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Based on recommendations of many people from this forum, I was going to rent a sedan via this company. However, before doing that, I specifically asked the company about "unsuitable road conditions" and if the car will be covered by insurance when driving in Kruger on gravel roads.
here is the answer:
"Thank you very much for your email. The "unsuitable road conditions" refers to the fact that should you not drive according to the road conditions in the mentioned area keeping in mind the gravel roads you will not be covered with regards to insurance. If you are speeding on the gravel roads being negligent and a stone hits up and damages the engine parts or any other part of the vehicle the car rental company
will also charge you for damages".

Such answer sounds quite woolly for me...

how you guys deal with this renting company if anything happen on gravel road? Advise or real experiences are highly welcome! We set off to Kruger in 2 weeks time and need to book a car quite urgently.

Isnt this the same with any other company. If you dont obey the rules and being negligent you pay the damage In other words, if you are being chased by a Ellie, speeding and hitting a tree its your problem

I agree on this example. However what about a scratch or minor collision with another vehicle on gravel road? It seems we won't be covered by insurance at all if such happen on gravel road (while it would be fully covered in a tarmac road)?

Having so many gravel roads in South Africa (inside and outside national parks), it does not make much sense....

Is it something everyone so easily accept that gravel means no insurance so all damages are paid by renters?

If anyone knows about renting companies whose insurance does cover incidents on gravel (unless Ellie or gross negligence) - I would be most thankful.

I'm not sure this is what they mean. Don't they mean you won't be covered if you drive irresponsibly on gravel roads or drive on gravel roads that are closed? We rented a brand new campervan last year (Maui) and I asked about gravel roads (in Australia we weren't allowed to drive on gravel roads) and it wasn't a problem at all.

Perhaps madach will be able to tell more when he comes online.

As far as i know you are insured
But lot of companies dont insure window damage due to stones.

What they mean is that if you drive on a gravel road and roll the car because you were speeding then you won't be covered by insurance. I've seen people in the Kgalagadi who had rolled their car because they'd been speeding on one of the sand roades. It's surprisingly ease to roll your car on a road like that if you're speeding. During that same trip some Kgalagadi staff rolled a 4x4 bakkie.
I've also seen some dirt roads in the Ceres area which should be accessible to normal sedan cars but in my opinion were only accessible to 4x4's. Should you drive on a road like that and cause serious damage to the car then I suspect that the insurance would also give you a hard time.

If you drive on a gravel road in Kruger then it's very unlikely that you'd run into any kind of situation which would not be covered by your insurance. I'm renting a car from the mentioned rental agent next month and I'm not at all worried about the insurance (and I worry easily ).

M.

Which company did you rent from?
Did they just tell you or that was clearly allowed/written in the contract (with normal exclusion of gross negligence or drinking)?

Was it their own vehicle or they sub-rented the car from majors (Avis, National etc)? If latter, the rules of the car owner would apply fully (whatever the agent says)...

Guys I hope I dont sound madly over-cautious but I just want to exclude situation when I will be told in J'burg airport that gravel is legally off-limit and then I will feel guilty and nervous next 10 days in Kruger,,,,

many thanks for all feedback anyway:-)

Sphynx, I rented the campervan from Maui.

There was a recent letter in the Telegraph Travel Section concerning a dispute with a SA car rental company, which I found interesting as we are also in dispute with the rental company we hired from. The response listed the following site as a possible alternative to taking out the excess reduction insurance that most companies offer, it looks like a good bet and I shall be checking out in more detail for our trip in November.

If doing a self-drive in KNP, is a small car ok (Toyota Tazz at r1100) or is 4x4 needed (Nissan X-trail at r2800).
Dave

A normal car is fine, unless you are planning to do one of the 4x4 trails.

Thanks, Dave

Lots of people drive a small car in KNP. GP & DQ will be doing KNP in a Toyota Tazz, in June.

Hi Bouf

I looked at the car rental company you mentioned in another thread and booked with them. I booked a Nissan X-trail, and that came with insurance with no excess. So, I guess that I won't need to take out any extra cover?

Would you mind telling us what your dispute with the car hire company was about, you never know it could save one of us trouble sometime in the future

A tip:

We rented a car a couple of weeks ago for two days and were charged for driving 2100kms No way did we do that mileage!! So! Write down the mileage on delivery and again upon return and keep in a safe place until your bill has been settled (not on your hand as my dear SO did ).