Driving a rental car abroad from Poland: rules and formalities

Consent must be given by email

We send consent by email to the address given in the rental agreement; verbal consent is not enough. This protects both sides, because if there is damage abroad, what matters is whether the car was allowed to be there.

Ask for consent when you book, not the day before you leave, because the trip is written into the agreement. Consent is a paid service: the charge is added to the rental in advance, and you see the amount before confirming your booking. If a trip abroad comes up during the rental, call +48 539 888 555 and do not set off until the consent arrives by email.

Abroad the same rule applies as in Poland: the car may only be driven by the renter and the people named in the agreement. If you will be taking turns at the wheel on a long drive to the Netherlands or Switzerland, add the second driver before you leave, not on the way.

Two zones of countries

Zone I covers Germany, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Lithuania. Zone II covers Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Austria and Luxembourg. The consent charge depends on the zone and is paid once, whatever the length of the rental.

If you buy the Platinium package, travel to Zone I is included in the package price. For a longer rental with a trip to Germany or the Czech Republic, take this into account when choosing a package, because Platinium also gives a 1 PLN excess in classes up to and including SUVs, and arranges a replacement car abroad if yours is immobilised through your fault.

The route counts as much as the destination

Consent applies only within the countries of both zones, including when you are just passing through. You can reach Vienna via the Czech Republic, Amsterdam and Brussels via Germany, and Switzerland via Germany too, and all of these routes stay within the zones.

The problem arises when your satnav takes you through a country that is not on the list. Hungary, Latvia, France and Slovenia are not on it, so a trip to Croatia is ruled out, and you cannot cross from Lithuania into Latvia. When you book, list every country you will drive through, including transit countries.

Regardless of the zones, the rental terms strictly prohibit entering Russia, Ukraine, Moldova or Belarus, as well as any country where armed conflict is taking place or a state of war or martial law is in force.

What happens if you go without consent

Leaving Poland without consent means a contractual penalty, and going to a country outside both zones means a considerably higher one. The amount of both penalties is set out in the Table of Fees, an annex to the General Rental Terms.

The penalty is not the end of it. Damage that occurs during a trip without consent is not covered by the protection package, so you are fully liable for it. If the car breaks down in a country not on the list, you also bear the cost of its use and of transporting it back.

These are not dead letters. The cars are fitted with GPS trackers, and the rental terms explicitly list checking the agreed geographical limits as one of the purposes of using them.

What you sort out yourself before leaving

Equipment. We hand over the car with a warning triangle, a fire extinguisher and a spare wheel or a tyre repair kit. If a destination or transit country requires more, for example hi-vis vests for passengers or a first aid kit, you buy it at your own expense.

Road charges. Motorways in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria and Switzerland require a vignette. Fines, road tolls and charges for entering clean air zones in cities are paid by the renter.

Local rules. Abroad you must follow the local traffic rules, and in winter also the tyre requirements, which differ between countries. If you are heading to the Alps, ask about tyres when you book.

Breakdown or collision abroad

The procedure is the same as in Poland. Make the car safe, call +48 539 888 555 and email flota@quantacars.pl before you report the damage to an insurer or call roadside assistance. In the event of a collision, call the police. Our staff member will give you further instructions.

Keep the documents from the scene: the statement of the driver at fault or the police report, photos of the damage and the other party's details. Without a complete damage report the protection package will not apply, and abroad it is hard to fill in anything later.