Driving licence

How long do I need to have held my driver's license for to rent with SIXT?

All drivers (including any additional drivers) have to be in possession / have held a valid full driving licence for at least 12 months.
 

IMPORTANT – Further restrictions apply dependent on driver age and type of vehicle required. Please refer to the FAQs on "Rules and Regulations – Question 1 ‘How old do I need to be to drive a hire vehicle?’" for further information, just above this question.  Non-EU citizens can drive vehicles with up to a maximum of 9 seats (FVMR).

Can I hire a car even if I have points on my driving licence?

SIXT UK generally accepts a licence with up to 6 points valid on your driving licence. This can vary depending on the endorsement code and young driver status. There are some codes that would prevent you from hiring from SIXT, e.g. if they were earned for a serious offense.

For some non-severe offences (e.g. SP30), drivers aged 24 and over can have maximum of 2 offences totalling a maximum of 6 points in the past 4 years to be able to drive.

Please contact our Reservations team on +44 (0) 207 0188 246 and a member of our team will be able to advise whether you can rent from us or not. If you have above 6 points or have a DD, DR or BA endorsement that is within less than 5 years you are not able to hire from us.

Please see the respective terms of rental for full details and other countries terms via our Rental Information page.

What proof of Identification (ID) / documents do I need to bring with me when collecting the vehicle?

1.  A full/valid driving licence for all named drivers. This may be 1 of the following:

Photocard driving licence

The old-style paper driving licence (issued before the Plastic Photo card licence was introduced in 1998 (you can still hire a SIXT car with this). This must be accompanied by another form of photo ID.

**Driving licenses printed with non-Roman Alphabet (Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Cyrillic etc.) must be complemented by an International driving licence**

2. For UK Licences: Driver's details of all endorsements/points. Licences issued in Great Britain will require a DVLA Check Code, available online via the DVLA website. Licences issued in Northern Ireland, the paper counterpart is required in addition to the photocard.

3. Valid method of payment in the name of the main driver. See rental information accepted methods of payment.

4. UK residents: Two Proofs of Address less than 3 months old
Non-UK Residents:  Valid Passport or National ID Card

So I no longer need to present both parts of my UK driving licence at the SIXT desk?

For UK licences issued in Northern Ireland, the paper counterpart is still required in addition to the photocard. UK licences which are issued within Great Britain, since June 2015, the paper counterpart is no longer valid, therefore is not an accepted document.

The counter paper part licence showed a Driver’s points/endorsements.  This has been replaced with a ‘DVLA Check Code’. The code lets you check your/a driver’s details including any endorsements.

You will need to produce a ‘DVLA Check Code’ in replacement of the counter paper part though. To create such a code, you need to visit the DVLA website and input your:

Driving licence number
National Insurance (NI) Number
Home Postcode

A unique 'DVLA Code' will be generated, which will be valid for 21 days. The Code can be redeemed/viewed just the once before the expiry date. Up to 5 codes can be generated within a 24 hour period (applicable for multiple rentals).  Presenting this code to the member of SIXT staff allows them to check your driving entitlements and any endorsements.

If you arrive without the code then you will be asked to generate the code online on your mobile or tablet. Alternatively we can contact the DVLA subject to a fee. Please note that this is only applicable to holders of UK driving licenses. If we are unable to obtain this information online we may be able to check your details over the telephone.

Do I need an international drivers licence when renting abroad?

A UK licence is generally accepted for rentals within the EU without an International Permit. Please see the respective terms of rental for the hiring country for full details via our Rental information page.

No additional translation is required for all valid drivers licenses from the EU, EEA countries (Iceland, Lichtenstein, and Norway), and the list below.

Albania	Andorra	Armenia	Azerbaijan
Ethiopia	Bahamas	Bahrain	Belarus
Bosnia and Herzegovina	Brazil	Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast)	Georgia
Guyana	Honduras	Hong Kong	Israel
Kazakhstan	Cape Verde	Qatar	Kenya
Kyrgyzstan	Congo (Kinshasa)	Cuba	Kuwait
Liberia	Morocco	Moldova	Monaco
Mongolia	Montenegro	Myanmar	New Zealand
Niger	Nigeria	North Macedonia	Oman
Pakistan	Peru	Philippines	Russia
San Marino	Saudi Arabia	Switzerland	Senegal
Serbia	Seychelles	Zimbabwe	South Africa
Tajikistan	Thailand	Tunisia	Turkey
Turkmenistan	Ukraine	Uruguay	Uzbekistan
United Arab Emirates	United Kingdom (incl. Gibraltar, Guernsey, Jersey)	Vietnam	Central African Republic

How old do I need to be to drive a hire vehicle?

In Great Britain, the following rules apply for the minimum age and possession of a driver's licence:

21 years and held licence for a minimum of 1 year for mostly compact and economy vehicles in groups – M***, E***, CD**, CL**, CW**, CF**
23 years and held licence for a minimum of 1 year for vehicles in groups – ID**, IW**, IV**, IT**, IF**
25 years and held licence for a minimum of 1 year for vehicles in groups – CC**, IL**, S***, F***, P***, L***
30 years and held licence for a minimum of 3 years for vehicles in groups – X***
Non-EU citizens can drive vehicles with up to 9 passenger seats (FVMR). Please contact your SIXT local rental branch or our Hotline +44 (0) 207 0188 246

A Young Driver Surcharge applies for drivers under the age of 28