Explore Spain
with Confidence

Driving in Spain is a fantastic way to explore the country, but don’t let a hefty car hire excess ruin your trip. In Spain, car rental agreements usually include basic insurance with a high excess (deductible), often ranging from around €1,000 up to €2,500 for damage or theft​. This means if your hired car gets scratched, dented, or stolen, you could be charged thousands of euros by the car hire company. Even minor incidents can be costly, car hire companies typically charge about €250 for a scratched door, €300 for a punctured tyre, and up to €750 for a cracked windscreen​ 

Car Hire Excess Insurance saves you money by covering these charges. Purchasing excess cover from an independent provider like Gigasure is far cheaper than buying the rental company’s own insurance. Car hire desks in Spain often push their “super CDW” or excess waiver products hard – but at 2–3 times the price of independent policies. 

By choosing Gigasure, you avoid the car hire counter upsell and save significantly while getting superior cover. (Tip: Rental companies’ excess waivers might still exclude tyres, glass, underside, etc., or carry their own small print – Gigasure covers those gaps.) 

Spain’s driving environment is another reason to be prepared. From the narrow streets of historic city centres to rough rural roads in the countryside, driving can be challenging. It’s easy to scrape a wheel on a tight village lane or crack the oil pan on an uneven track. Mountainous areas and coastal highways offer breathtaking views but can have winding hairpin turns and unpredictable conditions. And in major cities like Madrid or Barcelona, heavy traffic and tight parking spaces mean a higher chance of fender-benders and dings​. Given these risks, having an excess insurance policy is simply smart. You can drive with peace of mind, knowing you won’t face an unexpected €1,500 bill for an unlucky scrape or collision. 

Yes, absolutely. Considering the high excess on Spanish car hires, excess insurance is well worth the peace of mind. The cost of an independent policy is relatively low – often around £2–£5 per day for a standalone cover​ (or even less if you buy an annual plan), which is minor compared to a possible €1,500 charge you’d face for an accident. Car hire companies charge a lot for their own excess waiver (sometimes €20+ per day, which adds up to £150+ a week), so independent cover can pay for itself even if you never make a claim. And if you do need to claim for any damage, you can easily save hundreds or thousands of euros. In Spain’s driving conditions (busy city traffic, unfamiliar roads, tight parking spots), the likelihood of small incidents is not negligible. Having excess insurance means you can relax and enjoy your road trip, knowing you are protected for certain unpleasant experiences. In summary: it’s a modest investment for potentially very large savings – a trade-off that savvy travelers find more than worth it. 

By law, all car rentals in Spain include basic third-party liability insurance as a minimum requirement​. This covers damage or injury you might cause to others. Additionally, most Spanish car hires come with CDW (Collision Damage Waiver) and Theft Protection as part of the standard package​. CDW means the car hire company covers the damage to the vehicle beyond the excess, and Theft cover protects against car theft, but importantly, both usually come with an excess that you remain liable for. The exact excess amount is stated in your rental agreement (commonly in the €1000-2000 range for economy cars, higher for luxury). There’s no legal requirement to purchase the rental company’s extra insurance or excess waiver – that’s optional. Rental agents might offer additional products like Super CDW to reduce the excess to zero, but you have the right to decline these. Instead, you can use a standalone excess insurance (before or after booking the car). In summary, Spain’s car hire rules ensure you have basic cover, but you’re responsible for the excess unless you have a waiver or policy to cover it. Always check your car hire agreement for the included insurance details and excess amount, so you know how much you’re liable for if damage occurs. 

The excess (deductible) on hired cars in Spain can vary by car hire company and vehicle type. In general, it often ranges from around €600 on the low end to €2,000+ on the high end. For many standard car hires, you’ll see an excess around €1,000–€1,500. Luxury models or higher-risk rentals can come with even larger excesses (sometimes €2,500 or more)​. To illustrate, you might rent a compact car with a €1,200 excess – if any damage happens, you must pay up to €1,200 and the rental’s insurance covers the rest. Some companies have lower excess (e.g. €300-€500) for small cars, but those are relatively rare in Spain​. Always check the terms: the car hire confirmation should clearly state the excess amount. Keep in mind, this is the sum they will hold on your credit card as a deposit and potentially charge you if you return the car with new damage. With Gigasure’s excess cover, you don’t need to worry – whatever the excess is, if you incur charges (up to the sum insured), you can claim them back from us. It effectively brings your financial liability down to £0 (once reimbursed). 

Some premium credit cards (or bank accounts) do offer car hire damage cover, and a few travel insurance policies include a hire car excess waiver as an add-on. It’s worth checking the fine print if you think you have such cover. However, be cautious: credit card cover often comes with strict conditions (e.g. you must decline the car hire company’s CDW and use that card for the rental, and there may be exclusions or lower limits). Travel insurance car hire cover might not be as comprehensive – often it has lower claim limits or excludes certain damage (like to tyres or windscreens). Gigasure’s Car Hire Excess Insurance is a dedicated policy, so it’s specifically designed for this scenario: high-claim limits, covering all the tricky exclusions, and easy, quick claims handling. It can serve as your primary solution or as a supplementary safety net if you don’t want to risk gaps in cover. In short, while some travelers have protection via cards or travel insurance, many prefer the certainty and broad cover of a specialist policy when driving in Spain.