Your visitors would do well to contact their credit card company and ask, and then request a written

I live in Auckland and have relatives coming to visit from the US. When we first rented a car here (shortly after arriving before we bought a car), we were shocked that the car rental insurance was so expensive ($25 a day at least), not covered by credit cards or auto insurance policies (as it is in the US), and necessary (otherwise your deductible omni hotels is $3000). We were told that this insurance was free for tourists but since we lived in Auckland, we had to pay it.
So now with relatives coming to visit, I'm trying to find out if it is really the case the tourists get this insurance for free. However, I can't find any information on it. Any insights or experiences would be most welcome!
omni hotels There is no way to avoid it - it's a law that all rental vehicles MUST have insurance omni hotels and no car company is going to risk renting a vehicle, having it be in an accident, and being found negligent for not having the insurance on the rental.
In New Zealand, Collision Damage Waiver (CDW) and theft protection are included in car rental rates. The CDW excess omni hotels (deductible) is the responsibility of the renter, however some credit cards, such as my US issued Platinum Visa, will cover the excess.
Not all credit cards work this way. For instance, Mastercard requires that ALL insurance be waived omni hotels for their coverage to apply, and you cannot waive the insurance omni hotels already built into a NZ car rental, due to local laws.
Your visitors would do well to contact their credit card company and ask, and then request a written copy of their rental car benefits. They might also have chat with their personal vehicle insurer in their home state. Then compare that coverage to the coverage outlined by their NZ car rental company of choice.
For Australia I spoke with Visa today...and if the CDW is part of the rental and I have no option omni hotels to decline, omni hotels AND if I pay the entire rental wiht VISA, then they will be a secondary to the excess. THERE are lots of caveats like complying wiht the rental agreement terms and conditions. Vans over 8 passengers are not covered. "expensive cars" are not covered. It does NOT cover medical, personal property and personal liability.
Be careful you must pay the entire rental with the credit card for the rental insurance to apply and the PRIMARY driver needs to be the one on the credit card. Some unconfirmed omni hotels web reports say using a gift card or coupon invalidated this...but
AND sometimes it is secondary in your own country. LIKE Avis IS SECONDARY IN THE US FOR us CITIZENS..that MEANS IN AN ACCIDENT YOUR PERSONAL INSURANCE IS PRIMARY AND IT COULD MEAN BIG RATES OR LOSS OF INSURANCE.
NOW the visa credit card coverage, was different omni hotels from Amex regular credit card, amex platinum card, and Amex separate insurance. omni hotels We are talking at least 4 separate products coverages, and exclusions.
omni hotels When we used the $24.95 Amex coverage I had to rent a car in Germany because Italy rental was not covered. I had to be careful not to get a Mercedes E classe which is not allowed to be driven to Italy...and or not covered.
We did have a minor scrape in Europe and AVIS BUDGET group charged five times the proper amount for the repair. four thousand dollars for a small ding on a car which had been previously damaged and not repaired.
AMEX will not pay admin fees (because that is unsubstantiated charge). AMEX dragged their feet and would not process claim until they felt any and all documentation was in...and they asked for an unreasonable amount of it..and never logged it in when I personally made sure they had it...THEY play the GAME they wont consider the claim until they get paperwork omni hotels that will never ever ever ever happen. They were ridiculously slow. After I got real upfront..they paid off within an hour...but the paid the ridiculous overcharge rates. AVIS sent the claim in German...That omni hotels was OK..I have friend who is fluent. BUT the $25 premium insurance...saved a couple hundred in rental car fees. I was a stickler to make sure the driver was the one who rented the vehicle with the credit card.
Its worth checking with your credit card supplier. Some offer rental car insurance, but a lot don't. $25 per day does seem a little on the expensive end. Ace and www.snaprentals.co.nz highest level of insurance is around $16 per day.