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Chamchiman
Joined: 24 Apr 2006
Location: Digging the Grave
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 Posted: Mon Sep 01, 2008 8:05 pm Post subject: Renting a car with a Korean driver's license |
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I've exchanged my driver's license from home for a Korean license, and when I called AVIS to reserve a rental car, they said the Korean license isn't enough to rent a car - I also need a copy of my original driver's license. So now I've got to go back to the DL office to get a copy, which is a bit of a pain in the ass. (Of course I tried to logify them - "What if I never had a license from home, but took the driver's test in Korea and passed?" - to no avail.)
Anyone else had this problem while renting a car with a Korean driver's license? |
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Ut videam
Joined: 07 Dec 2007
Location: Pocheon-si, Gyeonggi-do
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| Posted: Mon Sep 01, 2008 8:11 pm Post subject: |
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Sounds like one of two possibilities:- They're trying to make sure you've had a driver's license for long enough. Most agencies won't rent to you unless you've had a license for over a year. If you only recently got your Korean license, they may be trying to accommodate you by factoring in the length of time you've had your foreign license.
- They're simply mistaken. You must carry and present your foreign license when using an International Driver's License, but there's no need for this if you have a domestic license.
Either way, good luck! |
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Chamchiman
Joined: 24 Apr 2006
Location: Digging the Grave
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| Posted: Mon Sep 01, 2008 9:15 pm Post subject: |
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| Ut videam wrote: |
Sounds like one of two possibilities:- They're trying to make sure you've had a driver's license for long enough. Most agencies won't rent to you unless you've had a license for over a year. If you only recently got your Korean license, they may be trying to accommodate you by factoring in the length of time you've had your foreign license.
- They're simply mistaken. You must carry and present your foreign license when using an International Driver's License, but there's no need for this if you have a domestic license.
Either way, good luck! |
Thanks for the reply.
I know that some rental car companies won't rent you a car unless you're 25, but I didn't realize it was difficult to rent a car if you've had a license for less than a year.
To those who are thinking about changing their license over to a Korean license: if you want to rent a car, be sure to make some copies of your home license before turning it in to the DL office. |
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DaeguKid
Joined: 09 Dec 2006
Location: Daegu
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| Posted: Mon Sep 01, 2008 9:18 pm Post subject: |
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interesting...cause only 3 weeks ago i rented a car with Avis in Canada and they accepted my Korean DL.
Spoke to the agent during the booking and said it was cool.
Must be a Korean rule more than an Avis rule....that is if your booking this car in Korea. |
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Donghae
Joined: 24 Dec 2003
Location: Fukuoka, Japan
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| Posted: Mon Sep 01, 2008 9:25 pm Post subject: |
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Totally agree with ut videam above as to the likely reasons.
If you've had your Korean licence less than the one year most car rental places require and you want to avoid having to go back to retrieve your home country licence, then you do have a couple of other possible options.
1 - try again at a smaller car rental company; a lot of the smaller ones either don't have the minimum one year with a Korean licence rule or never apply it if they do. They're probably cheaper than Avis also, although you may get a crappier car.
Number 2 is something that does work if you have the right documents and I've done it myself a few times but it isn't strictly legal so I'll send you a PM about it. |
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earthbound14
Joined: 23 Jan 2007
Location: seoul
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| Posted: Mon Sep 01, 2008 9:45 pm Post subject: |
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| Chamchiman wrote: |
| Ut videam wrote: |
Sounds like one of two possibilities:- They're trying to make sure you've had a driver's license for long enough. Most agencies won't rent to you unless you've had a license for over a year. If you only recently got your Korean license, they may be trying to accommodate you by factoring in the length of time you've had your foreign license.
- They're simply mistaken. You must carry and present your foreign license when using an International Driver's License, but there's no need for this if you have a domestic license.
Either way, good luck! |
Thanks for the reply.
I know that some rental car companies won't rent you a car unless you're 25, but I didn't realize it was difficult to rent a car if you've had a license for less than a year.
To those who are thinking about changing their license over to a Korean license: if you want to rent a car, be sure to make some copies of your home license before turning it in to the DL office. |
or bring an international drivers license to prove your driving history (some agents won't accept your home license if it has expired (and if you are like me you let it expire because you had exchanged it for a Korean one) |
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IncognitoHFX
Joined: 06 May 2007
Location: Yeongtong, Suwon
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| Posted: Mon Sep 01, 2008 10:12 pm Post subject: |
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That's better than the dealerships I dealt with.
I was told I couldn't rent a car unless I had the KOREAN licence for more than a year. I suppose it's because AVIS is international and most likely has business in your home State/Province.
In that case, can't you get one of your co-workers to give the DMV a call and have a copy of it faxed to your office?
Or, you could try Budget Rent-A-Car. I rented a car from them when I was in Jeju-do, and at that point I only had my Korean licence for a month with no foreign licence. |
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cangel
Joined: 19 Jun 2003
Location: Jeonju, S. Korea
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| Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 5:44 am Post subject: |
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| Hate to be the pessimist but sounds like B.S. to me. My friends just rented a car with his Korean DL but he has had it more than a year. However, they didn't check how long he's had the license and I don't suppose they have access to that information anyway. |
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jvalmer
Joined: 06 Jun 2003
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| Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 6:00 am Post subject: |
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| cangel wrote: |
| Hate to be the pessimist but sounds like B.S. to me. My friends just rented a car with his Korean DL but he has had it more than a year. However, they didn't check how long he's had the license and I don't suppose they have access to that information anyway. |
The date your Korean DL was first is issued is right on the card. Even if you renew, your original issuance dates on there. So, it isn't too hard to find out how long you've had the license. |
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jvalmer
Joined: 06 Jun 2003
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| Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 6:01 am Post subject: |
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| Also, the license is good for a long time. Mine is good for 10 years, but strangely the Korean I went with was good for only 7 or 8 years. |
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skconqueror
Joined: 31 Jul 2005
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| Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 7:07 am Post subject: |
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| cangel wrote: |
| Hate to be the pessimist but sounds like B.S. to me. My friends just rented a car with his Korean DL but he has had it more than a year. However, they didn't check how long he's had the license and I don't suppose they have access to that information anyway. |
Agreed, I have rented cars (3x from avis) here in Korea, and have had 0 problems. The most I have been asked is that I am over 25. A yes, and have a Korea drivers license has been all they need. The last time I rented was about 3 months ago. |
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stonepepe1
Joined: 02 Jul 2008
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| Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 7:44 am Post subject: |
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| i think u should stay away from rented cars and borrow a car form a korean friend... |
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Chamchiman
Joined: 24 Apr 2006
Location: Digging the Grave
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| Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 3:47 pm Post subject: |
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I phoned AVIS again yesterday.
Despite having rented cars from them in the past, I still need to show a copy of my home country license because my Korean license has been issued less than one year ago. For those exchanging their home license for a Korean one, if you want to rent a car with your Korean DL be sure to copy both sides of your original DL before handing it in to the DL office. |
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contrarian
Joined: 20 Jan 2007
Location: Nearly in NK
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| Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 5:37 pm Post subject: |
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When I came to Korea in 2000, I gave them my Canadian Driver's license for a couple of hours, they gave it back and issued me a Korean license. I am back in Canada now but my Korean license is still valid.
When did they start not giving the foreign license bacK? |
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Donghae
Joined: 24 Dec 2003
Location: Fukuoka, Japan
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| Posted: Tue Sep 02, 2008 7:28 pm Post subject: |
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| cangel wrote: |
| Hate to be the pessimist but sounds like B.S. to me. My friends just rented a car with his Korean DL but he has had it more than a year. However, they didn't check how long he's had the license and I don't suppose they have access to that information anyway. |
No, as has already been pointed out, just because they didn't actually ask that question does not mean they didn't check. They don't need to ask because the information is on the license card and if your friend has had his more than a year then obviously they're not going to say anything. Are there really countries where it DOESN'T give any indication on the license of how long you've had it?
In most rental companies (certainly the bigger ones, at least), even if the staff forget to check it will flag up on their computer screen when they're entering the details that the license holder has had it for less than a year and the computer won't allow them to proceed with the transaction. I've actually been in the same room when exactly this happened to a friend of mine (at Kumho Rent-a-car).
This 'must have had your license for at least a year' rule, although understandably frustrating in some people's cases, is something I've found common in many countries where I've hired a car, so this is definitely not BS. (I've never driven in North America though, so I dunno if it's different there.) I think in the OP's case, Avis actually deserve a little bit of credit for telling him how he can get around the rule.
As I said, there are some places that don't have this rule, so it's perfectly possible that some people have been ok with a Korean license of less than a year. A lot of other foreigners have probably been ok because they've rented using their IDP from their home country. |
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