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Dollar Ireland rental terms

Renting Cars in Ireland - Rental Cars Ireland

The process of renting cars in Ireland is identical to the process everywhere else in the world. The main requirements are to have a full drivers license in your own name for at least two years, have a credit card and be over 25. For more information on all of these criteria needed for rental cars in Ireland, please see below:

Drivers License:
To drive a Dollar Thrifty rental car, drivers must be in possession of a full, unendorsed driving license which they have held for at least 2 years prior to the commencement of the rental. Licenses must be produced in person at the Dollar Thrifty location at the time of collection. Drivers must be in possession of their license at all times when driving the vehicle. Certain minor endorsements may be accepted - please check with Central Reservations before making a booking.

Licences must be from the country of permanent residence. Holders of UK, US, Canadian, Australian and all EU member states are NOT required to supply an International Driving Permit (IDP). International Driving Permits where required, MUST BE accompanied by the original domestic license of the driver. This is clearly stated on the international permit. An International permit presented without the domestic license, will not be accepted.

Any clients with a UK photo card driving license must have the 2 parts of their current driving license in their possession at time of rental. We cannot rent to UK clients who arrive with only one part of their license.

Age of Driver:
Drivers must be at least 25 years of age on commencement of the rental to drive groups A/B/C/J/K. For groups D/E/F/L the minimum age is 27 years and for groups H/N/O/P/R the minimum age is 28 years. Drivers may be asked to complete a Driver Safety Assessment Form upon arrival. Please be advised that a daily surcharge may apply depending on the outcome of the Safety Assessment Form.

Credit Card:
The main driver must be the holder of a major credit card which they must produce on arrival. A credit card is required for the excess/deductible and additional charges such as extra drivers, fuel, parking fines etc. We accept MasterCard, Visa, American Express and Diners Club. Payment must be made with a credit card as we do not accept cash, debit cards, electronic cards, prepaid credit cards (i.e. 3V cards) or the credit card from a third party. At the time of rental, there must be sufficient credit on your card to cover all charges including the excess/deductible amount.

Failure to produce your license or credit card will result in you being unable to pick up your car. You will also be unable to receive a refund for any deposit taken. We will not be held liable for any cost incurred by you if you are unable to pick up your car as a result of failing to produce the above items.

If you have any questions on the process or about renting a car in ireland, please do not hesitate to email us.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the requirements to rent from Dollar?
Licence: To drive a Dollar rental vehicle, drivers must be in possession of a full, unendorsed driving licence which they have held for at least 2 years prior to the commencement of the rental. Licences must be produced in person at the Dollar location at the time of collection. Drivers must be in possession of their licence at all times when driving the vehicle. If a driver has any endorsements on their license, they must contact our Reservations Department prior to booking as there may be restrictions on renting. Failure to inform us of endorsements will result in the driver being refused the vehicle and forfeiting any deposit taken.

Licences must be from the country of permanent residence. Holders of UK, US, Canadian, Australian and all EU member states are NOT required to supply an International Driving Permit (IDP). International Driving Permits where required, MUST BE accompanied by the original domestic licence of the driver. This is clearly stated on the international permit. An International permit presented without the domestic licence, will not be accepted.

Any clients with a UK photo card driving licence must have the 2 parts of their current driving licence in their possession at time of rental. We cannot rent to UK clients who arrive with only one part of their licence.

Age: Drivers must be at least 25 years of age on commencement of the rental to drive groups A/B/C/J/K. For groups D/E/F/L the minimum age is 27 years and for groups H/N/O/P/R/RA/R7/RA7/S/T/TA the minimum age is 28 years. Drivers over the age of 74 will need to provide a medical certificate which states that they are fit to drive and a letter from their insurance company stating that they are currently driving and have not had an accident within the last 5 years. This information must be received in advance of your rental.

Credit Card: The main driver must be the holder of a major credit card which they must produce on arrival. A credit card is required for the excess/deductible and additional charges such as extra drivers, fuel, parking fines etc. We accept MasterCard, Visa, American Express and Diners Club. Payment must be made with a credit card as we do not accept cash, debit cards, electronic cards or the credit card from a third party. At the time of rental, there must be sufficient credit on your card to cover all charges including the excess/deductible amount.

Failure to produce your licence or credit card will result in you being unable to pick up your car. You will also be unable to receive a refund for any deposit taken. We will not be held liable for any cost incurred by you if you are unable to pick up your car as a result of failing to produce the above items.

What do the online rates include?
Dollar's online rates are inclusive of VAT, third party insurance, collision damage waiver insurance, theft protection insurance, unlimited mileage, 24 hour roadside assistance and road map. Rates are based on 24 hour rental periods.

If you have chosen to waive our CDW insurance, you must hold either a US issued World MasterCard or Canadian issued Gold/Platinum Visa/MasterCard and provide WRITTEN PROOF that the card has relevant coverage for THE REPUBLIC OF IRELAND. If a relevant card and cover letter are not produced at time of commencement of rental OR you have chosen an exclusive rate, and do not hold a credit card that will cover you for CDW insurance, you will be charged for CDW on arrival at the local daily rate. Only US issued World MasterCard or Canadian issued Gold/Platinum Visa/MasterCard can be used to waive CDW coverage. If you have any queries, please check with your issuing bank before your arrival to see if you are covered in the Republic of Ireland.

What is not included in the rates?
Dollar's online rates are exclusive of:
- Airport surcharge
- Excess/deductible
- Additional driver surcharge
- Driver Safety Assessment Surcharge (where required)
- Optional insurance coverage
- Fuel
- Traffic Fines

What is the airport surcharge?
All vehicles collected at an airport location are subject to an airport surcharge of 22Euro plus VAT.

What is my excess / liability in case of damage?
All vehicles have an excess / liability amount as follows:
 

Can I have additional drivers?
Additional drivers can be insured on all vehicle groups and must satisfy the same licence and age conditions as the main driver and assume the same responsibility for the rental vehicle. A maximum of 4 additional drivers is permitted on all groups except Groups H, O & P where a maximum of 6 additional drivers is permitted.

To drive a rental vehicle, drivers must be in possession of a full, unendorsed driving licence which they have held for at least 2 years prior to the commencement of the rental. Licences must be produced in person at the Thrifty location at the time of collection. A daily charge applies PER additional driver as follows:
Groups Daily Charge
A/B/C/D/E/F/J/K/L €7.95 per day per additional driver
H/N/O/P/R/RA/R7/RA7/S/T/TA €9.08 per day per additional driver

Please note unauthorised drivers are not covered by our insurance and are prohibited from driving the rental car.

What optional coverage do you provide?
Super Damage Waiver Insurance (SDW)
This is our excess/deductible waiver insurance that reduces your excess/deductible:
 

Protection Plus (PP)
This option is only applicable to those who have chosen an exclusive rate. PP covers you for items that your credit card will not cover for i.e. tyres and windscreens.
Groups Daily Rate
All groups €11.35

What is your fuel policy?
At all airport locations your car will be provided with a full tank of fuel. For your convenience, we will ask you to prepay for your fuel. This method eliminates the need for you to refuel the tank prior to returning. Please be aware that we are unable to issue a refund for unused fuel. Please ask on arrival at our city centre locations for the local fuel policy.

How do I pay the toll along the M50?
Drivers of vehicles using the M50 between junctions 6 and 7 will pass through a barrier free toll. Payment for toll charges incurred by car rentals crossing the M50 toll bridge will now be paid by Thrifty Car Rental and directly charged to the rental.For more information please see the eflow Leaflet aimed at car rental customers in PDF format. This information can be found at all of our rental locations and applies only to the M50 Toll Bridge.

It is important to note that if you cross the M50 Toll Bridge and post pay the toll, you will be charged twice. Thrifty Car Rental have no way of knowing who have paid tolls.

Toll Charges
Blue Arrow Car €4.50 (including €2 Administration charge)
Blue Arrow Vans €5.50 (including €2 Administration charge)
Blue Arrow Large Vans €6.60 (including €2 Administration charge)

If you have any questions about toll payments, please do not hesitate to contact us.

Can I travel to Northern Ireland?
If travelling to Northern Ireland, there is a fee of €34.05 per rental. Vehicles may NOT be taken off the island of Ireland.

What is the maximum amount of time I can stay in the same car?
For tax reasons, you cannot stay in the same car for more than 30 consecutive days. If your reservation is for longer than 30 days, you must change into a new vehicle at some stage during your rental. Please discuss the best time for your change over when you collect your vehicle.

Can I return my car to a different location?
One way rentals are allowed between all branches – please see chart below for one way drop off prices. One way rentals to Belfast International Airport are no longer permitted.
 

When is a booking confirmed?
Your reservation will be confirmed when availability has been checked, you have received a reservation number and a deposit has been taken from your credit card.

What is Dollar's deposit/cancellation policy?
Once availability has been confirmed, 60% is charged.
Cancellation Insurance can be purchased for €5 per week. If Cancellation Insurance has been purchased, and you cancel at least 24 hours before your pickup time, all charges less the Cancellation Insurance will be refunded.
Where Cancellation Insurance has not been purchased, reservations cancelled at least 24 hours before your pickup time will incur a 15% cancellation fee.
Cancellations less than 24 hours from the pickup time will result in a loss of your deposit.

Do I need to provide flight information?
For all airport collections, you must provide us with the correct flight number and arrival time when booking your vehicle. If this information is not available to you at the time of booking, you must provide us with it at least 5 days before your arrival date. If we do not receive this information in time, we cannot take responsibility for a failed rental.

Is there an out of hours fee?
For all collections out of office hours, there is a standard fee of 28.38Euro. All requests are on a request basis only.

Do you provide baby seats and booster seats?
Baby and booster seats are available on request and should be booked when reserving your car. Our baby seats are forward facing and are suitable for children aged from 9 months up to 4 years depending on the size of the child (9kg - 18kg). Our booster seats are suitable for children aged from 2 years up to 8 years. Both are charged at €6.81 per day (maximum charge of €47.67 per seat).

Do you provide GPS units?
GPS units are available for 10Euro per day or 50Euro per week and can be reserved when making your booking online.

Other information
Confirmation
Please read your confirmation carefully and check all details are correct i.e. pick up date, flight number, car type.

Car Returns
Cars that are returned outside branch opening and closing times, and/or not returned to the correct car rental office will be charged for any damage or any loss incurred until the car is returned to the car rental company. This includes spare keys, car park charges etc. Cars may not be returned outside branch opening and closing times other than by prior arrangement.

Traffic Fines
Parking, speeding and other traffic fines are the responsibility of the main renter and will be charged to your credit card when the fine is received.

VAT
The VAT rate in Ireland is currently 13.5% and is included in all of the above charges. VAT is subject to change.


If you have a question and it has not been answered above, please email your question to rent@thrifty.ie.
 

Dollar Ireland Rental Terms for travel between 01-Jan-2008 and 31-Dec-2008

Dollar Ireland Insurance