Car Rental England

Might I ask what two small villages?

Driving on the opposite side of the road isn’t that difficult. I’m over 70 and have done it more than once. Last time from Belfast to Dingle in Ireland.

Trip before I landed at Heathrow, took shuttle to Hertz office on the Ring road, got my rental and drove off to Lyme Regis. I had a map AND I had viewed my route via Google Maps Birdseye view.

One vehicle was an automatic, the other a clutch.

The only thing that might take a few minutes to adjust to are traffic roundabouts.

Most important thing to do is not to panic.

Have countless Brit friends who visit me in LA and never seemed troubled by the reality they are driving on the opposite side of the road.

Semley and Amberley Castle. We are looking forward to a couple of day trips from each location.
I am having a tough time wrapping my mind around using left hand stick with clutch. Actually asking round to learn if anyone in our neighborhood has access to a car set up for wrong side driving.
Thanks

Hi Steven. I did this once a few years ago and it turned out fine, but it wasn't as carefree as regular, right-side driving. As far as shifting with left hand, I was surprised by how easy the transition to that was. The advice I have is about roundabouts and intersections. At each roundabout and intersection, it is important to really concentrate on which way to turn / go. It felt so unnatural to turn / steer different ways than normal, that it was important to be clear headed and think it thru / not be distracted by anything.

I was advised to simply "...always keep the driver in the center or middle of the road." Sounds like that would be an automatic thing, but it takes a bit of concentration - especially in round-a-bouts. Can't help with the stick shift. Oh, you mentioned picking it up at the airport. Are you planning to drive right after a long trans atlantic flight? If so, you might want to reconsider. You'll be on the "wrong" side of the road, driving a stick shift, and on new turf. Even a minor fender bender can put a damper on the entire trip.

Highly suggest you spend the extra money on automatic.. To.me driving on other side of road not that hard and have done it in England and Ireland but twice had manual and swore never again. I drove manual at home for years but could never get used to using my left hand. I was always going from first to fourth. Since is is not that much more expensive I think it would be worth it. You might not have a problem though.

I didn't find driving on the left to be that much of a transition, what I found difficult were the narrower roads than what I was used to and unfamiliar signage. On some of the country roads we were also surprised by intersections hidden by tall hedges and trees.

Having said all that, it all turned out OK. I highly recommend looking for some you tube videos about driving in the UK, you'll learn some handy tidbits and it may help with your pretrip stress.

A couple of other thoughts:

I thought an automatic was worth the extra money.

It's guaranteed that you'll be rubbing the tires against the occasional curb. Check insurance carefully, you're likely not covered for that, and you may not be even if you buy the company's insurance.

I've driven in the UK on three separate trips. Things I found helpful in prepping were:

• Studying road signs and basic road rules (things like confirming who has right of way in roundabouts and if "free left on red" would be a thing like "free right on red" is here)
• Using google maps street view to "drive" the route from where I'd be picking up the rental to the nearest gas station and then to the freeway/road out of town. This just helped me to know what the road looked like, what the lanes were set up like, etc.
• Once on the road, after the first few minutes the being on the left wasn't too much of an issue, I did keep distracting things like the radio/music off while I was driving the first day or so as I found it was just too distracting while I was concentrating and getting comfortable on the road
• One place I always seem to forget where I am is parking lots. Since they don't have lane stripes and I'm looking for a parking spot I often find it's here that I wander to the right hand side of the driving area, so stay alert in parking lots!

All that being said, I've really enjoyed the trips I've taken in the UK that involved car rental. Once you do it the first time you'll see it's not too big of a deal, just take it carefully!

if "free left on red" would be a thing like "free right on red" is here)

it isn't. Not unless you have a filter light

@Nigel, yep! And I was glad I looked that up before I left because I just take it for granted at home!

I have rented cars many times in England. I found the adjustment to driving on the left with the steering wheel on the right not too difficult. What I still find the most challenging is parking in narrow parking spaces. I always try to park where there are 2 empty parking spaces side by side.

I have also found that rental car companies in England are very picky and will charge you for even the smallest scratch on the rental car. I always pay for zero deductible insurance coverage, even though it's expensive (and even though I never buy insurance from car rental companies in the US).

There is no way I would drive a manual rental car in England.

mid size SUV

The larger the car, the harder it is to successfully drive on the other side of the road. I would never get this large of a car for England. As a general rule for Europe, the larger the car the more brain energy required. The reason Americans can drive for 12 hours is because of all the space on the roads, little energy is required.

Insurance, via Chase Sapphire credit card, have limited insurance coverage

Don't know what this means, this insurance will likely be more comprehensive than anything the agency offers, even buying all the add ons. I have read this policy within the last year and it covered all damage: tires, hubcaps, glass, often coverage for things that can't be purchased from the agency. Thing is most people don't read the agency policy and compare, and assume "everything's covered, I can just walk away."

I would pay the extra and get an automatic. Totally worth it, as I have done twice. How big is your group? Can you get a smaller vehicle?

I would rent the smallest vehicle you can, pay the difference for the automatic, and pay for zero deductible insurance. Driving there is stressful enough. You don’t need the added stress of “what if” you scratch the car, etc.

We didn’t even get out of the airport parking lot before having a scrape against a barrier…

Do not get in that car directly after a transatlantic flight.

While you will need a car for Semley, if you are doing Amberley first, straight from Heathrow then you could take the train to Amberley (into London on the Picc/District line route then train direct from Victoria) on arrival day then hire the next day when you are fresh.

I would have thought that Chichester (close by) would have car hire places, but it is only 49 minutes back up the line towards London to Gatwick. There you will have a wider choice of cars than any depot in Chichester will have, and avoid paying a one way fee.

Most difficult adjustment for me was shifting with my nondominant left hand. I would say the 2nd thing I had to concentrate on most was a right turn and which way to look before turning. However, I did get used to both.

Steven, I've driven over quite a bit of England (but not in the south) and Scotland. My first time driving in England was in 1996. I had a manual transmission and had no problems at all. Making the transition from right to left side driving took about 5 minutes at the most. As mentioned, the roundabouts can be tricky but the beauty of them is that you just keep driving around till you figure it out.🤣

When I was in Scotland earlier this year, however, I rented a car with an automatic transmission. The Scottish roads in the Highlands and on the islands can be a lot hairier than many of the English roads. There are many more curvy and narrow mountainous single track roads there, and I found it much easier not to have to worry about the transmission.

You don't say where you are driving to, but if it's anywhere in Cornwall or Devon, you might want to think about renting an automatic. I am traveling to England next year for 5 weeks. I've rented an automatic transmission for the Cornwall/Devon portion of it because of the higher amount of traffic there, the narrow roads and the high hedges that enclose them, and the very hilly roads along the coast.

However, I am renting a manual transmission for the time that I am in The Peak District, Yorkshire and Northumberland, since I am a bit more familiar with those roads, and there is less traffic there, and more open spaces.

I don't know about the rest of the south, so if you would be more specific about your destination, others here could help.

With regards to insurance, I always refuse the CDW and rely on my Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card for the damage portion. I have not had any damages accessed but in looking at the language of the benefits, everything is covered that would be covered by the rental company, so I don't like to pay for something I can get for free. 😊

Lastly, I agree with everyone who said to rent the smallest car you feel comfortable in. Believe me, you will not regret it - but you will regret trying to maneuver a larger SUV down those narrow single track roads, especially when you have to pull over to let a car pass.

A few thoughts. There are videos on you tube done by British driving instructors that can be quite informative. I have found the ones about. Roundabouts (rotarys) extremely good.

You don’t mention which Chase Sapphire card you have. At least with the Reserve coverage, you must decline all of the coverages offered by the rental agency in order for the Chase coverage to be in effect. You will want to read your coverage carefully.

you must decline all of the coverages offered by the rental agency in order for the Chase coverage to be in effect.

I post his frequently but will again. Basic Insurance included in the rental (rarely an international franchise, usually a local company) does not need to be refused for the credit card coverage to be in effect because it can't be. Only additional insurance itemized as an extra charge needs to be refused. I have called several credit cards over the years to double check and this is always true. In this instance the credit card covers only the deductible (AKA 'excess' in Britain), the basic insurance that always comes with the vehicle covers the rest. It's a fine point but can save a lot of money, and some worry because you know that you have double coverage.

Re Other Side Driving: I found the hardest thing was to not mix up the wipers and the turn signal. Next hardest was to remember to keep to the left in parking lots.

Grateful for all comments and have learned several important lessons. Definitely renting an automatic and speaking with credit card company to know salient points on coverage. YouTube is a great place to learn from others experiences.
Thanks!