Pay a deposit or the damage fee?

Hi,

I am wondering if anyone has opinions on if it is better to pay the $50 or so damage fee upfront so if anything goes wrong it%26#39;s covered, or to do the $200 or so deposit that you get back.

Thanks!

Pay a deposit or the damage fee?

I prefer to pay no fee at all! I have been renting on Cape Cod for many many years and never had to pay a deposit or fee. It’s always on the honor system. All of these fees associated with OBX rentals were new to me. Warm water has its price but it’s worth it!

But since that is not an option and doesn’t answer your question, I will give you my two cents worth. I always choose to pay the waiver fee and some rental companies will even waive that as a promotional perk if you book far enough ahead. My reasoning is why tie up a big chunk of my money for a long time? While it can vary, you usually do not get your deposit back until well after your vacation is over. While accidents can happen, being waived will cover most normal type incidents. They got you coming or going, so in my opinion the $50 waiver is small price for less headaches and keeps the bigger money in my account gaining interest, not theirs.

Pay a deposit or the damage fee?

I don%26#39;t know of any other state that has what NC has...the North Carolina Vacation Rental Act. (Not that there aren%26#39;t any; I just haven%26#39;t heard of any)An actual Act instituted by the General Assembly in...I think it was 1999. Don%26#39;t know for sure, but it is said it was the immense number of rentals in the mountains, sandhills and up and down the coast that precipitated this. That may be one reason why there seem to be more and more pages to the leases every year. The Act deals with all kinds of landlord/tenant issues. And, like anything, when you actually live through it you find where some of the issues could have been more tightly addressed. Here%26#39;s one of many sites for the act, including the links provided by many rental companies:

http://www.propex.com/C_ncstat_42a.htm

The damage fee. That should be damage insurance. You%26#39;re actually buying a very short term insurance policy. Percentage-wise $50 is a lot to pay per week for other types of insurance. And percentage-wise we think whoever figured this out is making a lot and yet providing a great service. Very smart.

When we first dealt with this choice several years ago, we did not have a security deposit option. We were not told there%26#39;d even be a security deposit. Only a %26#39;deposit%26#39; which was actually partial payment for the week. Then more was due. The Vacation Insurance and Damage Insurance were other options we could choose. (Vacation Insurance from some rental agencies is only activated in the event of evacuation and we like to make it our choice to leave before an actual evacuation order so we do something else on that.) We%26#39;ve taken the damage insurance every time.

The damage insurance. We walked into our first beautiful house after we opted for that insurance, complete with lots of things hanging on the wall and the first day one of our young ladies walked down the stairs - not running or stomping - and a picture fell. We just called the company and they said they%26#39;d take care of it. I can%26#39;t even remember if it broke but I do know we weren%26#39;t able to put it back up...so maybe something chipped. Either way what I do remember is how glad we all were with eight kids and several adults that we didn%26#39;t have to worry. I know some cover up to $3000 of accidental damage but others have different quirks from what I hear. So check what is covered.

Take the waiver. If damage is discovered the week they clean after you, it doesn%26#39;t matter if you didn%26#39;t break, you%26#39;d be blamed (how could they tell?). The waiver protects you best in that situation.

Thanks for your replies, I think I will just do the waiver, it%26#39;s easier and I won%26#39;t have to worry.

chap balm