International Driving Permit AAA- Waste of Money for Us

I take it you weren't stopped the police in any of these countries? That's when you would want the IDP, not at the rental car office. I did show my IDP to a Czech policeman once a few years ago when stopped. But, the laws do seem to vary by country and also can change over time, so what may have been true a few years ago may not be true any longer.

The renting companies don't care about it, but the police does.
If you are stopped or get in an accident, you have to have it by law, otherwise it's like you're driving without a license.

In my opinion and in my own personal experience this is a very misleading post, and may even be seen as encouraging some readers to break local laws in some foreign countries (see Community Guidelines #8)

While it is true that many, not all but many, rental car companies do not require or even ask for an IDP when renting a car - it is not required of them by local laws as far as I can see - that is not the reason for needing an IDP. The IDP is required in some countries if you are involved in an accident (my experience) or if you are stopped by local traffic authorities for driving infractions. It's the local authorities that require it, not the rental car companies - they don't care one way or the other.

Please educate yourself and stop spreading false information. An IDP is not required to rent a car. An IDP is required to legally drive and the police will ask for it. If you have an accident or are stopped for an infraction, then the police will not accept your US driver's license.

Per Rick Steve's own website- "You may hear contradictory information on exactly where you need an IDP. People who sell them say you should have them almost everywhere. People who rent cars say you need them almost nowhere. People who drive rental cars say the IDP is overrated, but can come in handy as a complement to your passport and driver's license."

I'm giving actually true recent experience, in hope to enlighten people. NO FAKE NEWS here,

Info for France:
https://photos.state.gov/libraries/france/45994/acs/usc_driving-in-France.pdf

Info for Italy:
https://it.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/local-resources-of-u-s-citizens/transportation-driving/?_ga=1.18951160.1385935530.1457127678

Info for Germany:
https://travel.state.gov/content/passports/en/country/germany.html
"If you hold a valid U.S. driver’s license, you can drive in Germany for up to six months without acquiring a German driver’s license."
https://de.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/driving-in-germany/

So do I believe Rick Steves or the US Embassy, hmmmm? Fake news indeed.

If you are ever in Austria, you must have an IDP, by law:

https://at.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/local-resources-of-u-s-citizens/living-in-austria/motoringdrivers-license/

jmjbrtw, if you haven't been stopped by the police in each of the countries you visited, your experience is "true", but it is howlingly incomplete. Someone reported on this forum that in one country (I think Italy but might be misremembering) you can be fined hundreds of euros if you don't have the IDP. I think it is a very poor idea to risk that.

Amazing that OP complains about spending $20 to get an IDP on a trip that costs thousands of dollars. Yes, in Italy you can receive a hefty fine if you do not have one and are asked for it by the police. I have rented cars in Italy numerous times and will again later this year. Though I have never been asked to produce one, $20 is cheap insurance to avoid possible delays, fines and inconvenience. It makes me chuckle to read "scam complaints" by folks who were fined for speed camera violations or ZTL infractions - oops, you broke the law.

We were stopped near Florence for random road stop by police. They asked for my licence and rental car credentials, they reviewed and said thanks, and we were back on our way in less then 5 minutes. Never asked for IDP.

We bought them from AAA for our trip, but not needed anywhere.

Your quote from Rick's material is incomplete. Text before and after the quoted section includes:

However, some countries also require an International Driving Permit (IDP). An IDP is an official translation of your US license (making it easier for the cop to write out a ticket).

It's a good idea to get one if you'll be driving in Austria, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, or Spain — countries where you're technically required to carry a permit, since you could be fined if found without one.

Since Italy was one of your destinations, it made sense to spend the $20. I did, too, last month, even though I've never been stopped.

We had to show our International Driving Permit to rent a Hertz Rental Car at the Edinburgh Airport in Scotland.

I am giving our experience from France, Italy and Germany were we actually drove October 2017. No experience with anywhere else, except Ireland which we rented a car for 2 weeks a couple years ago and IDP was not needed there either.

I was asked for my IDP when I rented a car in Italy (although that was about 7 years ago), but also most recently in Croatia this past summer. I wouldn't want to take my chances just to save $20.

It is the travelers' responsibility to know the laws in the countries they visit - ignorance of the law is no excuse for misbehavior.

When driving in France it is required to have either an IDP or an official French translation of your local driver's license in addition to your actual license. Maybe you'll need it, maybe you won't - maybe the police will ask for it, maybe they won't (probably depends on whether or not they speak English in our case). Whether or not you actually need it or use it, it is still better to have it than not since it is required. Laws change over time and relying on 2nd (or 3rd) hand, or outdated information is not always wise.

As others here have said over and over regarding the IDP "t's a tiny drop in the bucket of the total cost of your trip". And, like insurance, even if you end up not using it, it's a good investment.

We were asked for it when we rented in Italy and told by the rental car agent to make sure we kept it in the car while driving in case we were stopped. Glad I had it.

A different poster was refused a rental car in Italy because they didn't have an IDP:

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/rental-car-without-international-license-we-are-already-in-italy

Accusing people of spreading falsehoods just because something which could have happened to you didn't isn't fair.

I like the last word in the rant.

Everything I post is truth. Just because you didn't feel that the legal requirements applied to you is no reason to call me a liar.

That's not likely to get you much help with future questions you may have.

All this for $20.

You got stopped in Italy and didn't have to show your IDP. Great. You either got a police officer who reads English or just wanted to be sure you had a license. You didn't get stopped anywhere else. How much would the fine have been if you didn't have the IDP and were asked for it? The rental car companies didn't ask for it. No problem. But what would you have done if the rental car company had asked for it (which they can do) and you didn't have it?

Since both Rick and the US State department (and many foreign country web sites) all say you need an IDP, what's the harm in having one?

Why the rant against the IDP anyway?

Ripoff! I have also paid for life insurance for 50 years and never needed to use it. ;-)
We always get IDP's (2, although I seldom drive the rental car) as a precautionary measure. Just like we put my name on the contract as an authorized driver ... just in case of emergency.

So getting the IDP is like buying travel insurance -- you never need it until you do.

Ripoff! I have also paid for life insurance for 50 years and never needed to use it. ;-)

You beat me to it! I was going to respond that I didn't have an accident in Italy so I guess my insurance was a total waste.

IDP took me 15 minutes and $20. I would never drive in Europe without one. I sure hope the uninitiated doesn't listen to this inaccurate information.

This is not a rant, just our actual recent experience. Hopefully this helps someone decide on their future Europe vacation to get a IDP or not. We cant speak for anyone else except us and the countries we drove in without any issues.
We feel we were mislead to get one, which in our case was not needed. With fees and photos it cost us $68 for 2 at AAA.

You don't have to agree with it! Its a free world and forum is meant as a means for getting information.
You don't have to agree, its our actual experience, not anyone else.

I was hoping its was more like a actual drivers licence that I could use for an secondary ID.

We will research better next time to see if countries we are visiting actually require one before purchasing, for example Austria is
100% required and I would get one before driving there.

That $68 was insurance. Yes, you were never asked for the IDP but you could have been and if you were, would you have been able to explain in the language of the country you were in why you did not have one. We have driven in all the countries that you mention many times and was asked for an IDP twice in France by the police and never by a rental car company in France. Once the officer did not speak English well and checked the French language part of the IDP and once the officer was apparently one of those stickler types. He asked for the IDP in English and then did not even look at it when my husband handed it to him. I think saying that the advice to get an IDP is a lie is a bit harsh. It like saying someone lied because they told you the speed limit on a US highway is 65 and you drove past a trooper going 70 MPH but did not get stopped so the advice to travel 65 MPH is a lie.

FWIW, from my experience, make sure you have the IDP in Greece. After never being asked for it in France, our rental car company in Greece would not let us have the car until we showed the IDP. Luckily they had brought the car to the hotel so all we had to do was go to the room to get IDP.

Not sure why it cost you $68. ( $34 per person)

AAA site -- https://www.aaa.com/vacation/idpf.html shows a $20 fee

Glad your non-investment in a money belt worked out for you.

Maybe the extra $28 was for the passport pictures and maybe even the cost of parking while getting the IDP.

But it was needed by law. Why are you under the impression that it was not needed? To me this is very clear. Just because you got lucky doesn't mean it was the right thing to do.

The local AAA branch charges $20 for the IDP and $9 for the related passport style photo.

Bruce, I think all AAA offices charge $20 for the IDP, but different local AAA offices do sometimes charge different amounts for passport photos. So it's possible the OP is not exaggerating the total cost.

I don't really think this is a matter of the cost anyway. I think the OP just doesn't like paying for something that they may not need. I'm going to assume he/she does not buy any kind of travel insurance for that reason either.

I bought travel insurance once. I had a great trip and didn't need to file a claim. So I suppose I should have come back to this forum and told everyone that travel insurance is totally unneeded and a waste of money.

I bought a money belt and carried my money in it. I wasn't pickpocketed a single time the entire trip. So I suppose I should have come back to this forum and told everyone that a money belt is totally unneeded and a waste of money.

I bought Immodium and took it on the trip with me. I didn't get diarrhea at all. So I suppose I should have come back to this forum and told everyone that Immodium is totally unneeded and a waste of money.

This thread has run its course and I'm locking it up.