TRAVEL Q&A
Irish I Could Rent a Car . . .
By Carol Sottili
Washington Post Staff Writer
Sunday, June 20, 2004; Page P03
Q Four years ago, my husband and I spent two weeks in Ireland traveling by car and staying at B&Bs. We'd love to go back, but my husband will be 76 and car rental agreements say age 23-75. I'm younger, but I'm afraid I would have trouble driving on the left.
Ruth Hennessy
Annapolis
A The maximum age to rent a car in Ireland is typically 75, but the rule is not mandated by law. Insurance policies for car agencies that rent to drivers older than 75 are exorbitantly expensive, and most save money by simply not renting to older seniors.
One exception is Hertz. According to Hertz's "qualifications and requirements" for Ireland, "Customers aged between 76 and 79 years can rent with specific conditions (you must drive on a regular basis, you will need to provide at the counter a letter from your doctor to state you have been in good health for at least 12 months and a letter from your insurance company to state you have not had an accident within the last five years)."
Ellen McNulty, spokeswoman for Lynott Tours, which sells self-drive tours to Ireland, said older drivers could expect to pay about 20 percent more for a car rental. Another option is to hire a private driver, but this will cost nearly twice as much as going it alone.
I'm interested in a trip to Easter Island. Do you have any information?
Sheilah Musselman
Fairfax
The history of Easter Island, situated 2,300 miles west of Chile and 2,500 southeast of Tahiti, is shrouded in mystery. A territory of Chile, the island is most famous for its nearly 900 statutes, or
© 2004 The Washington Post Company
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