Renting a car is the biggest item in most Iceland trip budgets. And if you plan to drive the highlands, it’s also the biggest risk.
We’ve rented from Lotus Car Rental twice. Once a Dacia Duster with a roof tent for 11 days, once a modified Land Cruiser super jeep for an 18-day highlands trip. Both times for the same reason: Lotus is the only car rental in Iceland whose insurance covers river crossings and every single F-road.
You can also save 7% on any Lotus car with our Lotus Iceland discount code: epicicelandd5. It works on top of any other discount they’re running.
Here’s what we like, what we don’t, and how their insurance really works.
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Why Lotus Car Rental
1. River crossing insurance
Water is the most expensive way to break a rental car in Iceland. Hydro lock the engine in a glacial river, and you’re looking at a repair bill in the thousands of euros.
Almost every rental company in Iceland excludes water damage. Even from their top “full” package. You pay for platinum, you cross a river, you still pay for the engine.
Lotus is different. Their Platinum package includes River Crossing Protection, covering water damage to the engine, transmission, and radiator on 4×4 cars approved for F-roads.
Two companies in Iceland do this. Lotus and Blue Car Rental. That’s the whole list.
Before you attempt any river, read our guide on how to cross Icelandic rivers.
F235 road from F208 towards Langisjór lake with Lotus
2. Any F-road allowed
Most rental companies ban you from specific F-roads. F249, F210, F980, and a long list of others. Drive them anyway and two things happen: you can get fined, and your insurance is void. Even the platinum one you paid for.
Which always struck us as odd. Why rent a 4×4 built for F-roads if the company won’t let you drive half of them?
Lotus lets you drive any F-road in an F-road-approved 4×4, and their F-road Insurance covers damage while you’re on them, chassis and undercarriage included.
One hard exception: crossing the river Krossá on F249 to Thórsmörk is forbidden and covered by nothing. Ever. The same judgment applies to monsters like Skyndidalsá river on F980 into Lónsöræfi. Some rivers are simply not a rental car’s business.
If you’re new to this, start with our list of Icelandic F-roads and the 10 easiest ones.
3. Super nice locals with experience
Lotus is a family-run Icelandic company. Their office sits in Keflavík, a 5-minute free shuttle ride from the airport terminal.
When we picked up the Duster, we were the only customers at the desk. The car was ready straight away. No queue, no waiting room, no “please take a seat, someone will be with you shortly”.
Laura at the desk went through everything. How the roof tent opens, how the wi-fi router works, how to drive the car properly on gravel.
Then we asked the question we actually cared about: are the rivers on F208, F235, F905, F910 and F347 doable in a Duster? She’d driven most of them herself. Yes, she said, if you drive properly. And the only one she told us to stay away from was Krossá.
That’s the friendly advice by a local you don’t get from a call center of a huge international car rental franchise.
Self-drive in Iceland on F261 in the highlands with our “super jeep” Modified Land Cruiser by Lotus
4. Free shuttle, free wi-fi, no deposit
The small stuff that adds up:
- Free 5-minute shuttle between Keflavík Airport and their office
- Free wi-fi hotspot in every car (most companies charge for this)
- Unlimited mileage
- Free cancellation up to 24 hours before pick-up
- 24/7 breakdown line
- Zero deposit if you take Platinum insurance
That last one is worth more than it sounds. With most rentals, you either block a big deposit on your card or buy their top insurance. With Lotus, Platinum means no deposit at all. Decline all insurance and you’re blocking 500,000 ISK instead.
Also worth knowing: since January 2026, Icelandic law adds a road tax per rental day. Lotus builds it into the price you see, so there’s no surprise line at the desk.
5. A real super jeep in the fleet
Their fleet runs from a Toyota Aygo up to a Toyota Land Cruiser 35″ modified super jeep with a snorkel. In between you’ve got Land Rover Defenders, 7-seat Land Cruisers, Hilux campers, a VW California, and the Duster with a roof tent.
We wrote a full guide on how to rent a super jeep in Iceland, and Lotus is one of only 3 companies we’d trust for it.
One gotcha: the VW California is excluded from River Crossing Protection. If rivers are on your plan, pick something else. Not sure what to choose? Our guide on how to choose the best car for Iceland will help.
Lotus Car Rental Discount Code
We’ve rented with Lotus, we trust them, so we partnered with them. As an official partner of Lotus, we can offer our readers an exclusive promo code
Our Lotus Car Rental discount code is: epicicelandd5
It gives you 7% off any Lotus car, and it stacks on top of any other discount or seasonal offer Lotus is running. No minimum rental length, no blackout dates, no other conditions.
The Lotus promo code works across the whole fleet: small cars, 4x4s, campers, and the super jeep.
7% discount code for Lotus car rental Iceland: epicicelandd5
Lotus is our official partner. We confirm the Lotus promo code epicicelandd5 directly with Lotus and guarantee the code is current and working. We never provide any fake or expired codes. We always negotiate the code personally with Lotus.
How to Use the Lotus Discount Code
- Go to lotuscarrental.is
- Enter your pick-up and drop-off dates
- Type epicicelandd5 into the Promocode field on the booking form
- Choose your car and your insurance package
- Check the price at checkout, the 7% is already taken off
If you forget to enter the Lotus Iceland coupon code before you pay, you can’t add it afterwards. So type it in first, then book.
Hunting for more Iceland savings? We keep all our Iceland car rental discount codes in one place.
Best Car Rental Insurance in Iceland
Insurance is where most travelers in Iceland get burned. So it’s worth a few extra words.
Lotus has 3 packages: Silver (included in every rental), Gold, and Platinum. Platinum is the one that matters, and Lotus says 80% of their customers take it.
Driving a difficult but beautiful Emstrur track
What Lotus Platinum actually covers
Platinum comes with a 0 ISK deductible and covers:
- Collision damage (Super CDW) and theft
- Gravel damage
- Sand and ash damage
- Tires and wheels
- River crossings: water damage to engine, transmission, and radiator (4×4 only, not the VW California)
- All F-roads, including chassis and undercarriage damage from rough roads
- Body damage from wind (the classic Icelandic door-ripped-off-by-a-gust)
- Damage caused by animals
- No deposit, plus online check-in and self-service pick-up
One thing Platinum does not include: towing and roadside assistance. That’s a separate add-on called Roadside Protection Premium, and it covers lost keys, flat tire assistance, out-of-fuel delivery, flat battery, F-road rescue and recovery, and a 24/7 support line.
It’s cheap, roughly the price of a coffee and a sandwich per rental day. If you’re going anywhere near the highlands, just take it. Getting recovered from an F-road without it costs a lot more.
You can check the full details on the Lotus insurance page and in their rental terms.
Difference vs other car rentals
The gap is rivers and F-roads.
99% of Icelandic rental companies will not insure you, not even with their full / platinum / zero-deductible package, for:
- Water damage and river crossings
- Undercarriage and chassis damage
- Wind damage to doors
- Tire damage
- Towing
Lotus covers the first four with Platinum, and the fifth with the roadside add-on. Blue Car Rental is the only other company we know of that comes close and RentalCover is the best for everything except river crossings + their insurance limit (what they pay) is capped at roughly 8000USD.
We break all of this down properly in our Iceland car rental insurance guide.
If you’re only planning easy F-roads, a cheaper path is basic insurance plus a third-party policy from a provider like RentalCover. Just know that this one won’t cover river crossings.
What is still not covered
No insurance in Iceland is a magic shield, so let’s be honest about the limits.
Gross negligence is never covered. By anyone. In practice that means driving into a river that’s obviously too deep, off-roading, driving on closed roads, or ignoring conditions that any sane person would respect.
Hungurfit track in Lotus’s super jeep
What Platinum covers is the honest scenario. You checked road.is, you checked the water level, you waded the river on foot, you picked your line, you drove it properly, and the car still got stuck or damaged anyway. That’s the case you’re insured for.
Never covered, by any company:
- Krossá on F249, explicitly excluded
- Sea water and sea spray
- Lost or damaged keys
- Wrong fuel in the tank
- Accessories like the roof tent, roof box, GPS, wi-fi dongle or child seats
- Driving on F-roads in a 2WD car, a 9-seater van or an EV, which voids everything
Always check safetravel.is and the Icelandic weather forecast before you head into the highlands.
Lotus Car Rental Reviews
Lotus holds 4.8 out of 5 on Google from more than 3,500 reviews, and says it has served close to 500,000 travelers.
That’s the highest average score we know of among Icelandic car rental companies.
What people praise most: the staff, the free shuttle, the condition of the cars, and the Platinum insurance. The negative reviews are mostly about price. Which, honestly, is fair.
Our Experience with Lotus
Waking up on a beautiful sunny morning in a rooftop tent in Fellabær camp, before our trip to Askja
Our 4×4 rental experience
Our first Lotus rental was a Dacia Duster 4×4 with a roof tent, 11 days. We picked Lotus purely for the river crossing insurance, and we paid a bit more for the privilege.
The car was in great condition, no damage, and it was ready the second we walked in. Unlike some other companies we’ve used, where the pickup alone eats an hour of your first day.
Laura at the desk gave us honest advice on the rivers we were planning. The last thing I asked her was where the Duster’s air intake sits. About hip height, she said, so 80 to 100 cm. The biggest river we had planned was maybe 50 to 60 cm. That was the answer that let me sleep.
Then we drove F208 from Reykjavik towards Landmannalaugar and never looked back.
Our super jeep rental experience
For our 18-day highlands trip we went bigger. The raised Toyota Land Cruiser with 35″ Cooper Discoverer tires, a snorkel, low range and a diff lock.
We’d narrowed the affordable super jeep options in Iceland down to 3 companies: Isak 4×4, Lotus and Blue Car. Lotus won by a nose. Their Land Cruiser was bigger and newer than other choises, the price was similar, and the full river crossing insurance settled it.
More than 5,000 kilometers. Zero problems. No flat tire, no engine trouble, never stuck once, and the car walked through everything we pointed it at.
The envious looks from regular travelers when we climbed out of that thing were a nice bonus :))
One honest note to close on: Lotus is not cheap. Best car plus best insurance usually means the biggest invoice. We think it’s worth every króna if you’re heading into the Icelandic highlands. If you’re doing the Ring Road and nothing more, you can rent cheaper elsewhere.
Modified Land Cruiser by e.g. Lotus can pass almost anything
Lotus Car Rental FAQ
What is the Lotus Car Rental discount code?
Our Lotus Car Rental discount code is epicicelandd5. It gives you 7% off any car in the Lotus fleet, and it stacks on top of any other discount Lotus is running at the time.
How do I use the Lotus Iceland promo code?
Type epicicelandd5 into the Promocode field on the booking form at lotuscarrental.is before you choose your car. The 7% comes off the final price at checkout. The Lotus coupon code can’t be added after you’ve paid, so enter it first.
Does Lotus insurance cover river crossings?
Yes, with the Platinum package. River Crossing Protection covers water damage to the engine, transmission and radiator on 4×4 cars approved for F-road use. It doesn’t apply to the VW California, and crossing the river Krossá on F249 is never covered.
Can I drive on all F-roads with Lotus?
Yes, in a 4×4 that Lotus has approved for F-road use. Lotus doesn’t publish a blacklist of banned F-roads the way many other Icelandic companies do. 2WD cars, 9-seater vans and electric cars are not allowed on any F-road, and driving them there voids your insurance completely.
7% discount code: epicicelandd5 on great Icelandic super jeeps
Is Platinum insurance worth it with Lotus?
If you’re driving F-roads, crossing rivers, or heading into the highlands, yes. It’s the only insurance in Iceland covering river crossings, all F-roads and chassis damage with a 0 ISK deductible. If you’re sticking to the Ring Road in summer, Gold is usually enough.
Do I need to pay a deposit with Lotus?
No deposit at all if you take Platinum insurance. Gold requires a 65,000 ISK deposit, Silver 150,000 ISK, and declining all optional insurance means 500,000 ISK blocked on your card at pick-up.
Does Lotus pick you up at Keflavík Airport?
Yes. Lotus runs a free shuttle between the airport terminal and their office at Flugvellir 6-10 in Keflavík, about a 5-minute ride. The office is open every day from 5:00 AM until 1:00 or 2:00 AM, depending on the season.
How old do you have to be to rent from Lotus?
20 years for small and medium cars, including the Dacia Duster and the RAV4 roof-tent camper. 23 years for large cars, luxury cars, 9-seater vans, the VW California and the Hilux camper. You must have held your driving licence for at least 12 months.
