Primary coverage is your first line of protection in the event of an incident. Generally, your personal car insurance policy acts as your primary coverage, however, some credit cards offer primary car rental insurance coverage also. If your credit card offers primary car rental coverage, then you would not need to file a claim through your personal auto insurance policy, which would likely mean that premiums and deductibles on your personal policy won't be adversely affected. When a claim is filed through primary car rental coverage insurance, you may be covered up to the policy’s maximum limit. If the claim exceeds the primary coverage’s limit, that’s when secondary coverage can be useful. Secondary coverage, which is a more common benefit from certain credit cards, can help cover that gap.