To car or not tonly car....that is the question. Tis it better to rent or taxi?

[Jayfarmlaw]

. If you seriously injure a local on their scooter the insurance you purchased is going to pay for everything EXCEPT lost wages which the injured is entitled to

Wow, I did not realize that. I thought that the insurance covered everything except possibly a minimal deductible. Thanks for posting that.

Jay

 

[deepsea21]

Wow, I did not realize that. I thought that the insurance covered everything except possibly a minimal deductible. Thanks for posting that. Jay

There are some crazy real life stories about this that can be found on the net but here's a link that briefly comments on the situation...

Why You Don't Want to Have an Accident When Driving a Rental Car in Mexico

 

[Lorenzoid]

I have never rented a car in Mexico, but do you mean to say that the car rental agencies do not offer liability insurance?

I have brought my own car into Mexico and purchased liability insurance from companies at the border. Surely the car rental agencies at least point you to a source for liability insurance?

 

[deepsea21]

I have never rented a car in Mexico, but do you mean to say that the car rental agencies do not offer liability insurance?

I have brought my own car into Mexico and purchased liability insurance from companies at the border. Surely the car rental agencies at least point you to a source for liability insurance?

They offer liability insurance but no matter how much insurance you purchase that they are selling (premium/silver/gold/platinum - everything under the sun - It will pay for your rental car, his car or scooter, all of his medical bills and whatever it costs to put him back together but NONE of it will cover the injured's LOST WAGES and that is where it can get very ugly and very costly. 99.99% of the partying drunks who rent whatever and drive around like idiots have absolutely no idea what they are in for if they injure a Mexican citizen.

 

[Lorenzoid]

They offer liability insurance but no matter how much insurance you purchase that they are selling (premium/silver/gold/platinum - everything under the sun - It will pay for your rental car, his car or scooter, all of his medical bills and whatever it costs to put him back together but NONE of it will cover the injured's LOST WAGES and that is where it can get very ugly and very costly. 99.99% of the partying drunks who rent whatever and drive around like idiots have absolutely no idea what they are in for if they injure a Mexican citizen.

Oops. Looks like I did not read the article you posted carefully enough and missed this sentence: "But there is no readily available insurance to pay a settlement to cover their wages."

That is truly amazing.

 

[blue steal]

Wow now you got me scared to drive around in Cozumel. Last trip down I had a truck for 3 weeks and drove just about everywhere, including back by scuba repair shop. I thought it was the most "tricky" right where the cruise ship folks were at by the el presidente, seemed like total chaos there. But in the back part of the city although heavy at times with traffic seemed easier.
I worry most about scooters/motorcycles passing on the right side way to close.
Saw one bad accident as a small cc motorcycle tried to pass on the right and hit the curb, went over the handle bars, hit the pavement, bounced and helmet flew off and hit again with bike coming down on top of him.
I don't know why insurance can not offer the "lost wages" as an option, with different limits, maybe 5, 10, 20K.

 

[BRT]

They will not offer you "lost wages" insurance because they do not want you to think about that when you think about renting a car.

 

[ggunn]

Wow now you got me scared to drive around in Cozumel. Last trip down I had a truck for 3 weeks and drove just about everywhere, including back by scuba repair shop. I thought it was the most "tricky" right where the cruise ship folks were at by the el presidente, seemed like total chaos there. But in the back part of the city although heavy at times with traffic seemed easier.

No doubt, getting a vehicle may be a good option for some, but IMO for most casual visitors staying in town, especially first timers, not so much.

 

[Lorenzoid]

I have been giving the lost wages compensation issue some more thinking, though I haven't done any more actual research. It's reasonable to believe that any injured Mexican citizen is entitled to lost wages compensation, whether it's the fault of a foreigner or another Mexican. Does anyone know if that is in fact the case? If that is the case, then what does the average Mexican driver do to minimize his exposure? If nobody, not even Mexican drivers, is insured against the risk of demand for lost wages compensation, then do Mexican drivers simply try not to worry about it? Or is the entitlement to lost wages compensation not used so much against other Mexicans as used in tourist towns as a tool to shake down foreigners? A day in jail can be pretty persuasive. I could ask friends who live in (and drive) in Mexico City, but I'm guessing some posters here would know.

They will not offer you "lost wages" insurance because they do not want you to think about that when you think about renting a car.

They don't have to call it "lost wages" insurance. They could give it a more marketable name.

 

[mmmbelows]

Keep things in perspective, you're probably carrying more cash with you on vacation then the settlement will be for 'lost wages' to a Mexican citizen. We are talking about hundreds of dollars not hundreds of thousands of dollars.