Renting a car abroad, an international claim, policy terms in English – motor-insurance English is its own dialect, and it can be misleading in places: the English-speaking market, for instance, doesn't even use the word "casco". This mini-dictionary sets the most common terms side by side, with explanations.
- On the British and American market, the equivalent of casco is comprehensive cover – the term "casco" itself is a continental-European usage.
- The most common false friend: excess/deductible is the part you pay yourself (Hungarian: önrész) – not a "surplus".
- In car rental, a world of abbreviations rules: CDW, LDW, SCDW – graduated levels of deductible reduction.
Cover Terms
Comprehensive (motor) insurance / fully comp: full casco-type cover (Hungarian: casco). Third-party liability (TPL) / MTPL: compulsory liability insurance (Hungarian: kgfb). Third party, fire and theft (TPFT): the British middle-tier package – liability + fire + theft; a relative of our partial casco. Collision damage: damage from a crash (Hungarian: töréskár). Theft cover: cover against theft (Hungarian: lopás-fedezet). Glass/windscreen cover: cover for glass damage (Hungarian: üvegkár-fedezet). Natural perils / acts of God: storm, hail, flood and similar events (Hungarian: elemi károk). Roadside assistance / breakdown cover: assistance (Hungarian: assistance). Courtesy car / replacement vehicle: a substitute-car service (Hungarian: csereautó/bérautó szolgáltatás). GAP insurance: value-protection cover for the price/value gap (Hungarian: GAP-fedezet) – see the GAP article.
Claims-Handling Terms
Deductible / excess: the part of the loss you bear yourself (Hungarian: önrész) – the percentage-plus-minimum logic exists in English-speaking markets too, but the details vary. Claim: a claim for a loss (Hungarian: kárigény); to file a claim: to report a loss (Hungarian: kárt bejelenteni). Claims hotline: the insurer's claims line (Hungarian: kárvonal). Loss adjuster / surveyor: the claims expert (Hungarian: kárszakértő). Depreciation / betterment: a deduction for age or wear (Hungarian: avultatás) – betterment specifically refers to deducting the value gain from "new for old". Total loss / write-off: total loss (Hungarian: totálkár). Actual cash value (ACV) / market value: the vehicle's market value at the time of loss (Hungarian: káridőponti/piaci érték). Salvage value: the value of the wreck (Hungarian: maradványérték/roncsérték). Police report: the police record of the incident (Hungarian: rendőrségi jegyzőkönyv/feljelentés). European Accident Statement: the European accident form, the blue-and-yellow one (Hungarian: európai baleseti bejelentő).
Rental-Car and Contract Terms
CDW (collision damage waiver): a cap on the rental car's collision deductible (Hungarian: törés-önrész korlátozása). SCDW / super CDW: a further reduction, down to zero, of that deductible. LDW (loss damage waiver): CDW plus theft cover together. Excess deposit: a deposit held for the amount of the deductible (Hungarian: önrész erejéig zárolt kaució). Policyholder: the contracting party (Hungarian: szerződő). Insured: the insured person (Hungarian: biztosított). Endorsement / rider: a policy amendment/add-on (Hungarian: záradék). Exclusions: exclusions (Hungarian: kizárások). Terms and conditions (T&C): the policy terms (Hungarian: szerződési feltételek). Green card: the international proof of MTPL cover (Hungarian: zöldkártya). On how rental-car concepts work in practice: the rental car and carsharing article.
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