Requirements to rent a car in USA

Rattlehead_ie

Hi guys,

Just a quick question re above
What are the requirements to renting a car in the USA (New York)?
Does it differ from state?
Usual I suspect is taking insurance
Do I have to have had a full licence for 1 yr +
Over the Age of 18/21/23?

Thanks in advance

spurious

The credit card that is being used to hire a car must be the driver's credit card, not a passenger's. We got messed up big style by that one and they wouldn't take cash as payment.

emzolita

we thought you had to be over the age of 25, but its just 18, (your allowed drive under 25, but have to pay an extra daily insurance)
you also need to bring your full license as in the counter part bit i think its called, we lost ours before goin and we're ringing the car rental place and the travel company, but they all said to be given the car they need to see the 2 parts of the license, we found it in the end, but when we got there, they never even looked for it, just wanted to see the card.
we rented in California.
hope this helps.

Limerick1981

emzolita wrote: »

we thought you had to be over the age of 25, but its just 18, (your allowed drive under 25, but have to pay an extra daily insurance)
you also need to bring your full license as in the counter part bit i think its called, we lost ours before goin and we're ringing the car rental place and the travel company, but they all said to be given the car they need to see the 2 parts of the license, we found it in the end, but when we got there, they never even looked for it, just wanted to see the card.
we rented in California.
hope this helps.

I was in the USA in Novemember for two weeks we renetd from Hertz and paid a online pre-pay fee of approx $700 worked out at €462 was good deal for two weeks. We rented from Hertz in Atlanta and drove to Nashville, Memphsis, Dallas, Austin, Houston, New Orleans and then back to Atlanta. very easy to rent you just need your Irish Driving licence. It cost €50 to put on an additional driver for the two weeks and both me and the additional driver are >25 years old. we got a savage deal with hertz and all the insurance etc was in the pre-pay fee. They did try to charge us for extra insurances at the counter when we were renting but i showed the girl the booking form which said all levies, taxes and insurance supplements were included in the rate given Happy days €500 euro between five of us for two weeks renting a seven seater Cheverlot was a good deal.

I agree with other quote you must bring the credit card used to book also.

I think the whole insurance thing varies from state to state for example i think you have to purchase additional insuarnce in Calfornia as the car rental companies do not provide primary insuracne

Gal44

Limerick1981 wrote: »

I was in the USA in Novemeber for two weeks we renetd from Hertz and paid a online pre-pay fee of approx €700 worked out at €462 was good deal for two weeks. We rented from Hertz in Atlanta and drove to Nashville, Memphsis, Dallas, Austin, Houston, New Orleans and then back to Atlanta. very easy to rent you just need your Irish Driving licence. It cost €50 to put on an additional driver for the two weeks and both me and the additional driver are >25 years old. we got a savage deal with hertz and all the insurance etc was in the pre-pay fee. They did try to charge us for extra insyarcnes at the couner when we were renting but i showed the girl the booking form whihc said all levies, taxes and insuarnces supplents were included in the rate given Happy days €500 euro between five for two weeks renting a seven seater Cheverlot was a good deal.

I agree with other quote you must bring the credit card used to book also.

I think the whole insurance thing varies from state to state for example i think you have to purchase additional insuarnce in Calfornia as the car rental companies do not provide insurance the primary insuracne

500euro for car rental thats great for the two weeks! im really interested in doing a road trip for 2-3 weeks, was 2 weeks enough time for you to get through those places you mentioned Atlanta to New Orleans and see everything you wanted to see?

Limerick1981

Gal44 wrote: »

500euro for car rental thats great for the two weeks! im really interested in doing a road trip for 2-3 weeks, was 2 weeks enough time for you to get through those places you mentioned Atlanta to New Orleans and see everything you wanted to see?

Two weeks for our trip was adequate. There were five of us traveling together and two of us driving. We stayed two nights in Atlanta, two nights in Nashville, Two Nights in Memphis, two nights in Dallas, two nights in Austin, 2 nights in Houston (we visited a friend from home who we went to school with he's resident in League city outside Houston) and two nights in New Orleans. All in all we had adequate time and the longest drive was the final one from New Orleans to Atlanta which was 7 hours. Generally average time driving would be 3-4 hours so after breakfast we would hit the road. The Southern states are vast and sparse in places. There is not much to do really in Atlanta except the coca cola factory tour. In Nashville there is the Country Music hall fame pretty good spot. In Memphis we went to Grace land home of Elvis, Sun Studio (Where Elvis was discovered and where U2 have previously recorded) and to the motel where Martin Luther King was assassinated. In Dallas we went to south Fork Ranch where the series Dallas was filmed and to the JFK museum. Austin is a real party town at the weekend’s lots of bars so we partied for the weekend. We also went to Bill Clintons Presidential Museum in Little Rock; ironically he was there at the time. In Houston we went to see Nasa and then after that went to New Orleans. To be honest was very disappointed with New Orleans was pretty seedy i.e. strip clubs etc I suppose it still hasn’t fully recovered after hurricane Cathriona.

In 2005 we did the Route 66 Roadtrip from Chicago to LA passing through the states or Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada and California. This in my opinion was a better trip we went to Vegas etc the Hoover dam, Universal Studios etc.

USA is a great spot and both trips would be well worth doing 2 weeks minimum is the advice so you can take your time and have no major long driving. The people in the Southern States are very friendly especially in Texas. My advise is go if you can id do both trips again in the morning, brilliant times and memories.

Gal44

Limerick1981 wrote: »

Two weeks for our trip was adequate. There were five of us traveling together and two of us driving. We stayed two nights in Atlanta, two nights in Nashville, Two Nights in Memphis, two nights in Dallas, two nights in Austin, 2 nights in Houston (we visited a friend from home who we went to school with he's resident in League city outside Houston) and two nights in New Orleans. All in all we had adequate time and the longest drive was the final one from New Orleans to Atlanta which was 7 hours. Generally average time driving would be 3-4 hours so after breakfast we would hit the road. The Southern states are vast and sparse in places. There is not much to do really in Atlanta except the coca cola factory tour. In Nashville there is the CountryMusic hall fame pretty good spot. In Memphis we went to Graceland home of Elvis, Sun Studio (Where Elvis was discovered and where U2 have previously recorded) and to the motel where Martin Luther King was assassinated. In Dallas we went to south Fork Ranch where the series Dallas was filmed and to the JFK museum. Austin is a real party town at the weekend’s lots of bars so we partied for the weekend. We also went to Bill Clintons Presidential Museum in Little Rock; ironically he was there at the time. In Houston we went to see Nasa and then after that went to New Orleans. To be honest was very disappointed with New Orleans was pretty seedy i.e. strip clubs etc I suppose it still hasn’t fully recovered after hurricane Cathriona.

In 2005 we did the Route 66 Roadtrip from Chicago to LA passing through the states or Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada and California. This in my opinion was a better trip we went to Vegas etc the Hoover dam, Universal Studios etc.

USA is a great spot and both trips would be well worth doing 2 weeks minimum is the advice so you can take your time and have no major long driving. The people in the Southern States are very friendly especially in Texas. My advise is go if you can id do both trips again in the morning, brilliant times and memories.

Great thanks for all that! The 2005 trip you mentioned is really what im looking into, did it take you long to do that? was it very expensive to do? thanks

Limerick1981

Gal44 wrote: »

Great thanks for all that! The 2005 trip you mentioned is really what im looking into, did it take you long to do that? was it very expensive to do? thanks

Well again we went for two weeks but becasue we were spending three nights in Las Vegas(was to much in my opinion, im not a gambler and thus not my scene) we were driving for the first few days to make up time thus for the first three days or so we were driving, staying one night in a city and then hitting the road the next day that was kinda intense but wourth it in the end i suppose. 2.5 weeks be ideal for leisurly driving etc i reckon. We stayed two nights with friends in chicago first.

Its cheap to eat out in the USA and Motels are generally cheap and clean. When we wnet in 2005 there was 6 of us so obviosuly everything was divided by 6 so that made things cheaper i.e car rental, motels etc. the car renatl in 2005 was expensive i.e $2500 to rent the people carrier. Factors that made it so expensive was that all drivers were under 25 and we had to pay a supplement for that, also we were dropping the car off in a different lcoation over 3000 miles away. its cheaper if you can plan a trip where you return the car to the same lcoation

The more you get to go with you the better it will be cheaper. You should definetly do it be well worth it