Deposit, excess and insurance when renting

When a rental site says “from €43 a day”, that’s only one of three amounts. The other two sit in the small print, and together they shift your calculation considerably.

• Rental price: What you pay per day. The only figure communicated openly.
• Deposit: Blocked on your credit card for as long as you have the bike. On our vehicle list €100 to €800, depending on the bike; across the market the range goes higher.
• Excess: What you carry yourself in a claim. The figures we have range from €300 to €2,000.

These are the figures from our most recent rentals; the rental office gives you the current terms.

A week on an A2 mid-range bike costs €350 in rent on our list. At the same time a few hundred euros are blocked on your card, and in a claim the excess is on the table. Comparing only daily rates means comparing the smallest item.

The deposit is as a rule not charged but blocked on your credit card. The money stays yours, but it’s unavailable until you return the bike.

That has a practical consequence many underestimate: the amount comes off your available limit. Arrive with a €2,000 limit, leave a €1,500 deposit, and you have €500 left for a two-week holiday. Hotel, hire car and restaurants often run on the same card.

Release after return takes anywhere from a few days to three weeks, depending on your bank. That’s normal and no cause for concern, but don’t count on the limit being free again immediately.

Check before you travel: does your available limit cover the deposit plus your running holiday spending? Most banks let you raise it temporarily, often straight from the app.

This is where visitors most often get stuck, and it’s communicated almost nowhere.

Nearly all rental offices require a real credit card in the rider’s name for the deposit. A debit card is usually not enough, because technically no amount can be blocked on it, only charged.

In practice:

• Maestro and V-Pay are widely rejected. The largest operator on Tenerife excludes Maestro explicitly, buried in the FAQ.
• Debit cards carrying a Visa or Mastercard logo are a grey area. Some rental offices accept them, some don’t. Don’t rely on it.
• The card must be in the rider’s name. Your partner’s card doesn’t help, even if you travel together.

This hits one group especially hard: anyone banking with a direct bank often travels without a classic credit card. Settle this before you book, not at the desk.

Two abbreviations in the terms can make the difference between €200 and €2,000.

CDW (Collision Damage Waiver) is the liability limitation usually included in the price. It caps your liability at the excess. Without it you’re liable for the full value of the vehicle.

SCDW or Super CDW is the paid upgrade that lowers the excess or removes it entirely. On Tenerife it costs from about €7 a day.

The maths is simple: seven days of the upgrade cost around €50 and take a risk of up to €2,000 off your shoulders. On a motorcycle, which falls over more easily than a car, that’s usually money well spent.

But read what the upgrade actually covers. Some providers exclude certain damage even in the most expensive package, and with one large operator on the island the comprehensive upgrade applies expressly to EU citizens only.

These exclusions are standard across the industry and appear in much the same form in the terms of every rental office on the island. The following are taken verbatim from the rental conditions of one Tenerife operator:

• Alcohol and medication. Any damage under the influence is entirely on you.
• Gross negligence, expressly named: clear speeding and disregard of traffic signs.
• Riding on sand or unpaved roads. Sounds like a detail, but it matters on Tenerife: many of the best viewpoints sit at the end of a gravel track. From the turn-off onwards you ride uninsured.
• Tyre damage. Carried by the customer. A motorcycle tyre quickly costs €150 to €250.
• Mechanical damage caused by misuse.
• Fines and penalty notices. Always yours, usually with an administration fee from the rental office on top. What gets expensive in Spain is covered in the traffic rules guide.

And one duty that counts when it matters: after an accident you must notify the rental office and the police immediately. Leaving the scene or calling the next day risks your cover entirely.

Many travel credit cards advertise comprehensive hire-car insurance. The assumption that it also applies to a motorcycle is widespread and usually wrong.

The terms of these cards as a rule cover cars and small vans, not powered two-wheelers. Motorcycles, scooters, quads and trikes are frequently excluded expressly in the policy wording.

If you want to rely on it, there’s exactly one clean route: call your card provider and get written confirmation that powered two-wheelers are included, with which engine-size limit and in which country. A verbal answer on the hotline won’t help you in a claim.

The same applies to travel health insurance. It covers your treatment, not the vehicle. And some policies exclude motorcycling as a risk sport or charge a surcharge for it.

Five questions to send the rental office by email. In writing, so you have something in hand if it comes to it:

• How high are the deposit and excess for this exact model?
• Which cards do you accept for the deposit? Is a debit card with a Visa logo enough?
• What does reducing the excess cost per day, and what stays excluded anyway?
• What minimum age and riding experience do you require? On the island it is usually 21 to 23, depending on the office and the machine.
• Are helmet, gloves and a lock included, or do they cost extra?

Which licence class you need at all is covered in the licence guide. And if you’re still weighing a scooter against a bigger machine, Scooter or motorcycle helps you decide.

The complete process from finding a rental office to the handover of the keys is in the main guide.