Rental car for driving test

Bitches Be Trypsin

Hi all,

Long story short I’m hoping to get an emergency healthcare worker driving test during COVID (if they even go ahead).

My problem is I can’t get home due to lockdown, and I work in a hospital, so I don’t really want to go home anyway to my parents. My plan was to get temporary insurance on my moms car to practice and do the test, but that won’t happen now. I don’t have a car.

Does anyone know if any car rental companies allow rental on a provisional licence? I would be accompanied by my housemate who has been driving 9 years.

I can’t rent a car from a driving instructor for just the hour for the test, I need a rental for a few days, for practicing.

Any info or ideas would really be appreciated!

darragh o meara

Bitches Be Trypsin wrote: »

Hi all,

Long story short I’m hoping to get an emergency healthcare worker driving test during COVID (if they even go ahead).

My problem is I can’t get home due to lockdown, and I work in a hospital, so I don’t really want to go home anyway to my parents. My plan was to get temporary insurance on my moms car to practice and do the test, but that won’t happen now. I don’t have a car.

Does anyone know if any car rental companies allow rental on a provisional licence? I would be accompanied by my housemate who has been driving 9 years.

I can’t rent a car from a driving instructor for just the hour for the test, I need a rental for a few days, for practicing.

Any info or ideas would really be appreciated!

Firstly, I’m pretty sure they check the insurance cert as part of the test. Rental car companies won’t give you that.

Secondly, I’ve never heard of a rental co. renting to someone with a provisional licence.

I’d have a chat with the driving instructor and get a few lessons from him and offer him a few quid for the car for the test. Do you have the mandatory lessons completed and signed off? You can’t book the test without them.

Bitches Be Trypsin

darragh o meara wrote: »

Firstly, I’m pretty sure they check the insurance cert as part of the test. Rental car companies won’t give you that.

Secondly, I’ve never heard of a rental co. renting to someone with a provisional licence.

I’d have a chat with the driving instructor and get a few lessons from him and offer him a few quid for the car for the test. Do you have the mandatory lessons completed and signed off? You can’t book the test without them.

I have all the lessons done and signed off yes. My problem is we can’t do lessons at the minute with COVID- I could be sitting my test in the next few weeks when the instructors still cannot work. So I can’t use his car then

Gatling

Rental companies won't let you rent a car unless you have a full driving license 2+ years ,you only have a learners permit?

Bitches Be Trypsin

Gatling wrote: »

Rental companies won't let you rent a car unless you have a full driving license 2+ years ,you only have a learners permit?

Yes only a learners permit. I would be accompanied by my housemate who has full licence with years.

I guess I’m just wondering has anyone any ideas what I could do?

darragh o meara

Bitches Be Trypsin wrote: »

Yes only a learners permit. I would be accompanied by my housemate who has full licence with years.

I guess I’m just wondering has anyone any ideas what I could do?

Does your fully licenced friend have a car? If they do why not ask if they can get you added temporarily to your insurance and go that route.

Otherwise, insure and use whatever car you intend driving after you get you licence.

You could ring the driving instructor and ask him to rent you his car for the test, if he’s off work the few bob might be welcome.

cannotlogin

Might be a silly question but if you are getting an emergency healthcare worker test, then there must be an immediate need for you to drive.

What car will you be driving if you pass the test? Because if you don't have a car to drive, how is it an emergency?

Your tester would probably be happy to give you his car

J_R

Bitches Be Trypsin wrote: »

Hi all,

Long story short I’m hoping to get an emergency healthcare worker driving test during COVID (if they even go ahead).

My problem is I can’t get home due to lockdown, and I work in a hospital, so I don’t really want to go home anyway to my parents. My plan was to get temporary insurance on my moms car to practice and do the test, but that won’t happen now. I don’t have a car.

Does anyone know if any car rental companies allow rental on a provisional licence? I would be accompanied by my housemate who has been driving 9 years.

I can’t rent a car from a driving instructor for just the hour for the test, I need a rental for a few days, for practicing.

Any info or ideas would really be appreciated!

Hi,

• Vehicles hired under a hire agreement are not generally insured for a driving test.
If you plan to use such a vehicle, you must get a note from the hire company indicating that it is insured for the driving test. This must be given to the driver tester on the day of the test

From:- RSA CHECKLIST FOR YOUR DRIVING TEST
So, it is possible to use a hired car. Now all you need do is find a company that will provide you with one, phone around.

Best of luck in finding a car and in your test.

Sleeper12

You don't have a provisional license. You don't have any licence. You have a learners permit. Car hire companies can't hire a car to you unless you have a licence.

Do you have a friend locally that could put you on the policy? You will need a qualified full licence holder in your household to be in the car as you practice

As far as I remember all driving tests & lessons are not allowed at the moment. You can't be in a car with someone not from the same household at the moment

iconnect

Drivingtestcarhire.ie. I have a interest in this business . Mods can delete if inappropriate.
If you can get a test from the RSA on approved grounds then we may be able to help .
I would suggest you would need a letter from a relevant body to prove that your need to drive.
That way it could be deemed as essential to do some lessons .
.If it is ok with boards etc You can contact me back .

Cork Trucker

Gatling wrote: »

Rental companies won't let you rent a car unless you have a full driving license 2+ years ,you only have a learners permit?

I rented a car with enterprise 2 weeks after passing my test, I had to use my own insurance though and they had to have it confirmed directly by the company before releasing the car. I was under 25 then.

Bitches Be Trypsin

Thanks so much for the replies. I could get insured on his car but it’s a 2L Jeep and I think it’s a lot on a learner driver!

It will be necessary for me to drive soon as I’ll be doing longer hours, I walk to and from work at the minute, but soon the shifts will be different due to COVID and I don’t want to be walking home alone at 11 at night.

I’ll be buying a car when I pass the test. I don’t really want to beforehand as the insurance is very expensive.

I’ll PM you about car rental Ireland, thanks

Dravokivich

OP, rental companies usually have a statement in the agreement on what the car can/cant be used for. I doubt a learner would be permitted to be included as a driver. From from examiners point of view, once there is a suspicion the driver cant legally drive the car, the car cant legally be on the road, or that the car is not fit to be driven, they will cancel the test.

Also, no testing centres are operating right now...

Gatling wrote: »

Rental companies won't let you rent a car unless you have a full driving license 2+ years ,you only have a learners permit?

I've rented off enterprise with only months of getting a full license.

Dravokivich

Bitches Be Trypsin wrote: »

Thanks so much for the replies. I could get insured on his car but it’s a 2L Jeep and I think it’s a lot on a learner driver!

It will be necessary for me to drive soon as I’ll be doing longer hours, I walk to and from work at the minute, but soon the shifts will be different due to COVID and I don’t want to be walking home alone at 11 at night.

I’ll be buying a car when I pass the test. I don’t really want to beforehand as the insurance is very expensive.

I’ll PM you about car rental Ireland, thanks

Dont be afraid of the size of the engine. Learn how to read a bhp chart for an engine and you'll understand that the "power" isnt until you are very high up on engine speed. It's why it's usually stated as ###bhp @ ####rpm.

MascotDec85

From the RSA website:

Q5. I am involved in the delivery of emergency or essential services and need a driving test


There will be a facility in exceptional circumstances to facilitate urgent driving tests. Please be aware that given the restrictions that are currently in place for Covid -19 we can only prioritise driving tests for customers who work with the emergency services eg. Ambulance Service, Fire Service, Civil Defence, medical professionals and critical supply chain HGV drivers. All other requests will be dealt with when testing resumes. At this point it is not known when testing will resume, but we will update our website in advance once we know when it will resume. If you are a member of one of the above professions and have such a critical need for a driving test, please contact us on urgentdrivingtest@rsa.ie to explain your circumstances and we will contact you about your request. Please ensure that you have applied for the test and received your acknowledgement notification. You should include your test application details so that we can assess your requirement and contact you about your request.

Following risk assessments, we are unfortunately unable to undertake Category B (car/light van) driving tests on an emergency basis and comply with public health guidance on measures to avoid the spread of Covid-19. This is because the driver tester would be required to be within a two metre distance continuously for a period in excess of 20 minutes.

MascotDec85

iconnect wrote: »

Drivingtestcarhire.ie. I have a interest in this business . Mods can delete if inappropriate.
If you can get a test from the RSA on approved grounds then we may be able to help .
I would suggest you would need a letter from a relevant body to prove that your need to drive.
That way it could be deemed as essential to do some lessons .
.If it is ok with boards etc You can contact me back .

You can’t get a test in a car or van at this time. See my post above.

Bitches Be Trypsin

MascotDec85 wrote: »

You can’t get a test in a car or van at this time. See my post above.

I have seen that, but yet the first paragraph says they will facilitate tests, in what vehicle are they referring to if it’s not a car or light van?

MascotDec85

Bitches Be Trypsin wrote: »

I have seen that, but yet the first paragraph says they will facilitate tests, in what vehicle are they referring to if it’s not a car or light van?

Bus, truck, bike

Kopparberg Strawberry and Lime

In line with RSA guidelines you most definitely won't get a driving test in a car regardless of circumstances. It's their rule for practicing social distancing etc.



On another note, I got sent a message today telling me Airport driving school are doing car lessons. One was seen today in Blanchardstown

MascotDec85

Kopparberg Strawberry and Lime wrote: »

In line with RSA guidelines you most definitely won't get a driving test in a car regardless of circumstances. It's their rule for practicing social distancing etc.



On another note, I got sent a message today telling me Airport driving school are doing car lessons. One was seen today in Blanchardstown

It could have been an instructor with one of their own kids.

Kopparberg Strawberry and Lime

MascotDec85 wrote: »

It could have been an instructor with one of their own kids.

No I very highly doubt it

Airport have a very distinctive uniform and the guy was wearing it.

And without being offensive the instructor and student were very different ethnics and so on

Either way it was definitely a lesson. I was sent a picture


Even if it was a father/mother son/daughter situation should they be out driving anyway considering a car lesson with out being a necessary journey ?

LorelaiG

Bitches Be Trypsin wrote: »

Thanks so much for the replies. I could get insured on his car but it’s a 2L Jeep and I think it’s a lot on a learner driver!

It will be necessary for me to drive soon as I’ll be doing longer hours, I walk to and from work at the minute, but soon the shifts will be different due to COVID and I don’t want to be walking home alone at 11 at night.

I’ll be buying a car when I pass the test. I don’t really want to beforehand as the insurance is very expensive.

I’ll PM you about car rental Ireland, thanks

My insurance only went down by about 100 euro when I passed my test. I was the main driver on the policy. It had open drive due to me having a learner permit so anyone over the age of 25 with a full licence could drive it fully comp. This is with AXA. I would buy and insure the car now.

MascotDec85

Kopparberg Strawberry and Lime wrote: »

No I very highly doubt it

Airport have a very distinctive uniform and the guy was wearing it.

And without being offensive the instructor and student were very different ethnics and so on

Either way it was definitely a lesson. I was sent a picture


Even if it was a father/mother son/daughter situation should they be out driving anyway considering a car lesson with out being a necessary journey ?

Just playing devil’s advocate.
I agree, they shouldn’t be out. Long term maybe their reputation will suffer detrimentally.
I’d an enquiry about lessons yesterday. I couldn’t believe it tbh. Some people are either thick, don’t give a f*ck or a combination of both.

capefear

They seem to be giving lessons alright but they have put in precautionary measures

https://airportdrivingschool.com/driving-lessons/business-as-usual/

Kopparberg Strawberry and Lime

For a car I can feel students wanting to keep up practice. But with the cancellation of tests and the long delays that will occur on the return of tests I think students will have plenty of time when it's all over to practice again.

As for precautions. From the image I saw the student was wearing gloves , but not sure of a face mask . The instructor was not wearing a mask.

On some of the larger vehicles like HGVs and buses they have fitted screens and other measures and I can see that as ok at a push if someone has an emergency test in one.

I do agree it will damage their reputation. Even more so

MascotDec85

capefear wrote: »

They seem to be giving lessons alright but they have put in precautionary measures

https://airportdrivingschool.com/driving-lessons/business-as-usual/

Yeah they say they’ve fitted screens in all vehicles. I’d love to see a screen in a car.
You could argue that screens would be more important in a car given you’re so much closer to each other than you would be in a truck or bus where they definitely have them fitted.

By teaching at this time, in a car, they are surely breaching the non-essential travel guidelines.

marilynrr

Kopparberg Strawberry and Lime wrote: »

Even if it was a father/mother son/daughter situation should they be out driving anyway considering a car lesson with out being a necessary journey ?

No...but people do stupid things!
A couple of weeks ago a driving instructor was caught giving a 14 year old a lesson on a public road in Wicklow!!! :eek:
Surely it must have been their own child but how stupid of that instructor, they surely won't be able to work as an ADI anymore?

tugii20

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/113278004#Comment_113278004

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/113284380#Comment_113284380

Did you find any car rental companies that allow learner permits to rent out cars? have you already passed your driving test by now?

if so can you share your experience?

I am also a learner permit holder and have no cars like you, I don't have insurance as well, just thinking how am I able to complete the driving test, I have received a letter saying there is a slot available for booking in driving test. but I am not too confident to do it as do not have much drive experience on the road because don't have a car even though I have completed a 12hours complimentary lesson

to sit on a driving test, do I have to purchase insurance in my name even if I do not have a car? may I pay a 2hours lesson to the private instructor and use the car for the test? but is it still okay if I don't have insurance in my name?