Car hire calm or chaos? Whatever, get the passcode before you set off
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Version 0 of 1. Will scrapping the paper counterpart of the driving licence really cause chaos at car hire desks this summer? That’s the question many of you have posed, after reading our lead story last week. Guardian Money’s phones have been running hot all week with calls from readers worried the changes could leave them without a hire car and fuming at the airport rental desk. If you missed it, the DVLA is ending the paper counterpart that is currently issued alongside the credit card-style plastic licence with your picture on it. The problem for car rental companies is that the paper bit lists your endorsements, and if you have too many they won’t let you have a car. After 8 June, people who want to rent a car will have to log on to the DVLA website and input their licence and national insurance number. The system then generates a one-time passcode – valid for 72 hours – which renters give to the hire company so their staff can access your speeding offences, or worse. Alternatively, you will be able to download a PDF from the DVLA before heading off on holiday, which will show any endorsements. The article provoked fierce debate online – not just on our website but also on other media that followed up the story. Indeed, by Monday it was the best read story across the BBC. Many readers argued that they had not, for years, been asked for the paper counterpart when hiring a car in Europe and see no problem with its removal. The boss of one of the biggest car hire brokers, Economy Car Hire, wrote to me saying: “Most of the car hire suppliers that we work with are not interested in endorsements, and take the view that if you have got a licence, then you can drive. “It is only a few UK companies that we deal with who actually look at the endorsements and may say that you can’t drive if you have any major ones. We have already received a lot of feedback from our rental partners and they are saying that customers will be fine to rent without the paper counterpart.” But America might prove to be a problem; lots of you who have hired there wrote to say that you are usually asked for the endorsement history. I frequently visit Ireland, and on most occasions the car hire desk has asked for the counterpart licence. What is undeniable is that this change is a bit of a mess. Despite a six-month delay in its introduction, both the DVLA and the car hire firms have done little to publicise the change, while merrily taking bookings for this summer. Worryingly, the “Share Driving Licence” website drivers are supposed to use is still not up and running, although you can go online and check your driving entitlements and endorsements at gov.uk. If you are hiring in the UK after 8 June it will be sensible to go through the process of producing the code or printing off the PDF. If you are heading abroad, taking the risk of not obtaining a passcode before leaving is up to you. For my part, I probably will print off my (lack of) endorsements before heading to France in June. My tip to anyone driving abroad this summer – in a hire car or their own vehicle – is to take a note of your national insurance number. This will allow you to remotely access your driving details, however unexpectedly. p.collinson@theguardian.com |