International driving permit
 

We will be driving for 10 days in Germany and Austria...do we need an international driving permit? Also, will the car rental place automatically include the sticker we need to cross borders?

Hi SK,

You need an IDP in Austria.

If you are getting your car in Germany, you might have to buy your sticker when you reach the Austrian border.

((I))

Hi
We returned from Germany last Wednesday. We drove briefly into Austria. No border crossing at all. At Hertz, they asked which countries other than germany we may go into. When we said Austria they told us nothing else was needed. Just ask if the car has the timer to park in parking area. We found out that ours didn't have it, didn't need caused we parked elsewhere, but it is good to have.

You must have a sticker to drive on the major highways in Austria. About 8 Euros vs a large fine. You can buy the sticker at any border petrol station. You can also pick up a parking clock. Its a cardboard clock that you put in the dash with the time you arrived and the parking permit you bought.

There is NO requirement for a tourist to have an International Drivers License or German Drivers License if you are staying less than 6 months in Germany. The International Drivers Permit (IDP) is only a translation of your current drivers license (can be obtained at your local AAA) and is NOT required for driving in Germany - HOWEVER it is a requirement for driving in Austria. It is NOT a requirement to have one to rent a car but if you are caught driving without an IDP in Austria you are subject to being fined. If Hertz is telling people they don't need an IDP for Austria - they are wrong... Ben

Let me echo the above comments. The IDP is required for Austria.

Avis at one time said visitors did not need one if the license was in English.

I do not believe that is a true statement.

The vignette is required in Austria and there is also one required for the major highways in Switzerland. Our rental car this summer had a green sticker behind the rear view mirror.

The renting agency rep asked us if we were driving into Austria. We said no, only Switzerland, and possibly Germany.
No more stickers were needed.

To clarify, you don't need a sticker to cross the borders just for use of the roads.

Absolutely correct Ben!, while an IDP isn't even considered a legal document in Germany (could a well be a homemade translation from you german grandma), as Germany never singed that international treaty, it is requred in Austria. German police won't ask for an IDP! However it doesn't hurt to have a translation...

Don't be caught up in the semantics war of those saying they drove in Austria and didn't need an IDP. Technically if they didn't have an accident they didn't NEED to have any insurance either since it never became an issue.

It is required by law -- but of course the vast majority of those driving in Austria will never need to pull it out. Only those stopped by the police will NEED one, but it's a little late then to worry about getting one.

What is a parking clock? Do you need one where ever you park? From Norrisken's post you can get one at a border petro station, do you get a permit there also? This is the first I have heard about this.

I just looked this up in my guide book for Austria. No need to answer my question. I should have looked it up before I asked. Sorry

>parking clock
Seriously?, or are you just joking?

Talking of insurance...Do you need an international license to be covered by insurance? If you have an accident and you don't have one will they pay out? I've always obtained one to cover any "fine print" of the policy.

&quot;<i>What is a parking clock?</i>&quot;

&quot;<i>parking clock Seriously?, or are you just joking?</i>

No Norrisken was not joking and he described it accurately. They are used where parking is time-limited. You set the time you arrive and the parking warden can then see if you have over stayed. And DON&quot;T try to cheat by setting a later time - that brings a larger fine.

&gt;later time
Well, you have to set the time to the next half hour, so when you arrive a 8.01 you set the clock to 8.30, but when you arive at 7.59, 8.00 would be corrext. Those are the things you learn in driving school and never get out of your head ;-)

worldinabag, what an interesting question. If you were in an accident and it was your fault and you got fined for NOT having an IDP in a country where it is required -- would the insurance you carry cover you? I'm not so sure. In the US if you are driving without a valid license does that exempt your insurance from covering you?

I responded in another thread, separately.

But le me report briefly what I learned.
AutoEurope said in an email communication that in countries where the International driving document is required, the rental agency will not let you have the car unless you show a valid international driving document. Moreover, second drivers are not allowed without their own permit.

If that is true, the question is somewhat precluded. In my experience in Austria (3 rentals) I have never been asked for anything other than my US license. So the question probably is still hanging.

I have been required to to show a valid US license when signing for the car in all of my rentals, here and in Europe. If my license had expired, I doubt very much if I could have rented the car.

For driving in the US, the senior claims specialist in the southeastern office of my insurance company says that his company will cover the insured in the event of an at fault accident even if the license has expired.

If the license has been revoked or suspended, that is a different story all together.

His company issues automobile policies that are valid in the US and Canada, but never in Mexico. He doubted very much if renting a car in the US or Canada was possible with an expired license.

I think an agent who rented a car to a customer who did not have a valid license would be hung from the closest horizontal bar of sufficient height, if the incident was discovered.

I can see it now, under age driver rents from Company X, gets drunk, smashes up the car, injures others people etc.
Company X would be in hot water up to its collective necks.

The parking 'clock' is usually referred to as a 'parking disk' or 'Eine Parkscheibe'. As many years as I have been using the disk I never knew I should set the time of arrival to the next half hour. I have always set it as close to the actual time that I parked the car. Your tip might get me as much as an extra half hour now that I know about it. Thank you logos999... Ben

You're welcome, ben. ;-)

One other ting when parking. Some &quot;smart&quot; people come back to the car every hour to change the time on the disk. :-). A big no ,here. If traffic police have been there in the mean time, they may have marked one of your front wheels (usually on the right) with a piece of chalk to see, if the car has moved. If you see a chalk mark on your wheel find another place to park the car...