Glossary

Collision damage waiver

Also called cdw

A collision damage waiver is an agreement that the hire company will not pursue the hirer for the full cost of damage to the vehicle, above an agreed excess.

It is not insurance, though it is usually sold beside it: it is the hire company waiving a right it would otherwise have. The excess is what the hirer still owes, and it is the number most disputes at the counter are actually about.