My First Car Hire – Young Drivers

After all the stress and pressure of passing a driving theory and practical test, now you’re the proud owner of a full driving licence. Now you’re ready for that magical road trip with your friends and to start an adventure like no other before. Being a young driver – with at least one to two years of driving experience (depending on the car hire supplier), you now have the green light to rent your first car hire. Auto Europe provides young drivers the possibility of hiring a car hire from multiple car rental suppliers around the world. Generally, suppliers will only hire vehicles from the Mini and Economy car categories to younger drivers. On occasions, some car hire suppliers may upgrade young drivers to a Compact model. As a young driver, it is important that you familiarise yourself with the age requirements and the processes involved in renting a car.

Minimum Age Limit

Generally, car hire suppliers consider young drivers to be between 19 years of age and 24 or 26 years of age. Some companies have a lower entry age of 18 years of age.

Identity documents and driving licence

When you go to pick-up the vehicle, the driver should present to staff a valid identification and driving licence. The driving licence must have been held for a minimum of one year. For some car hire suppliers, the driving licence will have to have been held for a minimum of two years.

Credit Cards

It is mandatory for the main driver to present a valid credit card upon collecting the vehicle. The credit card must have enough funds for a security deposit to be held on it. Debit cards and cash are not accepted for this purpose. The credit card cannot belong to anyone else other than the driver – parents credit cards are not accepted. The deposit will be released back onto the same card once the rental has been returned and confirmed to be in the same condition as when it left. On rare occasions, car hire suppliers may offer the possibility of using a debit card as form of deposit. If this is the case, they will require the driver to take out extra insurance. For further information, give us a call.

Young Driver Fee

All young drivers are obliged to pay a young driver fee. The amount is stipulated by the car rental supplier and is generally between 5€ to 30€ per day in Europe. The exact amount can be viewed in the search results on our website. Often this is displayed under the basic rental rate, or simply click on the blue icon.

Additional Driver

If you plan to add another driver to the rental, that driver will be charged an additional driver fee. They will also need to pay the young driver fee if they are under 26 years of age. Fees are clearly displayed on our website and charged locally.