Renting a car is relatively easy in Turkey. However, there are some minor points that each foreigner who wishes to rent a car in Turkey has to be aware of. When these points are taken care of, each individual may easily benefit from the advantages of renting a car. With countless rent-a-car firms that currently operate in Turkey, each resident and visitor is able to have easy access to this process. Each year, many foreigners who visit Turkey for business or tourism resort to renting a car to fulfill their transportation needs. This constantly growing demand in this field led to governmental stretches, as well as an increased number of firms. There are just small things that a foreigner should not forget before renting a car.
Requirements to Rent a Car in Turkey
Before we get to the topic, first we would like to introduce the main requirements for you to rent a car in Turkey.
Age
Within insurance conditions, the required age for renting each class of cars differs in Turkey. If you wish to rent an economy class car, you have to be at least 21 years old. If you’re looking to rent a middle or higher-class car, you will have to be over 25. Required age to rent a car in luxury class is determined as at least 28 years old. However, the age range to rent a car may differ from agency to agency.
Driver License
To rent an economy, middle, or higher class of vehicles, drivers must have their driver’s license for at least two years. For luxury or bigger cars, it is three years.
Additional Driver
Every rented car can be used by more than one driver. These additional drivers must be informed during the process of renting and should be complied with in the renting contract with the main driver. With this procedure, these drivers will be insured as well. Additional drivers must fulfill the same requirements as the main drivers.
Kilometer Limit
Most of the rent-a-car agencies have a limited kilometers usage with the variety of packages that they will offer you. If you exceed these limits, each kilometer will be charged an additional fee. Some packages provide a limitless policy as well, in which there’s no kilometer limit.
Payment
It is not possible to pay with cash if you wish to rent-a-car in Turkey. Agencies will require you to pay via bank or a credit card. In addition, agencies will extract a provision fee from your account in order to secure payment of future occurrences such as traffic fines, sufficient fuel, or out-of-insurance accidents. However, this fee will be returned to you if no problems were faced during the process.
Insurance Conditions
Insurance for the rented cars is commonly done during the process and requires no further attention, but there are some situations in which you may lose your insurance. These conditions are followed as alcohol and drug consumption while driving, exceeding speed limits, use of the car by people not mentioned in the contract, use of the car outside of Turkish territories. If the customer is part of a traffic accident, a police report of the accident must be shared with the agency in 48 hours in order to secure their insurance.
Delivery and Return
The rented car must only be received in the location mentioned in the contract and must be returned to the same address defined in the contract. During the return of the vehicle, time concerns may differ from agency to agency, but exceeding one hour is mostly tolerated, while additional charges may be faced for each hour that exceeds the time mentioned in the contract.
Fuel
Customers should pay attention to their car’s fuel level when they receive it since vehicles must be returned with the same fuel level. If the car is missing some amount of fuel, the customer may be charged additional fees.
Toll Payments
Tolls for highways in Turkey are functional via automated systems with the abbreviations such as HGS and OGS. Customers will not pay psychically during their ride on these roads. However, their agency will charge them with these payments.
Cancellation Process
The process of cancellation may differ in each agency. However, if you cancel within the same day or day before the start of renting process, you may be able to receive your payment back.
Car Renting Process for Foreigners in Turkey
Foreigners can use their driver’s license in Turkey for 6 months. If they plan to reside for more than six months, they will have to apply for a Turkish driver’s license in order to enter the traffic. Even though many agencies accept licenses all around the world, they may only affirm licenses in English. Make sure to read the policies of each agency before renting a car.
If each criterion is met by the driver, renting a car is relatively easy. Just approaching the agency with the passport and the driver’s license is enough. Also, foreign visitors may even apply online in order to receive their vehicles the moment they land in Turkey.
