Glossary · UK
What is Excess Waiver?
A separate add-on policy or standalone product that refunds some or all of the excess you pay on an insurance claim, most commonly for car hire or motor insurance.
Full Definition
An excess waiver is a product, sold either as an add-on to an insurance policy or as a standalone policy from a third-party provider, that reimburses some or all of the excess a policyholder has to pay when they make a claim. It is most familiar in car hire, where the hire company's own collision damage waiver often still leaves a large excess (sometimes several hundred or several thousand pounds) payable if the hire car is damaged or stolen; an independent car hire excess waiver policy, typically bought separately and much cheaper than the hire desk's own upsell, refunds that excess if a valid claim is made. Similar waiver products exist for motor insurance excess more generally and for some home and travel policies, letting a policyholder choose a higher standard excess (which usually lowers the core premium) while insuring against having to find that money in the event of a claim. An excess waiver is a separate contract from the underlying insurance policy, with its own terms, exclusions and claims process, so a claim can be accepted by the waiver provider even though it is administered independently of the main insurer, and it is worth checking exactly what is and is not covered (for example, whether it excludes single-vehicle accidents, tyres, windscreens or off-road damage) before relying on it.