When you rent a car, one of the first questions to answer is whether to add CDW (Collision Damage Waiver) or go without it. On paper it looks like just one more checkbox in the booking form. In practice, this decision shapes your entire experience if something goes wrong on the road, from a parking scratch to a more serious situation hundreds of kilometers from home.

In this article we go through what CDW actually covers, how it connects to the deposit you leave when picking up the car, and in which real situations this option truly proves useful.

What OCA covers and what CDW covers

At CarPoint, every rented car already includes mandatory OCA insurance (civil liability). It covers damage to third parties, meaning the other side, if you cause an accident. It does not cover damage to the rented car itself.

That is where CDW comes in, an optional coverage that reduces your financial responsibility if the rented car gets damaged. CDW is not an insurance contract. Put simply, OCA protects you in relation to other road users, while CDW protects you in relation to the car you are driving.

How CDW connects to the deposit

The deposit amount depends on the zone you travel in and on whether you have CDW active:

Moldova, including Transnistria: 200 EUR without CDW, 600 EUR with CDW
With a trip to Romania: 400 EUR without CDW, 800 EUR with CDW
European Union or Turkey: 500 EUR without CDW, 800 EUR with CDW
Minivan adds 100 EUR, and a driver aged 21 to 23 adds another 100 EUR

The deposit is collected only in cash, we do not hold funds on cards, and it is returned in full after the car is inspected at the end of the rental, provided everything is in order.

In practice, the deposit works as a deductible, a cap on your financial responsibility. Without CDW the deposit is smaller, but there is no cap, if the car is damaged, you pay the real repair cost, whatever it turns out to be. With CDW the deposit is higher, but that amount is the maximum you can lose if the car is damaged, anything above it is covered by CarPoint.

How much CDW costs

CDW pricing ranges between 10 and 50 EUR per day, depending on the rental duration, not on the car model. The general rule is simple, the longer you rent, the lower the daily CDW cost. The only exception is the Opel Vivaro minivan, which adds 5 EUR per day on top of the standard CDW price. The exact amount for your rental period is shown on the website, so you know upfront how much it adds to the total rental cost.

Real situations where CDW actually helps

Scratches and minor parking bumps

It's worth being precise here, because CDW does not reduce the cost of minor damage. For any repair within the deductible amount, you pay exactly the same, with or without CDW, since the deductible (600 EUR in Moldova, 800 EUR abroad) is the very threshold above which CDW starts to work. For example, if the repair costs 200 EUR, you pay 200 EUR whether you have CDW or not. But if the repair costs 2000 EUR, without CDW you pay the full 2000 EUR, while with CDW, for a trip within Moldova, you pay at most 600 EUR, the rest is covered by CarPoint. In other words, CDW protects you from major damage, not from a scratch.

Wheels, tires, and windshield

Here it's important to be precise, because tires, wheels, and windshield damaged outside an accident, for example a stone hitting the windshield, a puncture, or a wheel hit by a pothole, are not covered by CDW at all. In these cases you pay the real repair cost, and the deductible cap does not apply. A wheel damaged by a pothole is exactly the kind of situation where CDW does not help. If these same parts are damaged as part of an accident, it is treated as regular damage, and the deductible works as described above.

Trips outside Moldova

If your plan includes a trip to Romania, the European Union, or Turkey, exposure to risk naturally increases, longer distances, unfamiliar roads, different traffic conditions. In these cases the deposit without CDW is already higher, and the peace of mind CDW brings is felt the most exactly when you are far from home, where any complication is harder to handle.

What CDW Does Not Cover

Tires, wheels, and windshield damaged outside an accident (see above for details).
Off-road driving, meaning outside public roads: in this case CDW coverage does not apply, the deductible cap does not apply either, and the client pays the full cost.
Vehicle theft.
The CDW fee is non-refundable under any circumstances.
Situations confirmed by a police report or GPS data: driving under the influence of alcohol, leaving the scene of an accident, intentional damage, racing, entering a prohibited area, driving by a person not listed on the contract, exceeding the speed limit by more than 40 km/h, running a red light, driving into oncoming traffic. In these cases CDW stops applying, and the client bears full financial responsibility.

A regular accident caused by the client is covered by CDW as described above, the list of exceptions above is closed.

When you can drive without CDW

If you have solid driving experience, know the route well, and stay within Moldova over short distances, you can choose to skip CDW and pay a smaller deposit instead. It is a personal decision, tied to how comfortable you are with the idea that, in case of damage, the financial responsibility falls entirely on you, within the limit of the deposit you left.

There is no universally correct answer here, only an honest assessment of your own comfort with risk, the length of the rental, and the route you plan to take.

Other costs worth keeping in mind

The included mileage is 250 km per day, and anything above that is charged at 0.20 EUR per kilometer.
If you drive the rented car across a border yourself, an access fee applies, 20 EUR for Transnistria, 40 EUR for Romania, 60 EUR for the European Union.
For trips to Romania or the European Union, the Green Card and Rovinieta are purchased separately, by you.
Rental payment can be made in cash or by card, but the deposit is accepted only in cash.

A practical checklist before pickup

Decide the travel zone (Moldova, Romania, EU) and, based on it, whether you need CDW.
You need a minimum age of 21 and at least 3 years of driving experience to rent with CarPoint.
Prepare a photo of your driving license and your ID or passport, needed for the contract.
Bring the deposit amount in cash at pickup.
Check the car's condition at handover; CarPoint documents the vehicle's condition before handover, to avoid any misunderstanding at return.

How to choose correctly

The simplest way to decide is to think about your route and how far from home you will be if a problem comes up. On short distances, in the city, with driving experience, you can go without CDW. On longer routes, outside the country, or if you simply value the peace of mind of knowing your financial exposure is limited, CDW is the choice that makes sense.

Full details about the included insurance and about CDW are available on the dedicated page: https://carpoint.md/en/asigurare.

To see available cars, current prices, and the exact CDW amount for your rental period, visit carpoint.md and choose the period that fits your trip. The CarPoint team will help you pick the right option for your route, with no pressure and clear explanations at every step.