Auto Accident Experience in the DR

There are numerous threads regarding renting a car with insurance and what is or is not covered. Well, I was just down in the DR for a week and I had abit of a nasty auto accident so, I thought I would share my experiences for others to learn from.

First a little background info. I typically rent a Honda CRV for weeks at a time and I've always rented from Gypsy/Jason at Adventure-Rent-A-Car, they are located right at the POP airport. I've rented from them NUMEROUS times (too many to count) and although their pricing is a little higher than you can find elsewhere, I've NEVER had a problem with them. Plus they have a good reputation on various forums. I fill out and sign all the forms and a credit card slip is processed at the amount of $65/day. When I return the car in satisfactory condition, I pay in cash at a rate of $50/day and the forms and credit slips are ripped up. The "understanding" is that if I am ever in an accident then all the forms/credit card information is processed and I am fully covered under insurance, both their's and my credit card's. Well, here's what happened to me, when I got into an accident:

I do want to state that although Dominican drivers are crazy, this accident was entirely my fault. I rear-ended a 1997 Toyota Corolla with a 2002 Honda CRV and although we were traveling in the left-hand lane of a 4 lane road with a divider in the middle and I have no idea why the Corolla slammed on his brakes and came to a dead stop in front of me, I did rear-end him and take full responsibility.

Now, I hit the Corolla pretty hard, I had just glanced down at the time on my cell phone and when I looked up it was too late to stop. I did manage to slam on the brakes and I figure that I probably hit him at around 10-15 mph, which doesn't sound like alot, but I did substantial damage to the Corolla as well as the CRV. Roughly 1/3 of the Corolla's trunk was pushed in, both tail lights were shattered, center rear panel trim was shattered and the bumper had a HUGE gash down the right side of it. The CRV had it's bumper and front grill pushed completely in, the radiator and a/c condenser coils were folded in half and the electric fans behind the radiator and in front of the motor were both shattered. Both cars did start and run, although the CRV had all of it's coolant leaking out onto the highway.

The Corolla had 5 passengers (1 male driver and 4 female passengers) and I was alone. Thankfully, noone was hurt, not even a case of whip-lash. Surprisingly, the other party didn't come storming out, screaming at me. We both checked to make sure everyone was safe and I then proceeded to call Jason to ask what I needed to do. He told me he would be right over from the airport to help me out. We left both cars parked where the accident occurred and waited for Jason to come. Two police cars stopped on two seperate occasions, the first was a policia nacional and the second was a policia trafico. Neither stuck around, they both just looked around and then got back into their cars and left. A Dominican lawyer did show up asking the other party if they needed his services though! I guess not too far from what happens here in the US. His services were graciously declined and he continued on his way.

Jason finally showed up and we all eventually ended up at the police station. There all information of both parties were taken down (you need your driver's license in hand and need to know your passport number). Car registration and insurance is of course provided by the rental company. The officer basically just wrote down an explanation of what happened in a notebook and had both parties sign it. Then of course, I had to tip the officer 200 pesos so, I could have the process of having an official police report in hand by the time I returned back to the States. Otherwise, I believe it would take roughly a week for the report to be ready.


And ultimately, in the end this is what I ended up having to pay for:

I had to personally pay for all damages to the Toyota Corolla. This included 2 new rear tail-lights, the center rear trim, new rear bumper and the work to straighten out the chassis, install and paint everything. All that came to roughly 14,000 pesos.

I had to also pay up front for all the damages to the CRV. This included a new front bumper, new radiator, new dual electric fan setup, new a/c condenser coil, new front grill and the labor to install and paint everything. That came to roughly 32,000 pesos.

The "full" insurance that is provided has a deductible of 90,000 pesos. So, any damages incurred from 1-90,000 pesos comes out of the renter's pocket. Apparently, this is standard policy practice down in the DR.

So, 46,000 pesos came directly out of my pocket. My credit card was charged for the full amount of $65/day and I have to provide my credit card company with receipts for all the damages, copy of the rental agreement and a copy of the police report. I will be reimbursed for everything minus $500.00.

I never thought I would see the inside of a Dominican police station. Thankfully, I have the means to pay for all the damage I caused immediately. Otherwise, I believe you are held until you CAN round up the money somehow/someway.

Now, considering I have been driving around all over the island under the assumption that I was fully covered for any kind of accident and I could just literally walk away from one, this was a good wake up call for me. There is no rental insurance that comes with full insurance that allows you to walk away from an accident. If you ask, the counter people will charge you for all the extraneous crap that you can want but ultimately, you will have to pay for damages out of your own pockets and seek reimbursement elsewhere.

Although, I have no problems with Jason and Adventure-Rent-A-Car, I will no longer rent cars from them anymore. I will seek out the cheaper alternatives because I now know, that paying extra for "premium insurance coverage" really doesn't get you anything more.

Live and learn...

- J.

That's a lot of taxis and Metro or Caribe bus trips....I know it's a hassle but a lot better for me....sorry for your misfortune

How did you have to pay the 46,000RD with a credit card or did it all have to be in cash?

The damages to the Corolla I had to pay for everything right then and there. So, it was paid for in cash. All damages to the Corolla had to be settled to the satisfaction of the other driver, prior to heading to the police. Once the driver agreed everything was settled, that's when we all went to the police station. There the officer asked the other driver if I had covered all damages to his satisfaction and he answered yes, I had indeed covered everything. Otherwise, I'm guessing it could have gotten nasty.

The damage to the CRV was paid via credit card once I returned the second car I was issued to the airport. I probably will NOT be compensated for the damages to the Corolla by my credit card company.

- J.

Man this story is making me second guess renting a vehicle for my first trip to Sosua. Do you think places like Hertz would pull something like this?

So your out the $500 deductible, 200RD for the police and another 14,000RD to fix the Corolla?

How did they come up with the 14,000RD price? Bring it to a mechanic or did one magically appear to make an estimate? Or did the car owner make his own estimate?

We drove to an auto parts store on the main highway that runs through Puerto Plata. It's a few doors down from La Barrica, across the street from Dominican Billy's condos. The parts for the Corolla cost 6,500 pesos at this auto parts tienda.

Then we went to an auto body shop located more towards the center of Puerto Plata. After looking at the damage to the Corolla, I was quoted 7,500 pesos for the repair work, which I paid for right then and there.

- J.

Thanks for sharing this information.

Geeze!! What a terrible experience!

Thanks for your honesty and for sharing this with us. Best of luck with everything...

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Originally Posted by Ryatt

Man this story is making me second guess renting a vehicle for my first trip to Sosua. Do you think places like Hertz would pull something like this?

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My very first time I rented a car in Puerto Plata, I rented from Hertz. Online while making the reservation I selected liability, collision and everything I could possibly see/read about because I was paranoid about getting into an accident and I wanted to make sure I could walk away from one. For a Chevy Cobalt with insurance, I was quoted online, roughly $400.00 for a week. Regular pricing on one without all the insurance was roughly $250.00 for the week.

Once I got down there at the Hertz counter waiting to pick up the car, The rate "miraculously" went up to over $500.00 for the week. I argued and argued but ultimately, I was told that's the price if I wanted "full" coverage. I walked away from the counter and ended up at Adventure-Rent-A-Car and have been renting cars from ever since.. although no longer now.

When I returned to the States from that trip, I called Hertz and asked about what the extra $100+ charge was. They told me that all international locations are franchised and sometimes there are additional/unforeseen surcharges. And I'm guessing since I ultimately, didn't rent from them, they really didn't care to follow up with the discrepancy in pricing.

Would paying $500+ a week to rent a small passenger car include full-blown insurance coverage? I cannot answer that because I simply do not know. But considering you're paying double the cost without insurance, I certainly would hope so. But who knows what the hell goes on down in the DR. I certainly wouldn't trust the counter people to answer anything honestly.

- J.

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Originally Posted by 3somefan

Geeze!! What a terrible experience!

Thanks for your honesty and for sharing this with us. Best of luck with everything...

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I think if you want to tour pop or some other small village it better to hire a taxi I hired palo for 4 hours for $50
:eek: it look like we have a few guys that want to go it will be less them $ 15 dollars each:biggrin: </IMG>

Dijinn, I am sorry to hear about your experience.

But I am glad that you were not seriously hurt (which is most important).

Quote:

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Originally Posted by dijinn

The damages to the Corolla I had to pay for everything right then and there. So, it was paid for in cash. All damages to the Corolla had to be settled to the satisfaction of the other driver, prior to heading to the police. Once the driver agreed everything was settled, that's when we all went to the police station. There the officer asked the other driver if I had covered all damages to his satisfaction and he answered yes, I had indeed covered everything. Otherwise, I'm guessing it could have gotten nasty.

The damage to the CRV was paid via credit card once I returned the second car I was issued to the airport. I probably will NOT be compensated for the damages to the Corolla by my credit card company.

- J.

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Sorry to hear of your trouble. Cheeno's right, you suffered no physical damage. Secondly, the occupants of the other didn't either get hurt nor did they pretend to. Third, you had the cash to buy your way out and didn't miss your flight while taking care of business.

I hope you have something in writing attesting to the property damage payment, because if you do, you will probably get paid for it, depending of course on the coverage.

All that said, it's a good lesson for all on this board who want to drive in The DR to at least make sure that they keep their drivers licence and copy of their passport with them when they drive. They also need to take enough money on their trip to pay off anyone that suffers as a result of an accident.

Many herein have expressed the opinion that driving in the DR is not worth the risks. I agree with them. Maybe now, some who think otherwise will see the risks that they actually taking and be prepared.

You do realize that it didn't really matter if it was your fault or not, right? The result would have been the same either way.

Thanks for sharing.

Thanks for sharing, but why did you have to pay for the damage to the CRV upfront? Didn't you have their insurance. And did you have the option to card the damage to the CRV to the rental company?

I was actually considering renting a car but, i always feared that no matter what kind of insurance i bought, I never really would know exactly what I have until I needed it. That kind of scares me with uncertainty. Just like the OP mentioned, he thought he had everything but even after renting many times in tha past, he still found himself in a situation that was difficult and hard to imagine.

I think ill just skip the rental and pay extra for cabs.

Thanks dijinn for your post. It helped me decide what route to go.

Insurance coverage only kicks in, once damages EXCEED 90,000 pesos. Anything under that, you have to pay for yourself and then try to get reimbursed by your credit card company's coverage. And the damage to the CRV must be carded so, you can prove to your credit card company how much the repairs cost.

I believe as long as you have receipts, I'm sure they an be used as proof also. But if you charge the damages directly to the card, it's apparently alot easier to get reimbursed.

I was always under the impression that the extra amount I was paying to rent these cars was for peace of mind/insurance coverage. I always figured in a relatively minor to medium accident, I would probably end up paying out a few hundred dollars even with the insurance coverage. Well, unless you exceed roughly $2,750 in damages, YOU will be paying for it!

- J.

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Originally Posted by Cheeno

Dijinn, I am sorry to hear about your experience.

But I am glad that you were not seriously hurt (which is most important).

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Thanks Cheeno... I for one am EXTREMELY thankful that noone was hurt. Running around getting parts, paying for the work estimate and then heading to the police station, took the better part of a full day. It amazed me that a car with 5 people in it, noone had anything better to do than ride around and watch. If this happened to me in NY, everyone would be yelling at each other that they have to get back to work!

- J.

Oh and one more thing about the accident that I forgot to mention. Although, the impact was pretty hard... none of the car's airbags deployed. I found out at the bodyshop that this is standard practice down in the DR for people to pull the airbags out of their cars. In case of an accident, it keeps the cost of the repairs down and the airbags are sold off (probably to US shops) to help offset the purchase of the vehicle.

So, next time you're driving a car down in the DR and the little red SRS light on the dash is on, now you know why!

- J.

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Originally Posted by El Capitan

That's a lot of taxis and Metro or Caribe bus trips....I know it's a hassle but a lot better for me....sorry for your misfortune

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I am with you Captain! Look for an old limey fart on the adjacent seat!

If anyone spots me at a car rental place waiting to sign up, please carry me away to the senior care home because my mind will have gone.

Tremendous report, dijinn. Thanks for taking the trouble to post in such great detail. I especially liked the bit about the airbags!

Djinn, first of all sorry about your experience man, but Cheeno is right. You can't purchase the fact that you, or anyone in the other car was not hurt! so you are lucky. Also the fact that you HAD the cheddar also makes you fortunate.

Now in the case of companies, on the board, many guys have posted that I think Alamo is a good company to rent with, because they don't have additional fees (if my memory serves me correct).

As far as coverage is concerned I ALWAYS decline, why? Because I use my Amex Gold card. I had an incident last time I rented a car there (got caught in a Flood)... I was able to hustle the rental company and get out of dodge, BUT Amex Gold was more than willing to get on the job for me, and it was no problem, they were even apologizing to me on the phone for my experience. They cover collisions or 'natural disasters' or anything.

I would really suggest to all of us that travel a lot to take our own coverage into our own hands. These car rental companies are very shady, and rent us cars that have damaged historys. It is imporant that we don't leave our coverage up to these guys at any time.

If you travel a lot, make the investment and upgrade the kind of coverage you use. And also in the event you've been ripped off, Amex has no problem stopping payments (Another reason why many places in DR would rather take another card over your Amex)

Incogneg...