Extra charges for renting a car in UK if over 70

Do a dummy booking on Auto Europe @75. Then do another @ 70. That should get you an answer. I have not had age be an issue. Brad

It depends on the car rental company if they charge.

Follow brads advice and now I'm curious if it's different if you register first and them him as second driver(if you are a couple years younger)

That idea from doric8 was interesting initially, but my guess is that any driver over 75, either the “principal” driver or the “additional” driver - even if that second driver is going to be the only one driving - will be subject to an additional elderly driver fee. If he’s the only one to be driving, you don’t want to pay the “older driver” fee AND a second driver fee, if there’s no actual second driver.

It does vary from company to company. It seems now (not that this affects you) that the rental companies charge even more to you get drivers, and some won’t rent at all to Under-25’s.

Lin, I just looked at your post again, and it says “over 70” in the title, but the text says “over 75.” If he’s over 75, then he’s also over 70, but I’m still curious just which age is the limit for potential extra fees.

My husband’s not quite at either age, but we have noticed some companies have disclosed some age-related policies, but always right up front, with the specific age limit, and the exact charge. If you look individually at companies like Arnold Clark, Europcar, Sixt, Hertz, Avis, etc., do you not see a precise explanation of what extra amount (if any) that particular company charges?

What Suki said. Every car company is different. You have to find out each one's policy. But didn't you get a confirmation with a number that you will have to pay? The charges should be fully listed in there.

Lin, I just looked at your post again, and it says “over 70” in the title, but the text says “over 75.” If he’s over 75, then he’s also over 70, but I’m still curious just which age is the limit for potential extra fees.

I'm 71 and paid no extra fees in the UK with Budget because of my age. Then again, they charged me 40% more than I agreed to, so there's that.

Lin,
I (75 today, but 76 by the time we get to UK) booked a car with Enterprise in Kendal and there was no upper age limit. I even called the branch in Kendal to confirm that there would be no last minute problems.

Dennis

FWIW, the AutoEurope website states that there is no upper age limit for renting in the UK. It does caution that the policy may vary by individual company.
Last year I (age 77) rented from the Hertz concession at Edinburgh airport and returned the vehicle in Portsmouth a few weeks later. The booking was thru AutoEurope. For info, there were several other company options offered on the AE website, and none of them had upper age limit restrictions, nor was any age-related premium applied.