If you’re renting a car in Costa Rica, the most confusing thing is the car rental insurance as every car rental agency in Costa Rica sets their own names, regulations and policies for insurances.
And yes – there is a mandatory car rental insurance that everyone must take in when renting a car in Costa Rica.
This post will be breaking down our partner Adobe Rent a Car’s car rental insurances as we have a partnership with them to offer our readers a Costa Rica car rental discount and extra benefits.
This post has affiliate links which we may earn a small commission from if you choose to purchase, at no extra cost to you. Listed prices are quoted in USD and are estimates. More info: Disclosure
Adobe Rent a Car Insurance
Read our experience with Adobe Rent a Car to see why we partnered with them!
In this post, I’m going to break down how Adobe Rent a Car’s insurance works, including which one is the mandatory insurance, which one can be declined, and which ones are 100% optional.
Below are the insurance options Adobe Rent a Car offers online.
Liability Protection (PLI)
The Liability Protection is what most car rental companies call their mandatory insurance. This insurance cannot be removed or declined.
What it covers:
- Coverage up to $20,000 USD in 3rd party damages with a 20% deductible*. It also has a coverage of 3rd parties not in the car (i.e pedestrian) up to $100,000 USD with 0 deductible.
- Liability Protection does not cover vehicle damage.
* All Mytanfeet readers have 0% deductible on Liability, up to $20,000 USD as one of our benefits.*
This insurance costs from $13.50 – $25 USD + tax a day depending on the vehicle.
Car Protection (LDW or CDW)
This insurance covers damages of the rented car in an accident, collision or roll over.
In case of total or partial theft of the rented car, the Car Protection also covers any financial losses due to the theft.
Declining Car Protection Insurance
You can use your credit card car rental insurance to decline this insurance.
In order to decline, you need to present proof of coverage from your credit card company stating that the credit card will cover the damages.
The letter needs to have the credit card company logo letterhead, the last four digits of the credit card being used and the name of the credit card holder.
Check with your credit card company to see if they will cover this insurance including but not limited to factors such as number of passengers, type of car and number of rental days.
For example, my Chase Sapphire credit card offers car rental insurance and I can use it to decline the Car Protection insurance for up to 30 days per contract.
I just call my credit card company to get the coverage letter and I present that to Adobe Rent a Car to remove Car Protection Insurance.
Important: Car Protection does NOT cover vandalism, road side assistance, tires or towing. The deductible is $1000 USD +13% tax and does NOT cover any 3rd party damages.
If you decline Car Protection insurance and use your credit card insurance and get involved in an incident, Adobe will charge you and then provide all the paperwork you might need in order to get reimbursed by your insurance company.
If you do not have a credit card that offers car rental coverage, then you must take Car Protection Insurance. Third party insurances are not accepted.
Extended Protection (SPP)
The third option, the Extended Protection is 100% optional. The Adobe representative will ask you once if you wish to get Extended Protection but you are completely free to decline it.
You can decide to add it when you make the reservation but you can decide not to get it when you collect the car.
Or you do not have to get it now when you make your booking online and you can decide later when you collect the car if you want it.
The Extended Protection Insurance covers:
- The 20% deductible of the Liability Protection so your deductible is 0.
- Covers vandalism, windows, damaged tires (NOT flat tires), road assistance 24/7 and tow truck.
- 100% of damages including 3rd party up to $2 million.
This costs around $20.50 USD with tax included a day depending on the vehicle.
If you are declining Car Protection Insurance, you cannot get Extended Protection.
In these cases, the Adobe agent will ask you in person if you want the next insurance which is only offered in person – not online, the TPW.
TPW (Third Party Waiver) In Person Insurance
If you decline the Car Protection insurance and are purchasing ONLY Liability Insurance, the Adobe agent will ask you if you would like to purchase an insurance called the TPW.
This TPW insurance is 100% optional. This insurance is offered ONLY by the Adobe agent in person – not online.
The TPW insurance increases your third party (Liability) coverage to $4 million USD from $20,000 USD. The Liability deductible goes down to $0 USD from 20%.
It is $9.99 + 13% tax USD a day, 100% optional and only offered in person by the Adobe agent when you collect the car.
This insurance will be offered only to clients who decline the Car Protection and Extended Protection and are purchasing ONLY Liability insurance.
Situations Where Adobe Rent a Car Insurance Does Not Cover the Rental
- Driving under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol.
- Failure to immediately report a car accident that you are involved in.
- Damages to the car in situations when the driver is not authorized.
- Damages due to driving through rivers, on beaches, through lakes, mangroves and flooded roads (anywhere through water). Anywhere that an official road does not exist.
- Failure to comply with the legal procedure with the insurance company. This includes but is not limited to failure to report the accident to transit police, failure to report the accident and filling out the insurance claim and non-compliance with other legal process requirements.
- Flat tires are not covered under any of the insurances. Adobe gives you the necessary tools to change the flat tire yourself. Then you have go to any one of their offices in the country to get a new tire.
Why Rent With Adobe Rent a Car?
Insurance is Easy to Understand
Like I mentioned earlier, Adobe Rent a Car’s insurances are easy to understand.
Some other car rental companies can have 5, 6, 7 different insurances. That makes it really difficult to understand! And they make seem like the car rental is super cheap.
What you don’t know is that they add the insurance later when you’re about to pick up the car and clients have no knowledge of this, making it feel like a “scam” or at least a bit cheated. Which brings me to my next point.
Full transparency
Since Adobe Rent a Car is a Costa Rican company, they don’t want their clients to have a bad experience with car hires.
They know that many tourists come back to Costa Rica and they want them to rent with Adobe Rent a Car again.
Unfortunately car rentals have a bad reputation in Costa Rica due to the insurances and “hidden fees” by international companies.
Adobe Rent a Car does not add on any last minute taxes, fees or insurances. Their pricing is all-inclusive.
Peace of mind
Adobe Rent a Car is a 100% Costa Rican operated company meaning they know the Costa Rican laws inside and out.
As they have been operating for nearly 30 years, they know how the system works through and through and all their employees are very well vetted and knowledgeable.
I hope this posts clears up any questions you have any Adobe Rent a Car insurance.
Don’t forget to get our Costa Rica car rental discount and extra benefits!
You can read this post “Costa Rica car rental insurance” to see how several car rental companies’ insurance policy works if you are comparing other companies.
Read these post below for more tips on driving/renting a car in Costa Rica.
Costa Rica Vacation Checklist
- First time to Costa Rica? Read our First Time in Costa Rica guide.
- Not sure how to move around Costa Rica? Read our How to Get Around Costa Rica guide to find the best transportation method for you.
- Click the link to get our detailed Costa Rica Packing List so you know what essential items to bring.
- Check our Costa Rica destinations map and Costa Rica restaurant map
- Do not forget to purchase Travel Insurance for your trip to Costa Rica.
- Stay connected by purchasing a prepaid SIM Card in Costa Rica.
- Save money with Mytanfeet Deals for tours and hotels and our Costa Rica Car Rental Discount.
Andy says
Hi,
I am interested in renting a car for a week and would like to inquire about the details. Specifically, I plan to pick up the car on the 13th of August.
Could you please let me know the latest time I can return the car on the 20th of August without incurring any extra charges?
Thank you for your assistance. I look forward to your response.
Sammi says
Hi Andy, we saw your reservation and sent you a couple emails with more information, including the answer to your question. Please check your spam folder in case you don’t see it in your inbox
Claudia says
Your blog has been super helpful!
I’d like to rent from Adobe however, I’d like to use my Chase points since it’s a large cost. Any chance they will join in the near future.
Sammi says
No sorry, also if you use your Chase points, make sure you know exactly what other extras you have to pay for because I don’t know if insurances can be used with points so you may still need to pay for insurance at the counter.
Max says
Hi! I am coming to CR from the UK and we don’t have car insurance through our credit cards. Is there a way to get third party LDW? Or would the only way be to buy it from Adobe? Thanks!
Max
Sammi says
Hi Max, in this case you would purchase it from Adobe
Sergei says
I second this is very helpful website! After reading about the car rental on this website, I rented a car through Adobe Rent-a-Car in the end of May for 2 weeks. The staff was very helpful and, the company is transparent. You can just trust them. In order to get collision coverage waiver (mandatory in CR, if remember correctly) through your credit card make sure to have both a letter from the bank that issued your card (they may e-mail you this letter that will state the last 4 digits of the card and coverage limits in your destination, print that e-mail) and that same credit card with you when you arrive in the rental office. I recommend renting from this rental company. To be fair you will probably have good experience with several other companies, especially if you drive safely! 🙂 I rented near SJO from Alamo in 2018 and Thrifty in 2016, and both were fine. You will get 10% discount at Adobe-Rent-a-Car if booking through this site.
Sammi says
Hi Sergei, thank you so much for your feedback and we’re very glad you had a good experience with Adobe. Thank you for renting a car through Mytanfeet and Adobe, we hope you visit Costa Rica again!
John says
This is a great site. I plan to rent from Adobe. As I have a Chase Sapphire reserve card, I have coverage. I dont really understand what Adobe will want from Chase or Visa? I can download the coverage for the card but do they need something addressed to me that details the coverage for Costa Rica? Thanks,
Sammi says
Hi John, that is no problem, Adobe can take your Chase Sapphire Reserve card insurance, they will just need a letter from them stating they’ll cover the charges for the car rental contract using your credit card
Lisa H. says
Hello and thank you so much for all the helpful information! They seem like a great transparent company to rent from…my only hesitation is that we fly into SJO at 6am sharp and the Adobe website says they don’t open til 8am on Saturdays. Also, is the office close to SJO? I assume they have a meet and greet or shuttle situation going on, but I didn’t really want to wait 2 hours in the airport til they open:( Would you please confirm those are, in fact, the Saturday hours. Thanks!
Sammi says
Hi Lisa, that is no problem, their airport office opens at 5 AM so if you would like the car when you land, Adobe will station an agent at the airport to wait for you and have your car ready. In the widget, you can just select your landing time and make a note in the comment section what time your flight lands and that you would like to get the car at the airport and would like the meet and greet process to collect your car at their office
Mary says
I made reservations for a rental car. I chose liability only as booking the car with my charge card, it covers up to $50,000 collision. I booked the rental on your website to get the discount through Adobe. However, there was no way to give them info that our Visa covers collision. Do I have to do that on their website? Or can I just bring the proven paperwork from my charge card stating what they cover to the place we pick up our rental? I don’t want to give you my rental confirmation number on this site. Can you private message me on my email? Thank-you
Sammi says
Hello Mary, we sent you an email yesterday 🙂
Ritchie says
Does Adobe have a car drop off at Tambor airport? We are flying into the airport and would like to rent a car for a week.
Thanks!
Sammi says
Hi Ritchie, unfortunately Adobe does not and they don’t have an office in the Nicoya Peninsula 🙁 They can deliver a car to your place in Tambor but there is a hefty extra fee for this ($165 one way). You can check to see if there are other car rental companies who have offices in Tambor (there should be, I believe Budget).
Chad says
Hello, We are wondering how you set up for a rental car to be delivered to our hotel through the internet rental website, as we get in on a later flight and would like to have the car the next morning if possible? Also thank you for such great info on your blogs and webpage its been a life saver for our family.
Sammi says
Hi Chad, on the Costa Rica car rental discount, select the closest main office to your location and on the booking page, you can select the “other location”. Write in the name of your hotel you would like to get the car delivered to.
Glad you find the blog useful!
doris klapper says
Hi guys, we are about finished planning our 3 week CR Trip, and are about to book with Adobe through your site. Just one question, what kind of insurance would you recommend,
liability and car protection, would you recommend Extended protection too?
thanks and best wishes Doris + Ferdinand
Sammi says
Hi Doris, Extended is 100% optional so it’s up to you if you’d like to get it. It’s basically an extension of the Liability so you’re covered for up to more $. Some people get it, some people don’t as it’s optional.