When Did Hiring A Van Get So Complicated?

[sherrardk]

Booked a van to hire for today, did it on the net and entered payment details and licence details. Himself went to get it and they wouldn't give it to him without the debit card we used (which was mine). I rang them up and they said the card and licence had to match so I asked if I could hire it but then they said I couldn't because I didn't have a credit card. Phoned somewhere else and himself needed his NI number and passport which he has lost. So I had to go with him with my passport and licence which they didn't even look at but they did need his NI number.

[Old_Geezer]

Sounds easier to buy a van and sell it afterwards.

[EDDIE51]

No passport and no credit card so I'm out if I want to hire a car or van.

[Buenchico]

That's weird. When my car was off the road, the firm that I occasionally do contract work for hired a car for me. The booking was against the company's credit card and I simply had to provide my own ID (in the form of my old, non-photo driving licence and my passport).

There must be hundreds of similar bookings every day, where a company on one side of the country uses their credit card to book a vehicle for an employee or contractor on the other side of the country. So it's certainly unusual to find a firm insisting that the credit card and driving licence have to bear the same name.

[Flonska]

I understand that vehicle rental agreements tend to stipulate that the card holder (in case of a prepaid booking) must be identified as the renter (the "Main driver" to be mentioned on the rental agreement). The renter is required to present his/her card (identified with the same name) at time of "Check Out".

Some Rental Companies require a credit card and do not accept Debit cards on a pre-booking except an Electron Card.

This scenario also applies with other pre-booked purchases e.g. theatre tickets that are being collected. The cardholder must be present to collect the tickets from the box office.

[Togo]

//You can go online to obtain a code to give to your hire company. Each code is valid for 21 days from the date you obtain it and it can only be used once (to protect your privacy). You can have up to 15 active check codes at any given time.
To obtain a code or a printout:
1 Go to View Driving Licence.
2 Enter your driver number and postcode, as they appear on your driving licence, and your National Insurance number.
3 Click on the ‘Share your licence information’ tab – then the ‘Create a code’ button.
4 You will now be shown a code that you can pass on to your hire company. You’ll also have the option to print out your licence information.//
https://www.gov.uk/government/news/hiring-a-vehicle

It all changed with the changes in paper driving licence procedures. Anti terrorism measures were one reason. If you rock up with the appropriate code on a printable hard copy, readily available on line you sail through.

[sherrardk]

I'm wondering if it's a Hereford thing, it's a bit behind the times here but othe first firm was a national firm. The bloke made such a big deal of the NI number. He then irritated me by butting into a conversation I was having with thing 1 about Blandford fly bites by insisting they were just found in Hereford (when I know they are not)

[Buenchico]

^^^ That information, Togo, relates solely to proving how many penalty points a driver has (or hasn't) got on their licence. I can't see that it's relevant here. (Most car hire companies aren't interested anyway).

[sherrardk]

On the plus side we get 100 miles of fuel for free :)

[Buenchico]

Hereford? Hertford? They're almost the same, aren't they?
http://www.hertfordshiremercury.co.uk/blandford-fly-bite-leaves-ware-dad-unable-walk/story-22006485-detail/story.html

[Togo]

If you do not have the DVLA code with you the Vehicle Licensing company have to apply for it with you present. They cannot do it with a licence that is issued to Mustapha Bang and a card that is issued to Mr Vic Timmed.

[Togo]

Ohh just another ....you can't pay with cash anymore. :))

[Buenchico]

^^^ If they're not interested in how many points you've got on your licence (and over 90% of hire companies aren't), they don't need to access DVLA data anyway.

[sherrardk]

I expect they've got their reasons but I was already cross with the female at the first place who got all arsey when I said I wanted my money back as quickly as they had taken it off me. Then I had to leave in the middle of doing packed lunches to sort the van out. Just seems overly complicated to hire a van for 24 hours.

[Togo]

//Instead, drivers who are required to demonstrate their background to car hire firms will have to generate a code using the DVLA website.
Sharing the code with their car rental agency will allow it to look up the driver’s history.//
Compulsory for car hire companies. They enter your details and DVLA issue a code. Do your own prior to arrival and the hire firm just enters the code. It is not just about "points". You will not get to hire a vehicle without said code whether you supply it or wait for the hire company to do it on your behalf. Rules for hiring a vehicle were tightened considerably in 2015 after it was highlighted that it was easy for terrorists etc. to hire vehicles and cause mayhem virtually without trace using a false or stolen driving licence. Just as a point of information, all you drivers who need to produce your licence to an employer every year, the same code is sufficient because said employers have to do the same thing now. Believe.

[Togo]

Link.
http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/new-rules-for-hiring-a-car-come-into-force-from-today-10303966.html

[jennyjoan]

My sista doesn't have passport or credit card or driving licence so can't open a bank account. They won't accept her Electoral photo.

[Buenchico]

I've no idea what Togo is going on about. The only thing that a DVLA code adds to showing a hire company a driving licence is that it tells them how many points the driver has got on their licence. It doesn't add any extra security at all.

As I wrote above, I've hired a car (or, more accurately, had it hired for me) without the need for any code. My Scottish friend, who lives in Italy but has a flat in the UK, hires cars every few weeks (in the UK, from various companies) with no formalities whatsoever apart from showing her Italian driving licence, her British passport and her US credit card. She couldn't even get a DVLA code if she wanted one!