driving in europe
 

hi all

next week i will be going on holiday to switzerland, and hiring a car to drive through france and italy

will i need anything special other than my normal paper drivers license and photo ID?

also do i need an E111?

thanks

The E111 is necessary if you want free medical treatment. A friend went skiing without his and had to pay 1000 euros after an accident. Also the format has now changed, mine is a credit card style, I'm not too sure if the old paper form is valid anymore.
If you are hiring a car in France, you will need a credit card for the deposit. Just make sure that when you return the car they refund the deposit. I have just hired a car with Europcar through Easyjet and several weeks later I'm still awaiting my deposit refund! Funny how the girl spoke perfect English when I was paying but suddenly could only speak a few words when I returned the car!
Have a safe trip.

thank you ! i haae applied on line for my E111 card

And thank you for letting me know they do it online now. Just applied for mine as i'm off to Italy in a cuple of weeks.

Read the small print about which countries you are allowed to drive into. When I rented a car in Germany the documentation showed a map detailing any restrictions. Quite a few classes of car were not allowed to be taken into Italy (I rented with Hertz BTW).

Thanks for the info mate. I'm visiting friends in Italy and i'll probly just hire a twist and go fo a few days if i feel the need. They have a car but he's american so goodness knows what the drive over there.
A yank and a brit stationed in Sicilly.... guesses anyone? :lol:

Stay tuned for this "fish out of water comedy" :lol:

Edit: Maybe it's a Ford GT40, that was a joint American / UK effort, would fit... 8)

Well i'll be there in 12 days (well i leave in 276 hrs, not that i'm counting or anything) and depending on how good a time i'm having i may get on here and let you know.

But i'll be a bit chuffed if it is a GT40! :lol:

Check that E111 is actually valid in Switzerland, as Zwiterland is not part of the EU!