Hiring a car in the UK<br>Hiring a car in the UK<br>16 August 2026<br>–––

uk<br>driving

My wife recently passed her driving test, and we decided to hire a car from Enterprise in Lewisham for a trip to Seven Sisters with our toddler. Neither of us had ever hired a car before, so we did some research online and spoke to friends to understand the process. We were nervous about driving a car that we didn't own, and particularly about how much we would get charged in case we did have an accident and damaged the vehicle. In this article, I describe the process end-to-end and what we learned, in the hope that someone may find this helpful.

Table of contents#

1. You need a licence and credit card to hire a car

2. Choose where to hire from

2.1. Traditional hire company

2.2. An intermediary

2.3. P2P platform

3. Excess insurance is significantly cheaper with standalone cover

4. Book early if you can, as prices fluctuate

5. Schedule your hire based on the opening hours of the branch

6. Make a plan before you even pick up the car

7. Our experience with Enterprise

7.1. Enterprise groups cars by tiers

7.2. Add-ons, such as excess cover, cost extra

7.3. Picking up the car

7.4. The drive

7.5. Returning the car

7.6. The final receipt and payment experience was disappointing

8. Conclusion

1. You need a licence and credit card to hire a car#

Satisfy the minimum age requirement, which varies between hire companies.

Full UK driving licence

My wife got her licence about a month ago. I called up Enterprise ahead of time and confirmed that this wouldn't be a problem.

Avis, for example, requires you to have held your licence for at least one year.

A credit card in the driver's name with space for the hire, and a deposit of £200.

Credit cards are preferred because they reduce risk for the hire company [Expedia - Can you use a debit card to rent a car?].

If the total hire costs over £100, a credit card also gives you extra protection [moneysavingexpert - How to book cheap car hire].

If you plan to use a debit card, make sure the hire company will accept it ahead of time.

We weren't asked for a DVLA check code (valid for 21 days), but some rental companies may ask for this too.

2. Choose where to hire from#

In this section, we will compare some of the main options in detail. However, if it's your first hire, I suggest not overthinking it or trying to find the cheapest one. Just make sure you have excess protection, which we will discuss in a later section. I went with Enterprise mostly because one of my friends recommended it and because they don't have a requirement to have held the licence for at least one year.

2.1. Traditional hire company#

Consider whether you might have access to discounts to any hire companies,<br>e.g., via your employer.

The table below compares some of these hire companies. The Which? column is the customer score from its survey of 3,637 renters. Which? surveys a representative panel it recruits itself. Trustpilot is open to anyone, so for most hire firms it collects the angry minority. From this table, it looks like Arnold Clark is the only decent one, but unfortunately their branch was slightly further away from our place.

CompanyWhich? scoreTrustpilotLicence held forMinimum ageExcess protectionRoadside coverArnold Clark

82%

4.9 (32,567)

1 year*

23, plus £25/day if under 25

Cost: £15/day

Excess reduced to: £0

Included: Roadside assistance and breakdown recovery

Alamo

76%

2.0 (316)

Not specified

25

Cost: Quoted at booking only

Included: Breakdown

Add-on: Roadside Plus, priced at booking - covers lost keys, lockouts, a flat tyre change and fuel delivery.

Enterprise

74%

1.9 (9,226)

Not specified

25

Cost: £20/day

Excess reduced to: £100/£250

Included: 24-hour breakdown, for mechanical faults only

Add-on: Roadside Assistance Protection, £10/day - covers tyres, glass and your-fault recovery.

Sixt

68%

3.6 (5,193)

1 year

21, plus a young driver surcharge if under 25

Cost: Quoted at booking only

Included: 24/7 roadside assistance

Add-on: Tyre and glass protection, priced at booking.

Europcar

67%

1.5 (17,164)

1 year

22, plus a young driver surcharge if under 28

Cost: Medium from £42.50/day, Premium from £54.50/day

Excess reduced to: £350-£1,050 on Medium, £0 on Premium

Included: 24/7 breakdown, but your-fault call-outs, wrong fuel, lost keys, punctures and battery failure all attract a flat charge

Add-on: Assistance Plus Protection, priced at booking, waives the flat charges.

Hertz

65%

1.2 (3,090)

1 year

21, plus a young driver surcharge if under 25

Cost: SuperCover, quoted at booking only

Included: Emergency roadside assistance, but you pay the call-out and repair costs where you are at fault

Add-on: Premium Emergency Roadside Assistance, priced at booking. Covers batteries, tyres, glass, fuel delivery.

Budget

65%

1.3 (378)

1 year

23, plus a daily fee if under 25

Cost: Zero Excess package, £22-£37/day depending on group

Excess reduced to:...