INTERNATIONAL DRIVING PERMIT

It is required in Austria. I've driven on 10 trips to Europe, bought an IDP and never been asked for it. But I've also never been in an accident or been stopped by the police. $20 seems like cheap peace of mind on a trip that costs thousands. www.austria.info/us/plan-your-trip/driving-regulations-in-austria-1084578.html Paul

It is also required in Spain and Italy - and a good idea anywhere that English is not the local language.

Paul's response says it all ! One other point to consider ; If you are in an accident ,regardless of fault , without one , the insurance underwriter ( if you have insurance ) can consider you an unlicensed driver if you do not have an IDP . That constitutes grounds for invalidating your coverage. Insurance companies generally are not amenable to giving you a break in a situation like that . By the way , the IDP is required in Italy .

Roger, The following website should answer your questions..... www.roninrome.com/%20transportation/the-idp-question Ron has provided an excellent description of the reasons why you'll need an I.D.P. to drive in Italy (and other countries). If you're ever involved in an incidente stradale in Italy and can't produce an I.D.P., it won't be a pleasant travel experience. The situation is worse in Greece and if involved in an accident there, you could find yourself in a world of misery without an I.D.P. There was a post here not too long ago from someone that had experienced the situation in Greece, and it was interesting to read. I'd have to do some searching to find it. While you may never have been asked for the permit, I believe it's prudent to have one when renting cars in Europe. Cheers!

MY THANKS TO ALL WHO POSTED A NOTE. I AM OFF TO AAA TUESDAY TO GET MY PERMIT. AGAIN THANKS
ROGER

Yes it is required; will you need it? who's to say. One person's experience for what it's worth. I rented a car in France last summer - 1. rental agency did not inquire about IDP; 2. I was involved in an accident, police were involved - they never asked to see my US DL (let alone the IDP), all they cared about was who had insurance and who was responsible for any damage; 3. I had full coverage insurance from rental agency (Hertz), everything was covered $0 deductible no question about DL or IDP. So, would I bother getting one next time to foreign country? Absolutely, as has been said before: better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.

First, please turn off your caps lock. It is the equivalent of yelling and hard to read. AAA is the authorized US issuer of the International Drivers Permit. It is not something they invented to make money off unsuspecting tourists. Each country has an authorized issuer. If you want to blame someone, blame the nations that require it, like Italy, Spain and Greece. After all, maybe they should force their police to learn 5-10 languages so that they can read the drivers licenses of various foreign tourists. Most people never have to use or show their IDP. Then again, most people never use their car insurance either. But if you needed it and didn't have it, you'd be in a world of trouble. Most rental agencies in Greece will not rent you a car without it. I was once asked for an IDP in England because the rental agent couldn't figure out if my state license was valid. As someone else mentioned, get into an accident without and IDP where it is required, and that makes for a convenient excuse for your insurer to deny you coverage. Lesson - EVERYONE should have an IDP when driving in a foreign country - period!

I always get an IDP and will continue to do so. However, a friend I traveled with this summer was told by his car rental agency that for Europe, it is only required if your home driver's license is in non-Roman script (Cyrillic, Greek, Hebrew, Arabic...). Language not important, just the alphabet character set. I thought that was odd and not sure I believe it, but thought I'd throw it out for comments. Has anyone heard this "rule" before?

I guess I can say that I have driven nearly daily here in the US for the last 10 or 15 years, well over 100,000 miles, and never been asked for my license (well excepting for renewal or other non-driving reasons) so I really do not need a license. It is like insurance, if you never need it, you never use it, for the cost, better to have it and not ruin an expensive vacation if you are refused a rental or are involved in a traffic incidence.

We did a home exchange in Austria last year. Before we left the States I asked our exchange partners if we needed an IDP in Austria and they informed us that we did not. We were driving their car and their insurance carrier had been informed and consented. We had also inquired about IDP requirements here in the US of the need for the Austrian drivers to have one here. Our carrier said that as long as they were licensed by a state or government agency and that they had our permission to drive our car they would not need an IDP.

Well it is clear to me that just to be safe I should have one. The car rental company said it was not required in France but it seems like cheap insurance should they be wrong.
Thanks to all who posted and those who may yet.