If you're aged under 25 and have been looking to hire a car, you may have hit several brick walls. Unfortunately, the car rental industry perceives younger drivers to be of a higher risk. You'll face a Younger Driver Surcharge when hiring a car with certain providers to cover the additional risk. This is usually charged on a per day basis and can range in price up to £50 per day.
You'll also have to meet the provider's driving licence requirements. In some cases you may need to have held your licence for 3 years.
The minimum age limits imposed by providers are also influenced by regional and national driving regulations so these will vary between country.
Don't forget that you'll need a credit card in your name with a credit limit suitable to cover the security deposit to collect the car.
These different factors can make it difficult for you to hire a car.
Hiring through Zest
Here at Zest, we want to make it as easy as possible for you to find out whether you're able to hire a car or not with one of the suppliers that we work with.
Younger Driver Surcharges
When searching for car hire on our website, if your age falls into a bracket where a young driver surcharge is applicable, you’ll see this displayed clearly as a 'Mandatory Local Charge'. We show this and all extra charges upfront so there are no nasty surprises when you collect the vehicle.
Insurance products
All bookings through Zest include Collision Damage and Theft Waiver (CDW) with either no insurance excess or Excess Reimbursement Insurance (ERI). Where ERI has been negotiated, we can only hire to those aged between 21-84 years of age as long as they meet all the other conditions in place from the car rental provider.
Check the licence requirements
When looking at search results, always read the terms and conditions of hire to ensure you're able to meet the driving licence requirements. Some may require you to have held your licence for 1 year, some may say 3 years. Just because you don't meet the requirements of one provider, this doesn't mean none of them will hire to you. Always read the terms to make sure you get the right deal.
Plan your trip away
If you're 21 or older, you can relax on the Black Sea coast of Bulgaria, take a Game of Thrones tour in Croatia, or explore the Mayan ruins in Mexico, all with the assistance of a hire car.
Here are some other examples of countries you could visit along with their minimum hire ages:
| Australia | 25 | Greek Islands | 19 |
| Canada | 25 | Ireland | 25 |
| Cyprus | 21 | Italy | 19 |
| Northern Cyprus | 25 | New Zealand | 25 |
| Canary Islands | 21 | Malta | 21 |
| France | 25 | USA | 25 |
| Greece | 19 |
subject to change, surcharge may be applicable
If you search for car rental but find no results, get in touch with us to discuss your requirements either by email or telephone. Our friendly Customer Support Team will be more than happy to assist you to make your next dream trip away become a reality.
