Hi all,
There is a similar thread on this topic, but I haven't quite found the answer to my situation yet...
I am a Med student in NZ, and I'm planning my overseas elective in the UK, which I will do in August/September 2016. My placement in the UK will probably be for 4 weeks.
Part of this is in a remote area, and they require me to have a vehicle.
So I thought: that's fine, I'll just rent.
But things in life aren't always easy, I guess.
I understand that most companies in the UK require me to have held my full NZ license for at least 1 year. However, I am on my restricted license at the moment, and can only get my full early next year (meaning that at the time of rental, I will have only had it for 7/8 months).
After much searching, I found Enterprise, which apparently does not have that rule!
However, I will be 23 years old at the time of rental, and they do not rent to under 25s.
Any ideas on what I can do? Are there any companies at all that will rent to me? Any other ways that I can work around this? I really don't want to miss out on this placement...
Cheers
Have you raised this with whoever is overseeing your placement? It can't be beyond their ability to provide a vehicle for use by a student. And we have no equivalent of a "restricted " licence here either - once you've passed your test, that's it. Whether any UK hire company would consider the NZ restrictions I would have thought doubtful, a bigger problem might be your age as many hirers have a minimum age limit of 25.
and they require me to have a vehicle
What is the vehicle for? If it is only for travel between sites, then you could perhaps get away with a moped alias scooter (speed-limited motorbike below 50CC, approximately). Since insuring anything on a foreign licence is tricky, probably the easiest would be to get a UK provisional licence, which is sufficient to ride one; then buy a second hand scooter, and insure it as a resident, which as a student in full time education you will be. You have to do Compulsory Basic Training, but that can be completed in a day. https://www.gov.uk/ride-motorcycle-moped/overview
Maybe you'll find that even a pedal cycle would suffice.
A lot of companies will rent to under 25's but with a premium. The other option could be to look for a small local rental company who are sometimes more flexible.
You may need to find out first whether your restricted licence is legally a "full and valid driving licence" under British law that allows you to drive within the UK. This is a legal definition.
If it does not comply a car hire company would not knowingly enter into a contract with you. You may therefore wish to check with DVLA (Driving and Vehicle Licensing Authority; a UK government agency. You should therefore also be very careful when agreeing any T&Cs if making an internet based booking. Clarify first with the company's help desk.
R
Thanks mate.
Yeah, my restricted license is definitely not a "full and valid driving licence", but I should have my full NZ license early next year.
Have you raised this with whoever is overseeing your placement? It can't be beyond their ability to provide a vehicle for use by a student. And we have no equivalent of a "restricted " licence here either - once you've passed your test, that's it. Whether any UK hire company would consider the NZ restrictions I would have thought doubtful, a bigger problem might be your age as many hirers have a minimum age limit of 25.
The thing is I am looking at doing this placement with a charity organisation, so I feel like it would be unfair to ask them to provide a vehicle. The main problem appears to be that I will only have my full license for about 8 months, rather than the desired 12 by most companies. I would be happy to pay a young drivers surcharge
Generally speaking, regardless of your age, no hire co. will rent you a car without seeing a 'Full' licence first at any price.
Generally speaking, regardless of your age, no hire co. will rent you a car without seeing a 'Full' licence first at any price.
Oh yes, for sure. I will have a full license at the time of rental. I just will not have had it for 12 months.
Hired a car a few years ago whilst a student and the company asked me if I could give another profession.
As I'd just left my job as an outdoor instructor, I gave the third choice optiion - journalist.
Have you asked the placement people - even if they are a charity, they should have some kind of knowledge of how to solve such problems.
Most of the charities I know of have some kind of commercial dealings either at national or local level.
Email the charity and ask them, because it may be the case that they have had the problem before in that area or another part of the country.
My GF works for a medical charity in the UK and they get travel by either cabs or other forms of transport for training and other purposes.
The longer you leave it to ask, the longer the problem will exist!
Just do it...
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