dropFtsLocationSearch=25186&filterFrom=0&puMonth=2&radio=pickup&adplat=&doMonth=2&doYear=2016&dropFtsInput=cancun%2C+mexico&puSearchInput=Cancun+Airport+%28CUN%29%2C+Canc%C3%BAn%2C+Mexico&puYear=2016&dropFtsEntry=1472434&fromLocChoose=true&filterAdditionalInfo=&advSearch=&exSuppliers=&b_spl=America-Carrental
Reading all other comments about renting car, driving in Mexico, police, jail, … I’m already regret that I’m going to Mexico, practically ready to cancel my trip. I was traveling a lot in Europe, Israel, Canada, definitely rented cars, and never had thought or read in forums about such things as I read about Mexico , Terrible.
Hey there – thanks for reading! No need to be alarmed, these are just practical considerations – as you would find anywhere. Overall, we have found most places in Mexico to be perfectly safe — and certainly safer than many other destinations around the world. You shouldn’t be worried enough to cancel your trip. We absolutely LOVED driving in Mexico and would do it again. In fact, we are planning our next visit soon.
Happy travels!
Liz
it was the first time and the last time we have rented with AMERICA CAR RENTAL.
They are just an agent with compaies like Fox. We rented the car in Cacun Airport with third party insurance included for 9 days $ 49 US. They send us to Mex-Fox counter.
Even that my Own insurance with my golden credir card was covering the theft and damages to the car, Fox told us that they were obliged to charge us and other $ 357 US for an other the third party responsabilty and this was not refunded. total $ 403 US ( $ 568 CAN dollars ) for a small car for 9 days renting. Too expensive and no help from America Car Rental. They just referred us to Fox.
I recommand to rent directly from big USA car retal companies like Budget National, Dollar ETC That’ s what I will do in the future for anywhere in the world.
Thanks for reading and for the comment!
I’m sorry to hear about your troubles, but I have never heard of this situation with America. Did you go to their office (offsite from the airport), or did they tell you to go to Fox before you arrived? I can assure you that America Rental Car is a standalone company, we went to their office when we arrived — so they are definitely NOT just an agent. Perhaps they had a unique situation, running out of cars or maintenance issues, and they had to forward you to a partner company? I’m not sure.
As for the insurance, we discussed in this post about the fact that credit card insurance is not accepted for third party liability in Mexico. All rental car companies will require you to purchase Mexican liability insurance from a Mexican company. I don’t know all the details, but it could be that Fox had a different rate. Overall, your total price $403 for 9 days actually sounds about right — including all the liability insurance that is required in Mexico. It’s not really a cheap destination for rental cars, mostly because of the insurance requirement. And I can assure you that if you were to use a big US car rental company in Mexico you would have paid a LOT more than $400 USD for 9 days, including insurance.
Thanks for reading – and I appreciate your input to let us know what happened in your situation.
Cheers & happy travels!
Liz
hi it will be my first time to rent car i checked out the america rent a car website that you linked and it says $36.35 for 4 days which includes Standard Package – Price Includes Unlimited Mileage, Primary Liability Insurance and Local Taxes. How much is the mexican liability insurance. i just need to know roughly how much ill pay total. and im confused it says there is a deposit that needs to be paid at pickup?
Hello Raquel – thanks for reading and for the comment!
From what I see, the standard package through America does include all the extra insurance. But you should just double check the fine print / terms and conditions of the rental when you are booking (they can always make changes – and since I don’t work for them, I wouldn’t know if they made a change). I have heard recently that America (and many other rental companies in Mexico) have started requesting a deposit on pick up. I vaguely recall a deposit, but we just used the same credit card as the rental and everything was credited upon return. So there were no extra charges in the end for us.
If you are concerned, you can always give them a call and ask. Or if you are still worried, you can shop around for other agencies too. Personally, we found America to be the most transparent with their fees compared to others – and their rates were cheaper than others. So that is why we chose them.
I hope this helps. Please let us know if you have any other questions or run into problems. It’s always good to give an update, as companies can change over time.
Cheers!
Liz
Hello,
I’m looking at the rates and I see that there are very limited economic cars in automatic. Did you drive manual?
Hi Daisy – thanks for reading! You are correct. In many countries around Asia, Europe…and even in Mexico, the primary cars are all manual transmission — including rental cars. There are sometimes automatics available; however, they are typically more expensive to rent than a stick shift.
I hope this helps. Happy travels!
– Liz
Hi, we are travelling to cancun, downwards to belize and into guatemala. We want to rent a car, but arent sure if we can find parking. Is it easy to find hostels/campsites with parking? We dont want to use all our money on hotels.
We are on a budget, do you recommend car, or will this be more expensive than taking the bus, and using other ways to get to attractions? How is the scooter rental in mexico, do they offer scooter rentals just on the street?
Thanks 🙂
Hi Espen – thanks for reading and for the comment!
I can only attest to driving in and around the Yucatan Peninsula of Mexico, so I really don’t know about driving a car down into Belize or Guatamala. I do know that some areas of those two countries can be a bit sketchy, so you definitely want to do more in-depth research about if you can take the rental car across the border down there and what the road conditions are like.
As far as parking in Cancun and around the Yucatan area, there is plenty of parking at hotels and around the towns. If you are talking about camping in the car, then I can’t really advise because I’ve never done it. I’m not very familiar with camping around that part of Mexico — I don’t know if it’s that popular. Most people do stay in hotels, and they actually recommend that you not drive at night anywhere in the Yucatan because of poor lighting and road hazards.
If you are on a budget, then renting a car will likely be more expensive…mostly because of all the mandatory insurance. Somewhere around $300 – $400 for 7 days is about accurate depending on the type of car. So taking public transportation is definitely cheaper. Public buses will take you around to many of the towns and famous sights. Plus, I know you can take the bus down into Belize and Gutatemala. It will take more time with the bus, and you will have to figure out how to navigate it, but it’s definitely cheaper.
There are some scooter rentals around the major tourist areas, but I don’t recall seeing many. They definitely aren’t as popular as in other parts of the world. I have never rented a scooter there, so I can’t really advise on it.
Thanks again for reading. I hope you have a blast on your trip!
– Liz
Thank you so much for this information. I’ve booked cars in Cabo and Cancun and I sometimes get all of the insurance offered and sometimes I only get the mandatory ones. But, I always forget to keep a record of the charges for a reference as to the total cost of renting a car in Mexico and as to which insurances are mandatory. Agents there very rarely make it clear as to the ones you can do without. Also, thanks for filling me in and for the link to rental cars. I just booked a car through America and am happy to know that at least one of the mandatory chargers is already bundled into rental price quoted. We leave for Playa Del Carmen in two days. 4-23-16…. We are actually going to see if it would be conducive to us moving there!!! BTW, I copied all of their terms and conditions and would be happy to post them here if you’d like.
Hi Kathleen – thanks for reading, and for the comment!
We know what you mean about moving to Mexico…we’ve thought about it many times ourselves! Glad you found the post useful and that you’ve got your car booked for your trip. Having a car is really great because there are so many wonderful things to go out and explore – especially food and cenotes (my favorites)!
I appreciate the offer about the terms and conditions. Feel free to post them if you’d like. Although, they can change over time — so we always recommend that people go directly to the website of the agency to get the most current.
Thanks and happy travels!
– Liz
Hi I’m wondering if primary liability insurance is the same thing as the third party liability insurance ? I’m looking to book a rental car and some of the packages say primary liability insurance is included but I want to make sure that’s the mexican insurance I need or should I expect another charge at the time of pick up? Thanks
Hello Claudia – thanks for reading and for the comment!
I know this can be a confusing one, but from what I have read, primary liability and third party liability are NOT the same thing. I do not believe that this would cover all the Mexican insurance requirements. You should always check with the company to be sure, but sometimes they aren’t very honest and want to “bait and switch” you at pick up. Ask lots of questions and if you feel comfortable with their answers, then that’s about the best you can do. But you can always search other companies too and see if you feel more comfortable with their answers too.
I hope this helps. Take care and happy travels!
– Liz
Thanks for the great info! Just booked a rental car thru your link for rentalcars.com and chose America. Hoping all goes to plan. The waiver I need is included in the rentalcars.com price, correct? I don’t want to get hoodwinked at the counter when I get there tomorrow.
All the best!
Thanks for reading and for booking Kempy! Yes, you are correct. Booking online through America includes all the required Mexican Liability Insurance. That’s why we used them in the past and felt confident and didn’t feel like we got surprised at the counter.
Thanks & enjoy your trip in Mexico!
Liz
Hi Liz and everyone: I am looking at American Rental but I see no specification that the TPL is Mexican…it just states Third Party Liability?
Hi Ronnie – thanks for reading, and for the comment! Yes, the third party liability (TPI) offered by America in Mexico is the correct insurance that is required. Their pricing automatically includes it.
Thanks and happy travels to you!
Liz
Hi Liz…I appreciate your response but where is the proof? Is there anyone out there who has rented after Liz and found this to be true….there are so many bad reviews and experiences out there….and from what I’ve read….the insurance should be called “Mexican Third Party Liability Insurance” not just third party liability….I have read where people have purchased it in advance…not necessarily from this company and have gotten to Mexico only to be told it won’t be honored. Not to be flippant but me stating that Liz said so would fly…..I sent an email to the company yesterday but have not heard anything from them yet. Thanks for your help…I truly hope what you are saying is accurate. Too many mixed stories…one company has bad reviews yet has good reviews, etc.
Hello Ronnie –
Thanks for the additional comment, I can totally understand the confusion! While we call it “Mexican Third Party Liability Insurance” that’s not what they call it in Mexico. In Mexico it is just called “Third Party Liability” and it is underwritten by a Mexican company (hence why we say it’s “Mexican”). America Car Rental (they one I’m talking about in this post) ONLY has offices in Mexico, that’s likely whey they are not specifying “Mexican” in the name of it.
Here is what the policy fine print says on the America website: “PLI” (third party damages) This coverage is for public liability to the persons or their properties caused by the rented vehicle. This coverage is for $750,000 pesos.”
According to everything I have read, and from my experience renting in Mexico and comparing the fine print on policies, this is the correct coverage. Of course, you are welcome to reach out to them. Overall, the thing to keep in mind is that people are MUCH more likely to complain about a bad experience on the internet than rave about a good one. That’s why there’s always so much BAD stuff we find out there.
In the end, it is totally up to you to decide what you feel comfortable with. Just be sure to read all the fine print for whoever you rent a car in Mexico through (they like to hide this insurance detail in the fine print). I don’t want you to get an unexpected extra charges at the rental counter!
Cheers & I hope all goes well with your trip!
– Liz
Liz, Thanks so much for taking the time to answer all my questions and suspicions….I am going to go with it and hope that by 11/1/16 I can post and sing praises on here to you for putting all of this out there!!!!! Does it matter if I rent through rental car.com site or go directly to the American Rental Car site itself and book it?
Veronica – thanks for reading!
I don’t believe that it matters which website you rent through, but you should double check the terms & conditions to be sure. I wouldn’t think that they offer different packages on different websites (because that would be a pain to manage)…but I could be wrong. Definitely check – especially if there is a big price difference between them.
Have fun!
Liz
Hi Liz ….I went to rental car.com and see they offer the PLI in their quote…but the America Website offers Third Party Liability?? Which is correct? Your comment above to my previous questions states the Third Party Liability is underwriter in Mexico but later in your reply you talk about PLI? Alamo website states that Third Party Liability is mandatory?? Thanks again for your help.
Veronica – ugh, you are right! It is so confusing! I’m not an insurance expert, but I believe PLI and third party liability can be different depending on the levels of coverage offered by the company – especially the dollar amount for damages. It does say on America’s website specifically that it covers the full third party liability up to 750,000 pesos, which is above what Mexico requires. I don’t know the details about Alamo’s quote. Again, it’s best to read the fine print of the complete terms and conditions to know for sure. When I tried to rent from Hertz as outlined in this post, the only way I found out that they DID NOT cover this extra insurance was reading the terms and conditions in detail.
I hope this helps some. I know it’s not really easy to understand, even for me and I’ve read through these things so many times!
Good luck with your trip!
Liz
Veronica – ugh, you are right! It is so confusing! I’m not an insurance expert, but I believe PLI and third party liability can be different depending on the levels of coverage offered by the company (maybe they aren’t covering third party?) – especially the dollar amount for damages. It does say on America’s website specifically that it covers the full third party liability up to 750,000 pesos, which is above what Mexico requires. I don’t know the details about Alamo’s quote. Again, it’s best to read the fine print of the complete terms and conditions to know for sure. When I tried to rent from Hertz as outlined in this post, the only way I found out that they DID NOT cover this extra insurance was reading the terms and conditions in detail.
I hope this helps some. I know it’s not really easy to understand, even for me and I’ve read through these things so many times!
Good luck with your trip!
Liz
Hi Liz,
Just reading your blog post about renting a car in Mexico.
All what I could say is that we booked a car via rentalcars.com with their “Full Protection” insurance which includes CDS, TPL and TP).
Upon arrival a America Car Rental we did not the car keys due to the fact that we did no have the “SLI” insurance, which stands for Supplement Liability Insurance.
Apparently Mexican law states that you need to me mandatory insured up to coverage to 1 million US dollar.
We called rentalcars.com at their front desk asking me confirm this via e-mail and to refund this, which they confirmed. I just mailed them with the receipt of the additional SLI costs of $170 for a 18 days Volkswagen Gol car rental, which breaks the total cost down as follows:
141,36 € – car rental Volkswagen Gol for 18 days
130,05 € – Full Protection Coverage via RentalCars.com covering CDS, TPL and TP.
157,25 € – Supplement Liability Insurance (SLI) mandatory by and via America Car Rental Cancun.
428,66 € in total of which two third is insurance!
Still this SLI all sounds to me like a scam (which we also stated at their front-desk), as I still cannot believe that 2/3 of the total cost is insurance; never ever encountered this while on holiday in the US, South-Africa, Australia, Europe, etc….
Let’s wait for the rentalcars.com refund/answer; but until this I really would advice people to confirm with the rental or agent company if *EVERYTHING* is fully protected and have this confirmed by them on e-mail prior to booking the rental car avoiding frustrations on the front-desk.
NB: A German couple standing next to us at the front-desk had the exact same issue, but the did not (wanted) to call their agent first before signing and paying for this SLI.
Hello Remko – thanks for the update on your experience.
You are correct, the extra insurance adds a LOT to the total rental — which is why the advertised rates for Mexico car rentals are a bit misleading. But from what we have researched, it is all required by the Mexican government. While some people may choose to risk it and go without the extra insurance, we decided to be safe rather than sorry if an accident were to happen.
As far as renting through that agency, we didn’t have any trouble with getting the full insurance with our rental. The only thing we chose to add on at the counter was the tire and windshield coverage (because there are a lot of potholes and rocks). That was an extra fee that we agreed to purchase onsite, but this coverage is optional – so we could have declined it.
Thanks for the update and we hope you had a great trip!
Liz
We booked a full size car through Priceline/Budget in Cancun airport for $5/day the week of Thanksgiving Nov. 2016. Upon arrival I was given options for additional coverage which I tried to decline as my CC usually covers it; they said it is possible to do so, but then they have to place a hold for the full value of the car on the CC which, unless you have a very high credit limit, would most likely get denied. Option B, which I ended up choosing, was to buy liability only insurance for $15/day and then they place a hold for 10% of the value of the car on your CC. I don’t remember having to do this in the past, but then again it had been over 10 years since I rented a car in Mexico and overall, my total cost of about $22/day with taxes and insurance was still quite cheap. Just sharing to help others.
Thanks for reading Alan – and for contributing to the thread! We appreciate you sharing your experience and it’s good to know there is an alternative out there for people to consider. It is apparent from your rental rate that the cost per day definitely jumped from what was advertised – which is inline with what we have seen. As long as people are prepare for the true cost of renting a car in Mexico, I think that is the most important.
Happy travels!
Liz
Another tip is to make the online reservation in MXN Pesos instead of USD. For the exact same vehicle and time, the rate quoted in pesos was 31% cheaper or a savings of $162 USD for a 1 week premium full size vehicle rental.
That’s a great tip Rob – thanks for reading and for sharing with all of us!
Happy Travels!
Liz
We are looking to book a rental car for a week at Cancun. I see a pattern with American that worries me. The bad reviews are mostly from people arriving on late night flights and American is out of cars even when a reservation is booked. W e are arriving late a will need a car. Any suggestions?
Hello Robert – thanks for reading, and for your comment. I can’t speak for others, but I arrived in the afternoon and had no problem. So I really can’t guarantee that this couldn’t happen to you. You can always call America to try and guarantee the car in advance, but then again — I don’t know if that would make an impact. I do see that other people have had problems with this, and it’s not a great way to start a vacation — especially if it is at night and you are tired. I think you might have to make your own judgement call on if you trust them to have cars available, or if you would prefer to go with a different agency. Go with your gut here. If you don’t feel confident, you might not want to risk it. Again, I had no trouble – but I know some people have.
I hope you have a wonderful trip!
Liz
Booked our honeymoon for November of this year and after lots of headache about the insurance, I decided to go with America because as you stated, they clearly include the PLI in the quote, along with theft protection and collision. Just finished my reservation and I tried the tip to book in MXN vs USD, but as soon as I hit the reservation it switched back to USD in my reservation confirmation, so looks like I can’t get a discount. I’m arriving around 4PM so I hope that’s not late enough to where I won’t get a car reserved for us. Thank you for this very helpful post!
Thanks Jossue for reading and for the comment! Congrats on your honeymoon – I’m sure you will have a blast! You are right, it can be so confusing…and sometimes, it’s just best to with someone who makes it easy for you. That’s why we used America too. Please keep us posted on how it goes!
Happy travels to you!
Liz
Hi! Thank you so much for all this info!!! Just a quick question – I am about to book a car in Cancun with them so is this insurance you are talking about what they call PLI? Their web says that the rate includes damage waiver, civil responsibility complement, partial protection of theft, third party damages (PLI) and personal coverage of medical expenses. I am a little lost in all those terms. Thank you very much I really appreciate your help!
Hello Ellie – thanks for reading and for the comment!
Yes, it is confusing. But PLI is the correct insurance that they are referring to. That is the additional third party Personal Liability coverage.
Enjoy your trip!!!
– Liz
Hello Liz,
I’d like to first say thank you so very much for posting this information, it really saved us from a trap. My husband kept saying, “$4 for car rental is impossible” and when i investigated, you schooled me about the mandatory insurance and all the sneaky sketchy fees.
Now, our trip isn’t till August 26th and the only think we booked so far is flight. I don’t pay much attention to details or read the “fine print” but thank God my husband does lol. So I took your advice and checked out “American car rentals” but other companies are coming up. In addition, you mentioned you flew to Cancun, how far did you go? Our flight is to Mexico City and plan to drive all the way to Cancun. Do you think doing that would be ill advised?
Thank you
Hello Samira – I’m so happy you found this post useful. Thanks for reading and for leaving a comment!
I don’t know that there is an America Car Rental in Mexico City, I know they have a handful of locations around Mexico (including Cancun). It’s quite a bit of a drive from Mexico City to Cancun, and while some areas are fine, there could be some areas that are sketchy.
I recommend checking out the current warnings for different areas, because safety can vary widely across Mexico. Here is a link to the current advisories: https://travel.state.gov/content/passports/en/alertswarnings/mexico-travel-warning.html
In general, you should definitely not drive at night anywhere in Mexico due to poor lighting, drunk driving, etc. And in some of the sketchy areas, you may want to stick to the major highways. Again, this varies by region. We drove all around the countryside and side-roads in the Yucatan and felt safe. But we only went west toward Merida from Cancun and down to Tulum. But it’s not the same in other areas.
I hope this helps. Have a fantastic trip!
Liz
I’m pricing out a car thru rentalcar , picked America car and the cost is 2200 PESOS , which it covers the Lial. insurance
going directly to America rental’s website the cost is 9000 pesos, thats including all insurances … So does America make you pay for other insurances if you book from a 3rd party like Rentalcar?
Hello Mike – thanks for reading.
Apologies for the delay…we have been traveling this last week!
That’s a good question. From our understanding, using Rentalcar for the booking should still include all the required insurance from America — since that is their standard package. However, that is quite a price difference – so you may want to contact them directly to find out. I can’t speak for Rentalcar or American on that matter, since policies can change without me knowing it. From all the research I have done on both sites and my experience booking, I thought that America offered the same insurance booking through 3rd party agencies too.
I hope this helps.
Thanks a lot for reading and happy travels to you!!!
Liz
thanks for the tips! will consider this next time!
We bought Mexican auto insurance, including liability, from Sanborn’s and after our trip we received a message from them that the insurance we bought from them would not cover a rental car for us in Mexico. We were super lucky we didn’t have any problems. The whole week we were driving around we weren’t even covered! Make sure to contact your credit card company that you purchase insurance with to see if they provide some insurance in Mexico. Not all of them do. Now I call the credit card companies in advance to get a printed statement about what they cover in Mexico before renting a car.
Thanks so much for reading Deborah and for the comment!
You are correct, you definitely need to check in advance of the trip because it’s a risk. Many credit cards don’t provide the right coverage for Mexico (same thing in Ireland too). That’s interesting that Sanborn’s didn’t cover it. I know they cover private cars going from the States into Mexico, and they also have a link on their website specifically for rental cars in Mexico (https://www.sanborns.com/mexico_rental_cars/default.aspx) — so that’s interesting to hear. Perhaps they’ve changed their policy or there was something unique about the situation – I’m not sure.
But thanks for sharing the info!
Happy travels!
Liz
Hi Liz,
Is it cheaper to purchase the “full coverage/no deductible” through the car rental website or wait until to purchase it at the rental office in Mexico? For example, Alamo is quoting $45 for full coverage per day…liability, collision, comp, tire/windshield as an option through their website. Pricey….however does this coverage cost tend to be cheaper if you purchase it through the rental office in Mexico?
Thanks,
Clay
Hi Clay – thanks for the question.
You would need to call the specific Alamo office to confirm the price with them, as it could be different. I’m not familiar with Alamo’s policies — but read very carefully to be sure what they are offering online is the correct liability. It wouldn’t be fun to pre-buy it then discover when you arrive that you have to buy another anyway! Definitely give them a call.
Happy travels to you!
Liz
Is it leagal to rent a car from a citizen not affiliated with a rental company?
Hi Sheila – thanks for reading. That’s a good question.
With the rise of sharing applications (including car shares), I’m actually not sure of the legality in Mexico. I guess it would depend if the people you are renting it from have insurance that will cover you in the event of an accident. It could definitely become a sticky situation if you had to handle it with the police (depending on how good your Spanish is).
I know there are some laws in the States that restrict car sharing, but if you go through certain companies then they have specific insurance that covers you. But I don’t believe that is the case in Mexico.
So from my research, I’d guess it’s probably not legal in Mexico — or at least, you are probably not covered by the proper insurance. So doing a car share in Mexico could pose a risk if there happens to be a problem.
But I’d love to know if you find out otherwise!
Happy travels!
liz
Hi Liz, first of all thanks for your article. I went to america car rental and they are showing $120 for 4 days. does this include Mexican Liability Insurance ? as i am seeing the green tick mark on all coverages but not able to see Mexican Liability Insurance ticked here ? Help plz
Sanjay –
That price sounds about right for the full insurance that is required. If it is through America’s website – then it should have all the required insurance.
Liz
I am talking to one of their online rep but he is not giving clear answer
Do you have any questions that I can help you with?
You are now chatting with Miguel Marroquin
Miguel says:
Bienvenido a America Car Rental, ¿Cómo puedo ayudarle? / Welcome to America Car Rental, how can I Help You?
Guest says:
yes, does this rate inlcude Mexican Liability Insurance?
Miguel says:
good afternoon
Guest says:
Hi
Guest says:
does the rate showing on your site inlcude Mexican Liability Insurance?
Miguel says:
what web page are you seeing?
Miguel says:
ok
Miguel says:
i see
Miguel says:
our packages have a insurence requerided to road in the Satate
Guest says:
is Mexican Liability Insurance required to rent a car ??
Guest says:
give me clear answer please
Miguel says:
The insurance required to rent arePLI, CDW, TP
Guest says:
what abt Mexican Liability Insurance?
Miguel says:
PLI
Hello Sanjay –
I apologize for the late reply as we have been traveling. Yes, it sounds like their rep is saying that the PLI meets the Mexican Liability Insurance requirement – at least from this company.
Liz
This article answered all my question about my vehicle!
I booked a car on carrental.com, through America Car Rental per your recommendation, for Cancun in March. The price was unbelievably low- ~$10 for 6 days. I declined the CDW because I will use my credit card, but my concern is that the price didn’t include the Mexican Liability insurance. In the details it had “Primary Liability” insurance included, so does this mean I’m covered as far as the Mexican Liability insurance is concerned? I’m so bad with terms and understanding what is what when it comes to insurance, and your blogs have been so detailed and helpful, but I just want to make sure that this price really isn’t too good to be true, and that I wont get hit with a huge Mexican Liability insurance add on cost when I go to pick up the car.
Camillia – thanks for reading! You are right, that price sounds super low to be true – but PLI is the correct insurance you need to have. So if it says in the terms that it includes PLI, then perhaps it is a special offer.
Now that you have the reservation booked, you could call America to verify (with your reservation number) that it includes the liability insurance & that there won’t be any other insurance fees in addition to what you have paid for.
I hope this helps!
Liz
Primary Liability is probably very low coverage (only a few thousand dollars).
It is the minimum mandated by law.
Most rental companies seem to sell SLI (supplementary liability insurance) which covers you up to hundreds of thousands of US dollars.
SLI costs more ($20 to $40) per day.
I am looking to rent a mini-van in Cancun airport for a week.
I’ve read all the blogs and guides on Mexico car rental and am generally aware of the scene there.
Budget Car Rental company sells Supplementary Liability Insurance for $20/day when you reserve on their site.
This insurance plan covers you against claims up to a max of 4 million Mexican pesos (approx. USD 200K).
From what I’ve read, this is a fair price.
Should I purchase the SLI from Budget online at the time of making the reservation OR wait until I get to the airport rental office?
Supplemental Liability Insurance (SLI) is excess automobile liability coverage that protects all authorized drivers of the rental vehicle against third-party bodily injury and property-damage claims.
For Collision (LDW/CDW) I plan to rely on my Costco Visa Credit Card.
Budget is the only one I could find that clearly spells out the price and the limits of coverage, which makes it more convincing to me.
Most other vendors I looked into don’t clearly state the coverage limits.
Thanks in advance.
Hi thanks for reading!
It’s up to you if you want to buy the extra insurance in advance when you book. I’m sure they will offer it to you upon arrival as well. But if you are good with the price, you may feel better about locking in the price before you arrive by booking in advance.
Happy travels to you!
Liz
Hello Love Serendipity,
I am traveling to Cancun at the end of January, and also have booked with Budget. I opted for the Collision Damage Waiver and not the SLI. At the rental counter were you charged an additional deposit (for deductible)? I want to make sure to budget correctly.
Hello Carolyn –
I cannot recall if we were charged an additional deposit for the deductible. I do know that we purchased the extra liability insurance they offered because we wanted to be sure we were covered. It has been years since our trip though, and prices have changed since then – so it would be best to call them and see if you can get a clear answer. But it will very much depend on the agency you went with, and if the original price you paid online included all the required mandatory insurance or if they plan to charge you that when you arrive.
Happy planning!
Liz
I am glad you had a great experience with America; however our recent experience was the exact opposite.
Issue 1) They pulled the classic “insurance scam” and would not give us the keys without purchasing the CDW coverage through them (doubling price of rental) despite having primary CDW (Chase Sapphire Reserve card) and a letter from the bank. Disputed the charge and got a refund through chase but still pretty terrible business practice.
Issue 2) The car was basically on E which required us to scramble and use the shady gas station down the road instead of a more legit one near our hotel.
Issue 3.) The jeep kept stalling out at highway speeds (auto trans) and then to top it off the drivers side seat belt fell off at the shoulder bracket. Seems like they take pretty poor care of the vehicles.
Thanks for sharing your experience Tyler. That’s unfortunate to hear, I hope it was an isolated incident or that they will fix the issues. We had a lovely experience with them.
I hope the rest of the trip went well for you!
Happy travels!
Liz
a well-informative article, thanks for sharing this one.
Thanks – I’m glad you found it useful!
Liz
Thanks for your post.I will wait for your next post.