Car Rental - What Should I Know??

I have never rented a car in Europe, but to avoid being one of the many travelers who come to this forum to complain about traffic tickets, you need to be very familiar with signage and the rules of the road--things like priority in traffic circles (roundabouts).

Usually the insurance coverage and costs is detailed on the website when you book the car. Read the fine print.

Of the countries you're going to, I've only driven in France. You are expected to know the legal speed limits (they aren't always posted) along with all the other rules of the road. Familiarize yourself with the road signs before you rent the car (some will be familiar, others not so much). In France, signage for the most part is only in French. If you don't know French, maybe there's a website that can help. gemut.com may be the place to start.

acraven: Thank you. I actually have printed and have been reviewing the street signs of Europe! I will be using my iPhone map and am hoping that the speed limit will show up as it does here!

Chani: my rental is through Costco and while in the terms it describes that these services are available, it doesn't give a fee. I was hoping some people here might share what it cost them, or how it was determined, just so I know what to expect. I'm also going to put my mom and sister on "sign duty" while we travel. Luckily, for both trips, the majority of driving is on a major road.

I printout a copy of European Road signs and keep it out so I can check it. Does that mean one way? or do not enter? type of questions.

do not enter

Europe doesn't really have the universal Do Not Enter concept as in the US.

There's the red circle which means "no vehicles allowed (so do not enter)"

The Do Not Enter symbol used in the US is used in one specific case in Europe: "oncoming road is one way against you (so do not enter)"

CDW Insurance in France can be included or not, it depends upon how you rent it

As to the French toll roads, it's a mixed bag about payment. Lanes have often automated payment and your credit card may or may not work. Signs might be posted that cash is accepted in this lane but you get there and there's no way to put bills in. Or there's a person and payment is no problem. For such a short distance you could stay on the N highways, it's prettier.

Panda, Yes, you must learn the road signs, and the traffic laws. Ignorance of the law is no defence.
You do not nead to learn every possible road sign, there is a system based on the shape and colour of the sign.

• Red circle = you must not. Example speed limit (click for example) or "no left turn" (click). This meme is so well know it is used for signs that are nothing to do with roads, for example the "No Smoking" sign.
• Blue circle = you must. Example "keep right" (click).
• Red triangle = warning. Example "road narrows" (click).
• Rectangular = information. Example direction signs (click). Notice the two round red "you must not" signs on the pole. No pedestrians and a height limit.

If you haven't already obtained one, go to AAA and get an International Driving Permit. It is inexpensive and only takes a few minutes to obtain.

A brush up on signage and rules of the road is helpful. Once there, you'll find it is easy to navigate around and understand road signs.

There are automated speed controls so it is important to strictly obey the speed limits. There's no "wiggle room" like there is in the States. You'll find very few citizens speed.

Have a great trip!

I think the best thing to know about vehicle rental is to take the train if at all possible. You won’t get lost, get a traffic ticket, no CDW required, no parking, no petrol...

Before you leave the lot, photograph any damage you find on the car and be sure your camera is set to the date and time of the locale in case the rental car company claims damages that you didn’t cause. Also familiarize yourself with the car’s features before exiting the lot. We ran into a problem once because my husband did not know how to get the rental car in reverse. We did figure it out but it was a little panic as we had to back out of a toll gate that wouldn’t take our cc.

We always take photos of the cars when we pick them up.

Yes, the IDP is helpful in France where you have certain legal requirements.

If you don't want to hassle the rental in France, TER regional trains link Lourdes and Toulouse in about 2 hours, then a taxi to the airport.

You can also get a train from Schiphol Airport (for Amsterdam) to Enschade or Hengelo, where a train will take you to Rheine for a bus into Hopsten. Total travel time 4 hours, or some trips are longer.

Just saying that there are choices if you want them.

If you’re not used to kilometers per hour, even though your rental’s speedometer will be marked in them, keep in mind that a kilometer is just a bit more than half a mile (62% of a mile actually), so 50 kph is equivalent to about 30 mph. In some ways, or at first glance, it can seem the speed limit signs are having you drive almost twice as fast as you’d expect, if you were still used to miles per hour.

And just to avoid unpleasant surprises or extra cost, make certain before you drive off in your new rental whether it takes unleaded gas or diesel fuel. Also, confirm whether are you expected to bring the car back full, or as empty as you like for no extra charge, or will they charge you (at an inflated price) if the tank’s not full?

Double check how to open fuel door, trunk or rear hatch, hood, and where the spare tire and jack are, unless car has run-flat tires.

France has a roadside sign indicating the name of a village as you enter it, and another sign on as you depart it, with a gray slash thru the name of the town, which can help keep you oriented. Rental desks also can often provide a free map that you may find useful. Don’t take it personally if you get tailgated in France.

This free brochure, What you should know about renting a car in Europe in 2019, from Gemut.com should help answer your questions. It includes info about traveling by car, not just about renting one.

I don't know about Costco's partners, but most car rental agencies do not tell you what you need to know to drive in Europe. You just pick up the car and you're on your own.

One possible pitfall we experienced in France was that I paid for the rental, but my husband was the primary driver. We had to pay extra when we returned the car. Ever after, he paid for the car with his credit card.

We've rented cars and driven in many European countries. That was appropriate for our trips. I'm not getting the need for it in your very short trip cases, especially the Frrench one.

If you stick with the cars, and do not have IDPs, get them immediately. Here's more info on how.

Rental insurance in Europe is billed the same way as in the US == an amount per day.

It may vary in cost based on the type of car you rent with more expensive ones having a higher insurance cost.

I would also take the super coverage if I was renting a car in Europe. Nothing feels better than just handing in the keys and walking away at the end of the rental and never having to worry about some real or imaginary damage found weeks later they expect you to pay for.

On refueling before car return:
Here’s an example of what it can cost if you don’t. On a recent trip to France, we were headed to the Bordeaux airport. About 20 km out we pulled into an autoroute filling station ( usually the best option). My husband could not get the pump to work, so he went into the store for assistance, only to be told that something in their electronics had crashed. They couldn’t sell gas.
Faced with the choice of driving around Merignac, looking for a station that was manned*, or paying whatever Europcar would charged for a quarter of a tank, we chose the latter. After all, we had a plane to catch, and we had already incurred a long delay because of an accident on the road.
The charge came to a mind-boggling €100. There was a highly inflated per liter cost for the fuel, plus a couple of other junk fees, like “refueling charge.” Essentially, if you don’t refuel, you are inviting the rental company to put their hands into your purse and help themselves. Prepaying for a tank of gas seems to have disappeared as an option.

*Unmanned stations seem to be the norm in many places in Europe, and it’s iffy whether your American cc will work.

Panda,

One further comment on the IDP's. These are not a license per se, so must be used in conjunction with your home D.L.

I just wanted to add a quick update. I rented a car yesterday in Lourdes. It was easy to do and I discovered that, yes, driving a manual car is like riding a bike, you don’t forget. Initially i was riding the clutch a bit but that quickly stopped.

The new car technology made following the speed limit a breeze....the car itself showed the current speed limit on each road. Also, the key ring held a small plastic disc that said “diesel”.
My credit card was declined when buying gas, but used my debit with no incident.

I allowed extra time for travels and buying gas just in case.

I had a print out of road signs as well as a couple pages describing tolls in France. That made me more confident. We purposely collected a number of small coins and bulls for tolls and spent about 9 Euros.

Also, i paid the extra for full coverage and roadside assistance. I was a little freaked out by all the negative comments on this site regarding driving in Europe and didn’t want to take a chance. That was 24 Euros. Of course, I realize my trip is not like driving in Paris or Rome!!

Someone asked about why i would drive rather than the train. The train left at 6:15a.m. and would require the cab to the train, then the train and then a cab to the airport. In this case, the 100 Euro difference was well worth it for the three of us. As my moms physical skills and stamina have decreased significantly since plans began for this trip, the convenience was significant.

Anyway, it was a great ride!!

I'm glad it worked out well. So much anxiety to leave behind - I'm glad your found the way with the second card. Yay!

just one thing:-

We purposely collected a number of small coins and bulls for tolls and spent about 9 Euros.

Don't you find squeezing those small bulls into the slot difficult? Well better small bulls than big ones! ;-)

I hope they didn't make a mess in the car!

Don't you find squeezing those small bulls into the slot difficult?
Well better small bulls than big ones! ;-) I hope they didn't make a
mess in the car!

No bigger mess than us, lol.

Last update...we rented a car in Amsterdam. Easy peasy, the most important advice given was not to speed and no right turns on red. Drove to Hopsten, Germany and discovered the church my family worshipped at in the 1800’s. Sadly the office was closed on vacation, so we decided to see if we could find anyone at City Hall who could help us. Thankfully its a small town and we did and were told the old church records were in Munster. So off we drove to Munster. We walked in and a surprised lady informed us the building was supposed to be locked and they were closed for 6 weeks! However, she looked up genealogy items for my mom, gave her the website that has all the records scanned in, and amazingly, shared the name of a man who has great interests in the early records and genealogy of Hopsten residents, and loves to track things town as a hobby!!
An amazing day which could have only happened with the car!

We also ended up with a morning and drove to Haarlem and parked there and walked around.

It was really an empowering experience to do this (driving in Europe) and i appreciate the advice given.