I plan to visit the UK in May of 2016 and will be renting a car with Hertz. Will I require an International Drivers Permit to rent a vehicle?
Posted by
Atlanta
4802 posts
Not really sure, but they don't cost that much at AAA. Better to have it and not need it than the other way around.
Posted by
Glasgow, Scotland
1639 posts
Check with your hire car company, but generally if your licence is in English it will not need an IDP to accompany it.
Posted by
Central Indiana, USA
357 posts
No. The IDP is a translation of your license from English into various languages so if you get pulled over in a non-English speaking country, the officer can read your license.
Posted by
Oak Park, Illinois
4535 posts
Not required for a US driver.
And yet I was asked for one by a rental agent because they couldn't figure out the expiration date of my state drivers license. Long story on why, but it was confusing and the agent asked if I had an IDP. I did not and it took 10 minutes for her and the manager to sort out my license while I waited nervously. They did finally rent me the car, but would have been within their rights to deny my reservation if they couldn't have figured out the validity of my license. Same could happen with a traffic cop.
My mantra - ALWAYS get one when driving in Europe. It's like insurance: you'll probably never need it but in those rare cases you do...
Posted by
Northamptonshire, England
32711 posts
The answer all depends on where you are from - what country issued your home license. Since neither your question nor your profile give a clue of any of that, to answer accurately is impossible.
We get questions here from countries all around the globe. Some need it for the UK, some don't.
All we know about you is that you apparently are bad news, and may have been born in 1924. If that is the case you may have trouble hiring a car because of your age, and may have to shop around.
Posted by
OP
11 posts
Thanks to all who replied to my question. As well as posting here I also phoned Hertz customer service and was told that since I'm Canadian and my license was issued by the Province of Ontario I would not need the IDP. The reason given was similar to a couple of the replies stating the IDP is used primarily to translate the info on my license into various languages. Since my license is in English and I'm going to England the chances are good that it will be understood by any official needing to read it:).
The point made about the IDP being good insurance though is well taken.
Thanks again