I'm curious whether anyone has specific experience with car rentals and and the M50 toll. Rick's book said most car rentals include the E-Flow pass, which would be great. We are renting from National, which uses Europcar at the Dublin Airport. No one at National can tell me whether they provide the E-Flow pass or whether we have to pay on our own. I realize I may have to wait until we get there to find out, just wondering if anyone who has rented from National/Europcar can share their experience with this. Thanks!
Posted by
Charlotte, NC, USA
28 posts
Can't help with National/Eurocar but I can tell you Dan Dooley Car Rental does not include E-Flow pass. However, it was no big deal making payment as there are places all over where you can pay.
Posted by
Spring, Texas
635 posts
You need to pay within 24 hours to avoid surcharges. If you don't pay it will eventually show up on whatever credit card you used for your rental car. Coming back to the Dublin Airport, you can either pay at the gas station you fill up with before returning the car or in the coffee shop/snack bar next to the terminal. Leaving Dublin, I suggest you stop at a gas station right as you get off the M50 and pay it.
Posted by
Pensacola
9110 posts
You have to pay it at a payzone outlet, not just any gas station. Not all gas stations are payzone outlets. Some are. Many news stands, grocery stores, pubs, etc, also are. You'll find one easy enough. And it's not within twenty-four hours, it's by eight pm of the day after incurring the obligation. It's only a couple of euro if you pay it by eight of the day after, and doubles until eight of the next day. After that it gets messy (the next jump is to fourty euro and the next to a hundred - - after that I've forgotten what I might have known). Look for a little sign on the store that matches the logo in the top left corner of this: http://www.payzone.ie/pages/about-us/contact-us.php
Posted by
OP
Seattle, WA
151 posts
Thank you all. It sounds like whether an E-Flow pass is supplied or not, we'll be able to handle it. Thanks again for sharing your knowledge with me - it is very reassuring!
Posted by
Indianapolis, IN, USA
154 posts
We just returned from Ireland and our rental car company agreement did not include M50 toll charges or an E-Flow Pass. We did not use National, we used Europcar-Alamo. Actually, as we were driving to Wicklow on the M50 I happened to see, very briefly, a sign about the toll. I remembered reading a warning about it on this site. My husband could not believe a toll would work like that. Our B and B owner told my husband that he would indeed have to pay the toll and now the fine since it had been more than 24 hours. She offered to do it on-line for us or said we could pay it when we turned in our rental. We ended up paying the rental car people our toll/fine the next day when we returned the car. (Also, I saw an off-license establishment advertising that you could pay your toll charge there.)
Barbara
Posted by
OP
Seattle, WA
151 posts
Thanks Ed for sharing that link. I was able to find several places at our destination that day where we can pay the toll. Barbara, thank you for sharing your experience about the toll and fine. Since we will be driving on the M50 at the beginning of our trip, I definitely don't want to wait until we return the car to pay - the fines might be quite interesting by then! I learn so much from the Helpline. Thank you all for helping reduce my stress about our first day of driving in Ireland.
Posted by
West Chester, Ohio, USA
9 posts
My wife and I were in Ireland in March. We booked with Hertz and originally no one could tell me if the E-Flow pass was included. When we picked up our car, the attendant confirmed it was included in the price with their company. If not, go to the E-Flow website and they make it pretty easy to pay. John