Below is a selection of our customers most frequently asked questions. If you don’t find your question listed below, contact us and we will be happy to answer any additional questions you have. Looking for frequently asked questions on our dual control cars? Head over to our dedicated dual control cars page.
Vehicles may be booked by category only. Unless availability of a specific model has been formally confirmed, Arnold Clark only guarantees the category reserved. Not all car groups and models may be available at all Arnold Clark locations.
No. The only vehicle you can hire to sit your driving test is a dual control car.
Yes. We have a large selection of models please refer to the vehicles page for examples.
Yes, every vehicle we supply has a full tank of fuel. The car must also be returned with a full tank of fuel. Any fuel shortages will be charged at local pump prices along with a £10 refuelling surcharge. We do, however offer a pre-purchase option; for more information, just ask the team in the branch. Please refer to the van rental section of our terms of hire for more details on mileage allowances.
Yes. We are quite happy to have a vehicle dropped off at a different Arnold Clark Car and Van Rental location from where it was hired. There will be an additional charge for this service.
Most vehicles have a charge point for electronic devices (phone, sat nav, etc) but some of the smaller groups may not. We cannot guarantee a charge point.
Yes we do. To find out if you are eligible to hire one of our dual control cars, visit our dedicated dual control cars page.
Customers can only take a rental car to Northern Ireland and The Republic of Ireland. Travel is not permitted to any other European country. Cars (including 9-seaters) can only be taken with prior arrangement. Customers must give at least one week’s notice to allow the branch to arrange the correct paperwork (additional charges will apply).
Vans are not permitted to be taken beyond the UK mainland.
When travelling to The Republic of Ireland, customers are responsible for travel insurance costs of their passengers and must arrange their own European breakdown cover (including repatriation) for the vehicle – which must be presented to the branch before the start of the hire.
The rules are always changing when it comes to the regulations of driving a vehicle abroad. As a UK driver, you may not be fully aware of what is expected of you in other EU countries and what you need to cover off before you travel, such as mandatory EU travel kits and breathalyser kits. The AA have some great information on driving abroad and what you have to do depending on the EU country you are travelling to. For more information on driving in other EU countries, visit the AA website.
Yes, you are able to take vehicles to the Highlands and Islands of Scotland. However, please note that if there are weather issues, ferry delays or if customers are unable to get back to the mainland when planned, customers will be charged for vehicle extensions to the hire when the vehicle is returned to us.
Yes. Find out more about congestion charges and clean air zones.
Cars
1-3 days: 250 miles per day free of charge.
4 days plus: unlimited mileage.
Excess charges:
10p is charged for every additional mile travelled across all vehicle types.
Certain endorsed licences may be accepted, please contact us for details.
Drivers must hold a valid and full driving licence for a minimum period of four years, or, one year if the driver is over 23 years of age.
EU licence holders not residing in the UK must bring a domestic driving licence and either a passport or ID card.
EU licence holders who are residents in the UK must bring with them a domestic licence, passport or ID card and proof of UK address. This can be two bills or one bill and another form of photographic identification, preferably a passport. We also accept utility bills and bank or credit card statements that have been issued in the last three months.
Drivers from outside the EU must possess a valid domestic driving licence with an English translation. If the English translation is not available, an international driving permit is required in addition to a domestic driving licence.
A passport must also accompany a domestic driving licence.
A valid credit or debit card to leave an imprint for any additional costs. The card must be physically shown and cannot be a digital/online only card.
UK drivers are required to bring the card part of their driving licence along with a utility bill, or similar, as proof of address (proof of address must be dated within the last three months to be valid and be similar to the accompanying driver).
UK drivers that have an ‘old-style’ paper licence are required to bring some form of photographic ID (e.g. passport) which must be shown along with proof of address.
All UK drivers should also bring their access code from the DVLA, which you can acquire from the DVLA’s online Share Driving Licence system.
EU licence holders not residing in the UK must bring a domestic driving licence and either a passport or ID card.
EU licence holders who are residents in the UK must bring with them a domestic licence, passport or ID card and proof of UK address. This can be two bills or one bill and another form of photographic identification, preferably a passport. We also accept utility bills and bank or credit card statements that have been issued in the last three months.
Drivers from outside the EU must possess a valid domestic driving licence with an English translation. If the English translation is not available, an international driving permit is required in addition to a domestic driving licence. A passport must also accompany a domestic driving licence.
Utility bills, bank or credit card statements that have been issued within the last three months. We can also accept electronic copies of these documents.
Additional drivers are required to bring the card part of their driving licence.
You can still hire a vehicle without your driving licence as long as you provide:
If you cannot provide the DVLA Share Your Licence code, we can contact the DVLA to authorise the rental when you arrive at the branch. There is a small charge for this service and it’s only available during the DVLA’s opening hours and is not available on bank holidays.
DVLA Opening Hours
Mon-Fri : 0800-1900
Sat : 0800- 1200
Sun : CLOSED
Get the DVLA Share Your Licence Code by visiting their website.
Drivers must hold a valid and full driving licence for a minimum period of four years, or, one year if the driver is over 23 years of age. Further restrictions may apply, please contact our Central Reservations team on 0141 237 4374 for details. Drivers with a valid/current UK provisional driving licence are able to hire one of our dual control cars, when accompanied by a qualified driver who has held a UK or EU driving licence for a minimum of three years and is aged 23 years or over.
There is no upper age limit for renting, however, certain group restrictions may apply. Please contact our Central Reservations team on 0141 237 4374 for further details.
We have introduced online check in to enable you to confirm your driving licence information before arriving at the branch. You will receive your check-in email seven days before your rental begins, or, if your hire takes place sooner, you’ll receive the check-in email immediately after placing the reservation. This enables you to share your licence information and DVLA Check code with us. We’ll still call to inform you about our social distancing procedures and confirm the process for arriving at branch.
All prices quoted include Arnold Clark insurance which covers our vehicle, passengers and any third parties. It does not cover injury to the driver or damage to/theft of personal effects or goods. Further details are available on our insurance page.
Yes. An excess will be charged for each incidence of damage. Visit our insurance page for further information. An optional excess waiver may be purchased to reduce the excess amount.
No. Our insurance will not cover any vehicles used for the purpose of Hire and Reward.
We accept payments via Paypal, Apple Pay (website payments only), Google Pay (website payments only), and most major credit/debit cards, including Mastercard, Visa Credit, Visa Debit. A valid credit/debit card must be physically shown in branch on collection of your vehicle to confirm the payment details you provided.
Selected branches may ask for a £100 security deposit for first-time hirers. If you’d like to hire an executive car, we ask for a £500 deposit via credit or debit card, payable in branch.
No, please contact us if you would like to make any changes. It’s free to cancel your booking as long as you give us more than 48 hours’ notice. If it’s less than 48 hours, you will incur a £40 cancellation fee, or no refund when the rental cost is less than £40.
No, most of these cards are blocked if you try to use them for car rental. We require a standard credit/debit card to be shown at the time of rental in case of any additional charges.
This an extra charge for young drivers normally between 23–24 years of age. Any driver aged 23–24 will be charged a £25-per day young driver supplement on vehicles hired with Arnold Clark. Please note that drivers aged 23–24 can only hire up to a SUV type car including automatics and estates, and all sized vans.
We may ask you for your landline number in case we can’t reach you on your mobile. We may also require emergency contact details from you.
The exchange rate will be taken on the day of the refund and not from the day of booking. Unfortunately, we can’t refund any shortfall in exchange rate changes.
Can I purchase the refund guarantee if my booking start time is within 48 hours? Yes. Just add the Refund Guarantee when you make your booking, and we’ll refund you if you need to cancel.
Can I purchase the refund guarantee on an hourly hire? Yes. You can add this over the phone the moment.
Can I purchase the refund guarantee when renting a dual control vehicle? We’re sorry – the refund guarantee isn’t available at the moment.
There is a £15 per day / per person charge for each additional driver. The maximum number of drivers on an agreement is 5.
Yes, we offer sat nav systems. There is a £10 charge per hire which can be added to your booking in branch when you collect your hire vehicle.
Yes, we have a supply of child car seats available to rent. Please select the number of seats required in the booking process. There is an additional charge of £1 per day per seat (up to a maximum of £28 per seat).
Please note that it is a legal requirement for any child under 135cms (4ft 5in) and under 12 years of age to use an appropriate child restraint when travelling in a vehicle and we cannot guarantee availability of a seat if it has not been booked in advance.
See our child safety fact sheet if you are unsure of the correct size.
For further information please visit: direct.gov.uk
Please note that we are not required by law to supply or fit child safety seats. However, we can give you all the information you need to safely fit the child seat to your rental vehicle.
No, but we do hire out vehicles with dual controls, so if you have a friend or relative over the age of 23 who has held a full licence for more than three years, they can accompany you. Please note that no passengers may be carried in the dual control vehicle.
We service the following airports with off-site locations - Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Inverness, Dundee, Prestwick and now also Manchester. All branches operate a shuttle bus to and from the branch. View our airport procedures for further information.
Not all of our branches have on-site parking, please call ahead to the branch before your arrival.
In the event of a breakdown, you will find an emergency roadside assistance number both on your key fob and displayed on the inside of the windscreen. The Arnold Clark 24-hour emergency number is 0141 332 2622.
Many of our locations are open 7 days a week. Please refer to the locations page for details.
Rentals can start at any time during our opening hours and are based on a 24-hour period.
Yes, during branch opening hours, we offer either a collection service or shuttle bus at our airport locations. Please let the branch know if you require this service at the time of booking. With prior notice we can also provide an out-of-hours vehicle delivery service, please contact your branch to arrange this.
Out-of-hours returns are only permitted at certain airport locations and only with prior arrangement. Hires to and from all other locations must be returned during our normal hours of business so the vehicle can be inspected by a member of the rental team.
If possible, please let us know as soon as you are aware that your flight has been delayed. If you arrive after our office has closed please make your way to your accommodation and call us the following morning. We will arrange to collect you and bring you to our office to complete the paperwork.
Please contact our team for more information.
At all times we aim to offer the upmost standard of care and customer service. However, if you feel this was not the case during your rental, please follow our complaints procedure.