Short term renters insurance in USA

A friend of mine got stopped for speeding in the US, and the cop started writing his name as “Ellan Vannin Kied Imman” on the speeding ticket. It means “Isle of Man Driving License” in Manx. I don’t think he pointed this out to them :-)

An International Driver’s ‘License’ is not actually a license, its a translation, so you’d produce both it and your actual license. A US traffic cop would have no idea what to do with a foreign license in isolation, because its most likely in a foreign language and quite possibly issued by a nation of which he’s never heard. The translation, often issued by an auto club affiliated with the US AAA is something he can understand. Then after seeing your level of preparedness, in most instances he will let you go because (1) he is not authorized to levy fines on the side of the road, all fines are produced by a court, and (2) he knows full well that you’re unlikely to pay a fine mailed to an address outside the US.

Its also not a bad idea to do the same in reverse, if you use an American drivers license in Europe. Few European cops are likely to either speak English very well or recognize the names of many US states that control ‘US’ licenses. Those licenses do not say United States anywhere on them.

In case you were wondering there are AFAIK no treaties covering traffic fines between any US states and any European countries.

The first time i drove outside the UK in 1963, I payed for an International Drivers Licence – from the AA on their information. I never renewed it. I regard it as a money-making con for the motoring organisations. I reckon the worst thing I could do on a US traffic stop is to produce a document which is not issued by some level of government when asked for a driving licence.

Its also not a bad idea to have an international drivers ‘license’ when driving privately owned vehicles in the US on a foreign license

I’ve never bothered, never caused me a problem even when the police stopped me in a bright red Ford Mustang after driving far too quickly… (my driving license didn’t even have a photo at the time!)

(Incidentally, I got stopped 5 times in 1 year when I lived in Texas during my no money stage, although I had a Texas license by then, the vehicle I drove looked uninsured (a Dodge Ram that looked rather like others dodged while I rammed), and I did tend to drive it rather fast. Only ever got one ticket though, police in the area are so shocked when they stop someone and the person they stop is polite and treats them like another human instead of getting all belligerent that they often completely failed to write a speeding ticket).

the position with ‘courtesy cars’ from FBO’s is intractible for a foreigner. (unless anyone knows a solution???)

I think the solution is to be prepared to pay the owner of the car if you damage his property, cash payment, up to and including buying the car. I’ve done that myself but otherwise I’ve yet to make an vehicle insurance claim on any policy I’ve bought over 35 years, so I’d take that risk without much thought. However it might not be a bad idea to verify that the loaner car is covered by liability insurance when you drive it. That would typically be the case in the US, where insurance policies are not generally specific to particular drivers.

Its also not a bad idea to have an international drivers ‘license’ when driving privately owned vehicles in the US on a foreign license. Rental car companies don’t require it and its kind of a symbolic gesture, but it shows preparedness. European tourists in the US would be expected to have a somewhat uptight attitude about driving, licenses etc and you want to fit this useful mold in case of issues, not depart from it. For Mexicans, the expectation is somewhat different so you’re already one step ahead

By ex-pat do you mean a US citizen

Poor choice of words on my part. I mean a foreign national visitor to the US with no US address, typically a tourist.

Note that on the car insurance thing, some companies offer inclusive insurance if booked in UK that would double the daily rate if booked locally in the US. I never drive without LDW and SLI, but the position with ‘courtesy cars’ from FBO’s is intractible for a foreigner. (unless anyone knows a solution???)

So if you’re in the US short term and you buy a car/get car insurance there, before just taking the default insurance amounts, if you have assets (which I imagine most on EuroGA will have!) make sure that the limits of your liability insurance are something you’re comfortable with because in most states, the minimum liability insurance you need is two or three orders of magnitude lower than the minimum 3rd party insurance needed in a European country and unless you specify you’ll tend to get the default cover.

Nobody is going to sue with the hope of going after foreign assets unless the scale of the accident involves you piloting a 747.

Lower risk aversion in the US results from more problems being resolved through direct negotiation without as many intimidating government, commercial or social quagmires. That’s a good thing because on the rare occasions when you actually do get into one of those quagmires in the US, its typically a serious pain in the butt.

I think it’s far more important to have proper car insurance in the US due to the risk of litigation and medical costs.

That’s what I thought, but when I lived there the insurance broker told me I was OK with the Texas minimum liability insurance (which is something ludicrously low – 15K/45K/15K – one of the 15Ks was personal injury, if I remember correctly – which in the US system would buy you about a dozen stitches and that’s it). Being 23 at the time and with no assets and no money, the broker told me that there’s no point me getting more insurance since I had no assets to go after anyway, since I rented my home rather than owned it, so no one would bother suing me anyway. Lawyers working on contingency or for insurance companies only sue if they can be reasonably confident that there’s pockets deep enough to pay out. So if you’re in the US short term and you buy a car/get car insurance there, before just taking the default insurance amounts, if you have assets (which I imagine most on EuroGA will have!) make sure that the limits of your liability insurance are something you’re comfortable with because in most states, the minimum liability insurance you need is two or three orders of magnitude lower than the minimum 3rd party insurance needed in a European country and unless you specify you’ll tend to get the default cover.

One curious thing that I’ve noted: in the US the actual risk of being sued if (for instance) you’re an airport owner is much higher than it is in the UK. However, the fear of being sued in the UK is far far higher to such a ridiculous extent that you have to wear yellow jackets airside and you have to sign waivers if you want to use an airfield outside its normal opening hours which is just unheard of in the US.

In practice, all you are buying is the FBO’s excess (deductible), (say $5000)

The reputable FBO I last rented from had an excess about the same as my Group in Scotland has – so I accepted that condition. By ex-pat do you mean a US citizen, living elsewhere but returning for a short spell, or an alien with US residency? Both are different from short-stay aliens.