I can still see that day in St Thomas in my head. The sun was very strong and the Budget parking lot was close to the sea. The wind had a little salty smell. I was standing by the counter looking at the Toyota Yaris while the staff pointed at the door. In my mind there was only one question. How much is this damage going to cost me. They asked me if I knew the door damage might be very expensive. In that moment my first thought was that I was really glad I booked through QEEQ and added AXA Full Coverage before the trip. If I did not have it I knew I could be in real trouble. Why was I so nervous. Because I was on a business trip and the budget for this whole trip was planned with my company. My own cash is not very high. A sudden bill of several thousand dollars for car damage would put huge pressure on me. How did it start. It was around the afternoon of April seventh. I parked the car by the street to meet a client. I was not gone for long. When I came back I saw a big dent and scratch on the driver side door and the car that was next to me was already gone. I stood there on the road looking at that long deep mark. I took photos and kept asking myself in my head. Will they charge me for all of this. Can I even pay it. If I pay can I really claim it back. Are there many small rules that say they do not pay. I quickly opened my email and checked the insurance I bought. I saw the AXA Full Coverage description. It said it covered car damage and theft and also some things that the rental counter full cover often does not include like glass and tires. It also mentioned road assistance and some personal and item loss situations with a very high claim limit. At that moment I felt at least I was not completely unprotected. Later when I returned the car a day before the planned drop off around April ninth the staff did a full check. When he saw the door he called another coworker. They looked at it together and started a report. People around us were pushing suitcases and starting their vacations. I was just standing there waiting for a number. They told me the damage could be very expensive and it would follow their standard rules. I had no idea what that really meant in money. So I just made sure I kept all my photos my rental agreement and my personal details safe. Then I contacted customer service and explained I was on a business trip and the car door was hit. I told them my biggest worry was the bill and the claim. I directly asked them if such a big amount could really be covered and what I needed to prepare. They gave me a clear answer. They said AXA Full Coverage is made for this kind of car damage and related costs. As long as it is inside the coverage limit and I provide the right documents the case can go into the claim process. They also reminded me to keep the invoice payment proof and my passport ready. I asked myself another question. What if the rental counter wants me to pay full amount first. This was the hardest part for me. Seven thousand dollars is not a small number. I had just enough in my account but that would make my life very tight for some time. I still needed to travel to other cities and meet more clients. My stress would be very high. I told customer service this worry too. Their reply was very clear. The insurance works as a reimbursement. I need to settle the bill with the rental company first. Then I send the complete invoice and payment proof and the claim will be checked and paid to me according to the policy. So what did I do. I tried to calm down and list what I could control. First I needed to be sure the rental bill only included items related to the door damage. Second I checked again the limit of the AXA Full Coverage and which parts were included. When I saw the claim limit was much higher than the amount Budget was talking about I felt a bit more stable. At least from the numbers it was not a hole I could never climb out of. Because I am a business traveler I still had other meetings after this stop. I could not stay stuck on this problem. I talked with my family and my company to see if I could get support to pay first and then wait for the insurance to return the money. In my head I was not very happy. I kept thinking I already paid for this strong insurance so why do I still need to pay first. But when I thought more I understood this is just how many insurances work. I am the driver and the one who signs with the rental company. So the bill is under my name and later the insurance pays me not the rental counter. During this time they did not just ignore me. They sent emails and answered calls to explain the rules and to remind me which things might not be fully covered like some loss of use fees so I would not expect every single line to be paid back. For someone like me who travels a lot for work but does not have endless money it helped a lot to have the rules explained clearly instead of just hearing that everything is fine. When I look back at this experience now I know if I did not have AXA Full Coverage when I saw that deep dent on the door and the look on the Budget staff face I would probably break down. The claim process does ask me to pay first and prepare many documents. But at least I know that if I follow the steps there is a real and clear way for me to get my money back inside the coverage. For a business traveler like me that feeling of a safety net is very important.
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