Touring Tasmania from Hobart or Launceston? Winding alpine roads and heavy nocturnal wildlife make TAS a high-claim state. Get $0 excess cover from around $10 a day.
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Rental counters at Hobart (HBA) and Launceston (LST) commonly charge $30 to $45 per day for excess reduction and usually retain a residual amount. Given how much of a Tasmanian itinerary is spent on winding rural roads, standalone cover is the better value option.
| Coverage Feature | Hobart Rental Desk Waiver | Rental Shield Standalone Policy |
|---|---|---|
| Daily Fee Rate | $30 – $45 / day | From ~$10.00 / day |
| Standard Damage Excess | $4,000 – $5,500 | $0 Policy Excess (up to $100K cover) |
| Excess Remaining After Waiver | Typically retains $500 – $1,000 | ✓ Nothing retained |
| Windscreen & Glass Protection | ✗ Often excluded | ✓ Fully included |
| Tyre, Wheel & Underbody Damage | ✗ Often excluded | ✓ Fully included |
| Single Vehicle & Animal Strike | ✗ Extra fee required | ✓ Included |
| Roof, Hail & Storm Damage | ✗ Excluded | ✓ Premium & Ultimate tiers |
| Additional Authorised Drivers | Often charged per driver | ✓ All included free |
Desk waiver rates and excess amounts are indicative ranges observed across major operators and vary by company, vehicle class and season. Always confirm the figures on your own rental agreement. Cover details are set out in the Product Disclosure Statement.
Rental Shield is a standalone policy, so it works with any rental company — including Hertz, Avis, Budget, Europcar, Sixt, Thrifty, Apex, Bargain Car Rentals and Tasmania-based independents. These are the busiest Tasmania pickup points.
Main southern pickup for the Huon Valley, Bruny Island and the East Coast.
Northern hub for Cradle Mountain, the Tamar Valley and Bay of Fires.
Spirit of Tasmania ferry terminal — common for mainland vehicle arrivals.
North-west access for Stanley, the Tarkine and Cradle Mountain.
The damage that actually gets charged back to drivers in TAS follows a clear pattern. These are the three risks worth understanding before you collect the keys.
Covers pickups from all major operators plus the Tasmanian independents that make up a large share of the island’s hire fleet.
The climbs to Cradle Mountain, through the Great Western Tiers and along the Lyell Highway are steep, tightly cambered and frequently wet — brake, tyre and kerbing damage is common.
Tasmania has one of the highest rates of wildlife-vehicle collision in the country. Wallabies, possums, wombats and devils are active from dusk, and rural roads are unlit.
Read this before you buy. The exclusions matter as much as the inclusions, and they are the same across every Australian state.
This is a summary only. The full terms, limits and exclusions are in the Product Disclosure Statement.
Three steps to avoid paying inflated desk rates before you collect your keys.
Lock in $0 excess cover with Rental Shield before you arrive at the Hobart terminal. Your policy document is emailed immediately.
When the agent offers daily excess reduction, tell them you already hold independent cover. They will still place the standard security hold on your card.
If you are charged for damage, upload the invoice and rental agreement to your dashboard. We reimburse the excess up to your policy limit.
Tasmania is small, but almost every itinerary is spent on rural roads rather than motorways. The island has an unusually high rate of wildlife-vehicle collisions, and the main touring routes — the Lyell Highway, the road to Cradle Mountain, the East Coast run to Bay of Fires — are winding, narrow, often wet and rarely lit. A standard hire agreement still leaves you liable for the first $4,000 to $5,500 of damage.
Wallabies, possums, wombats and Tasmanian devils are most active from dusk through to dawn, and unlit rural roads leave very little reaction time. Local advice is consistent and worth following: avoid driving between dusk and dawn where you can, and slow down substantially if you must. Animal strikes are covered up to your policy limit, and they are usually treated as single-vehicle incidents — a category some basic counter waivers specifically exclude.
The climbs to Cradle Mountain and across the Central Highlands see snow and black ice in winter, and the Lyell Highway between Queenstown and Derwent Bridge is steep with tight camber changes. Wet, cold surfaces produce a steady stream of low-speed slides and kerb strikes. All of this is covered on legally open, paved roads — but if a road is closed due to snow and you drive it anyway, the claim will not be paid.
If you are bringing a vehicle across on the Spirit of Tasmania, or taking a hire car to Bruny Island on the ferry, check your rental agreement permits it — some operators restrict ferry travel or charge extra. Excess cover follows the rental contract, so a breach of the hire agreement will void a claim regardless of what the policy says. See the Product Disclosure Statement for the full exclusion list.
Still deciding? Read the full FAQ or compare coverage tiers.
Rental excess amounts and road risks differ by state. Pick your pickup location for local detail and pricing.
Get a quote in about 30 seconds. Your policy document is emailed instantly, so you can decline the desk waiver with confidence.