What CAN'T you hire a car for?

There are loads of good reasons to hire a car.

Maybe you're planning a fun road trip with the family. Or driving to a conference for work. Or putting a new car through its paces before you commit to buying one of your own. Heck, you could even hire some swish wheels just to show off at your school reunion. It's up to you.

But for every good idea, there are dozens of bad ones. That's why our terms and conditions specifically state that you can't hire a vehicle for certain activities.

Don't worry, though. These activities are restricted for a reason – either because they're dangerous, illegal or put our vehicles at risk. If you have a legitimate reason for hiring a car (as well as valid documents) then you shouldn't have any problems.

However, if you need a car for any of the purposes below… well, it's time to look elsewhere.

Racing

Do we really need to explain this one?

Yes, if you're planning to tear through the neighbourhood in an illegal street race, you shouldn't do it in a hire car.

In fact, you shouldn't do it at all. It's called illegal street racing for a reason. Taking part could land you with a driving ban and a fine of up to £2,500 – or three months in the slammer.

And that's if you're lucky. Street racing is extremely dangerous for participants and other road users. If fate isn't smiling on you, you could end up, well… dead.

In case you're wondering, taking your hire car to the rally track is also prohibited – and not just because it might muddy the paintwork.

Speed testing

Speed testing is just what it sounds like – a way to test a car's top speed. You drive fast and see how the car performs. Simple.

Obviously, conducting a speed test on a public road is both illegal and monumentally stupid. However, you can carry out a speed test legally by hiring a private race track.

This is often done by vehicle manufacturers who want to put new models through their paces, though many tracks also offer "own-car track days" that are open to the public. These can, we're told, be quite fun – it's not every day you get to play at being a racecar driver in a safe and controlled environment.

However, you're not allowed to hire a car for speed testing under any circumstances. Our cars are for driving, not speeding.

"Hire or reward"

This one might sound a little complicated at first, but it's simple when you know what it means. Allow us to explain.

"Hire or reward" is a legal term that boils down to "driving someone somewhere for payment". In the context of hiring a car, this basically means you can't run a taxi service. Your passengers have to ride for free, or they can't ride at all.

What's that? You were planning to drive your kids to the beach, then leave them with your spouse while you ferry tourists to the train station? Sorry, but it's not allowed.

You might be wondering what this means for minibus hire. Easy answer: the same rules apply.

Say you hire a minibus to take your cricket team to their next match. As long as they're riding for free, that's OK. If you accept a few quid "for petrol", you risk falling into the "hire or reward" category.

Driving tuition

While we're on the topic of taking cash payments, let's consider driving tuition.

As per our terms and conditions, you can't hire one of our cars to teach someone to drive. This restriction applies whether or not you're accepting payment for the tuition.

Towing a trailer (or anything else)

Feel like taking the caravan on an adventure? Got a trailer full of scrap that you need to haul to the local tip? Sorry, but you won't be able to hire a car to do so.

Here's the thing. Towing is more dangerous than you might think. It affects the momentum and handling of your vehicle and requires special techniques to do safely. It's little wonder England sees around 11 accidents a dayinvolving vehicles with some kind of trailer.

Like many car hire firms, we'd rather not take the risk.

Lending the car to a friend

When you hire a car, you enter into a contract between yourself and the "lessor" – meaning the car hire company.

This means the only people who can drive the car are the people named on the rental agreement. This might be you and, say, a spouse. Anyone who isn't named on the agreement can't drive the car, because they haven't been approved by the hire firm.

Does your sister want to borrow the car to pop to the shops ("It'll only take 10 minutes")? Has your pal asked for the keys because their car's getting its MOT? Sorry, but if they're not on the rental agreement, it ain't happening.



That's why it's really important to be upfront with your car hire company before you rent the vehicle. If you think someone might need to use the car while it's in your possession, tell the hire firm before you sign. This way, everything's above board and you're covered if something goes wrong.

How to hire a car (for the right reasons)

Sure, we've focused on the "can't dos" in this article. But that doesn't mean we're box-ticking busybodies.

In fact, we're quite the opposite. Since we launched in 2002, we've set out to be the friendliest, most helpful hire firm in our corner of the UK.

Need to hire a car in Newcastle or the northeast of England? You can book online in just a few clicks – or call our local experts on (0191) 4888 700 to book over the phone.

We'll do our best to make the process as smooth as possible, so you can drive away in no time at all. (Just no street racing, please.)