Subject:  Car rental after accident
Date:  Tue, 07 Mar 2006
From:  Kelly

If you had an accident and had to rent a car to get to work, is any part of the expense that isn’t reimbursed from insurance deductible?

Thank you,

Kelly

Answer

Date:  Mon, 03 Apr 2006

Hello Kelly,

Probably not.

Casualty losses are usually determined based on the decrease in the value of the property. Incidental expenses aren’t generally deductible.

Also, you deduct $100 from an individual casualty loss and 10% of your adjusted gross income from your total casualty losses for the year. This "floor" makes it hard to deduct casualty losses except for damage to real estate.

Also, employee commuting expenses are non-deductible personal expenses.

Good luck!
Mike Gray

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