Rent a Car in Europe

It may feel like the European Union should have a single set of rules and regulations for rental vehicles, but this is unfortunately not the case. Every European country has its own rules and regulations surrounding car rentals, so you’ll need to look up the traffic laws, rental requirements, and insurance policies for each country you’re travelling through. For the most part, the actual renting process is pretty similar to other regions of the world. The main thing you’ll likely need to get ahead of time is an IDP, or international driving permit. An IDP is legally required to drive in many European countries.

Steps

Getting an International Driving Permit

1. Get an IDP if you’re driving in a country where it’s legally required. Many European countries legally require an international driving permit (IDP) for foreign drivers. This is basically an official version of your driver’s license that is translated into a variety of languages and formatted to be scannable in the countries that require them. Look up the list of countries that require an IDP to see if you need one.Template:Greenbox:'''The Following Countries Require an IDP:''' Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Slovakia, and Spain.
   • If you’re renting and driving in a country that doesn’t require an IDP, all you need is the driver’s license from your country, a valid passport, and insurance paperwork for the rental vehicle (which you can buy from the rental company).
   • IDPs are usually good for 1 year. If you plan on revisiting Europe any time soon, hang on to the IDP for future trips.
   • You cannot rent a car in a country that requires an IDP without one. Some rental companies may look the other way, but you’ll be on the hook for any fines if you get pulled over without one, even if the rental company never asked for it.
2. Apply for your IDP at AAA or through the National Automobile Club. The IDP is an official European document, but federal governments do not handle the applications. To apply for an IDP, pull up the AAA or NAC website in your country. Download an application, fill it out, and take your driver’s license and 2 passport photos to a AAA office. Alternatively, you can mail them to the NAC.
   • If you use AAA, you must take your documents to a AAA office and apply in person. You can apply for an IDF through the mail if you’re applying through the NAC.
   • This applies to the United States, Canada, Australia, non-IDP European countries, and a handful of others. The issuing agency may be different depending on where you live, though.
3. Pay $20 to submit your application and wait for your documents. Submit a check in the mail or hand your credit card over to apply for the application. Once the NAC or AAA receive your application, wait 10-15 days for the paper work to be processed. If you’re approved, you will receive your documents in the mail.
   • If your application is denied, you cannot legally drive in a country that requires an IDP.
   • Hopefully you’ll never need your IDP, but if you’re ever pulled over by a police officer or you need to show your driver’s license somewhere, you’ll need to show them your IDP.
   • The IDP is not a replacement for your driver’s license. You must carry the IDP with your standard license.

Booking Your Rental Vehicle

1. Check the age requirements and fees in the countries you’re visiting. If you’re over 25 and under 70, you’re able to rent a car and drive it basically anywhere in Europe. Outside of that range, you need to look up the rental car laws for each country you’re driving through. Keep in mind, if you’re under 25, basically every rental company in Europe will tack additional fees on to the price. If you can, have an older family member or travel companion do the driving.
   • Some European countries have an outright ban on rental drivers over 70. It is illegal to rent a car if you’re over 70 in Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Greece, Poland, and Slovakia. Other countries require additional fees or insurance for older drivers.
   • Some countries, like Germany, require you to buy extra insurance if you’re under 25 and rent a car. This can dramatically increase the cost of the rental.
   • If you’re planning a cross-border trip, shift your starting location to avoid countries that impose additional fees on you or ban you from renting a car.
2. Select a vehicle based on the amount of space you need. If you know you want a manual or automatic vehicle, half of your work is already done. The only other major consideration is the size of the vehicle. When perusing through a rental company’s website, consider how much space you need. Determine how many bags you’ll be carrying and how many people you’ll have with you to choose your vehicle.
   • Relative to other countries, European brands tend to drive and look fairly similar to one another. The size and the type of transmission are basically the only differences between vehicles that you’ll notice as a foreign driver.}}
3. Opt for a manual vehicle if you know how to drive one to save money. In most European countries, manual cars are much more common than automatic vehicles. If you know how to drive a manual car, do not book an automatic. You will save a lot of money by booking a manual vehicle since the automatic vehicles tend to be more popular and there aren’t as many of them.{{greenbox:Tip: If you’ve never driven a manual vehicle before, driving a rental in a foreign country is not the time to start. Unfortunately, you’ll need to pay the premium for the automatic. That’s better than crashing a car you don’t know how to drive, though!}}
4. Call each of the major rental companies to get quotes. Sixt, Europcar, Budget, Avis, and Hertz are the major car rental companies in Europe. Call each of their offices and get some quotes for vehicles based on the date you’re arriving and the type of car you’re hoping to drive. These companies offer discounts and specials regularly and you may find a great deal just by calling each company.
   • There are other rental options depending on where you’re staying, but the larger companies are probably better if you’re making a cross-border trip. The smaller companies may not provide rental assistance or paperwork for border crossings.
   • These five companies control a major percentage of the rental market in Europe. If you’re looking for competitive pricing, these big companies are the best way to go.
5. Get the comprehensive insurance if it isn’t covered by your credit cards. Call your credit card companies to see if they offer international car rental insurance, which most major credit card companies do. The credit card insurance is often better and cheaper than what the rental agencies offer. If your credit card companies don’t offer insurance, it’s best to just bite the bullet and buy some decent insurance from the rental company. Outside of being legally required in some countries, it’s just safer to have it if anything bad happens to you or your rental vehicle.
   • Expect to spend roughly $80 a day on comprehensive insurance if your credit cards don’t cover it.
   • You cannot drive uninsured in Europe, but the insurance offered by the rental companies tends to be very expensive. You can reasonably cut your rental costs by 20-30% if you get the insurance through your credit card.
   • You must carry insurance papers with your rental car in EU countries. After you book the rental, ask your credit card to email you the insurance paperwork and print it out before starting your vacation.
6. Book your rental vehicle 1 month in advance and print the paperwork. Once you find a vehicle and price you’re happy with, book the vehicle. Do this at least 1 month before you plan on picking the car up to avoid last minute fees and lock in your vehicle. Print out the confirmation paperwork.
   • You’ll need to bring your paperwork with you on your trip and show it to the clerk at the rental office to pick your car up.
   • If you don’t book in advance, the rental companies may not have any vehicles for you to rent when you do get there. On top of that, some rental companies do not take walk-ins. It’s also much more expensive to rent a vehicle on the day you need it.

Picking Your Car Up

1. Check in at the rental office and show the clerk your paperwork. Once you get to the car rental office, check in at the front desk. Show them your insurance if you’re bringing it yourself, hand over your registration paperwork, and give them your driver’s license before going out to inspect the car.
   • Just to summarize, you need your passport, insurance paperwork, driver’s license, and confirmation paperwork to rent your vehicle. You also need your IDP if you’re picking the vehicle up in a country that legally requires one.
2. Ask about green cards if you’re driving through any Balkan countries. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, and Montenegro, you’re legally required to have a green card. A green card is a special insurance card that shows you are insured for cross-border travel. If you are driving through the Balkan states, ask the rental company to print a green card for you.
   • If you rent a car in one of the Balkan countries, the rental company should give you a green card. Just make sure it’s in the glovebox before driving off.
   • If you go through your credit card company for your insurance, they may offer the green card. If they don’t, just show your insurance paperwork to the clerk at the rental company and they’ll print a green card for you.
   • The green card typically costs $2-3 a day. It’s not a huge expense, but you may be turned away at a border if you don’t have one.
3. Inspect the vehicle thoroughly to check for damage before driving off. Follow the clerk to your vehicle and take a walk around it. Note and agree on any damage that is already on the car. If you don’t point the damage out, the rental company may try to pin you for things that are already on the vehicle.
   • Before you take the car out, be sure to ask about the gas, or the petrol as Europeans like to call it. Many European vehicles run on diesel.
4. Check the windshield for vignette stickers. Vignettes are small stickers that go on your windshield and prove that you’ve paid a tax to use the highways. If you rent a car in a country that uses the vignette system, it should already be on your vehicle. If you don’t have one though, you'll need to stop at the border of any country that requires vignettes and purchase one at the booth on the side of the road.Template:Greenbox:'''The Following Countries Require Vignettes:''' Austria, Czech Republic, Romania, Switzerland, Hungary, Slovenia, and Bulgaria.
   • Each country uses its own vignette, so you’ll need to buy one at each border crossing. However, the rental companies in these countries typically use special vignettes that will work anywhere. Just check ahead of time with your rental company to see what they’ve put on your vehicle.
5. Return the rental vehicle when you’re done and confirm the charges. Take the vehicle to your drop-off location and check in at the front desk. Walk around the vehicle with the clerk to make sure you don’t end up on the hook for damage to the vehicle. When you’re done, ask for a receipt of all the charges you’re receiving and confirm the final amount.
   • You typically get a small discount for returning the vehicle to the office you picked it up from. You can certainly drop the car off at a different rental center if you prefer.

Driving Safely

1. Look up the driving laws in each country ahead of time. Every country has its own set of driving laws. While some are more important than others, it’s best to familiarize yourself with the rules of the road in each country before picking the car up. Just spend a few minutes or so reading through the traffic code online before hopping in the vehicle.
   • For example, you’re legally required to have a breathalyzer in your vehicle if you’re driving in France, and you cannot take even a sip of water while driving in Cyprus. You have to throw your hazard lights on if you reverse in Slovenia. There are plenty of other odd rules, and if you don’t look the rules up, you may get pulled over for some odd restriction you never even knew existed!
2. Practice driving your rental on a few calm roads to get the hang of it. Just to make sure you understand the vehicle, take it for a slow ride around some quiet side streets or parking lots. Try turning in each direction and get accustomed to the braking and accelerating speeds before taking your rental out on the highway or busy roads.
   • This is especially important if you’re driving on a new side of the road or the steering wheel is at a different seat. It can be a little difficult to get used to a new driving setup if you don’t get a little practice first.
3. Double-check parking restrictions to make sure you don’t get towed. Getting a vehicle towed is annoying enough, but it can be mind-numbingly frustrating to get towed in a country you don’t know very well. Read all parking signs thoroughly and translate them as needed to ensure you aren’t breaking any laws when you park your rental.
   • When in doubt, ask a local! They may be able to point you to cheaper/free parking as well.
4. Take it slow when driving through roundabouts if you aren’t used to them. Europe utilizes more roundabouts than other regions. These are round intersections where drivers all travel in one direction. Getting on or off can be kind of tricky if you haven’t done it before, so take your time. Try to study the movement at a roundabout first before hopping on just to make sure you don’t go too early or hold someone up.
   • In some countries, like Ireland, the driver in the roundabout’s circle always has the right of way. In other countries, like Croatia, the vehicle entering the roundabout always gets to go first. Some countries, like Germany and France, use signs to indicate who gets to go first.
5. Avoid major cities the best that you can and take other transit into town. Driving in a foreign country can be stressful, but cities all have unique laws, old roads, and social norms that you won’t necessarily understand as a visitor. If you can, keep the rental car out of major cities and take a train, bus, or taxi into city centers when you visit. This way, you’ll minimize the headaches.
   • Many European cities are notorious for their small roads. If you aren’t used to driving the rental, navigating these roads will be pretty frustrating.

Tips

• Always keep your original driver’s license and passport on you when you’re operating the rental vehicle. Keep the IDP, insurance, vignette receipts, and green cards in the glovebox. You’ll need all of these documents if you get pulled over or stopped at a border.

References

See also

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• Use a Car Rental Coupon
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