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Comment by komali2 | Hacker News Reader

Reminds me when I mentioned to my friend's Grandpa that I get AAA just cause I need an IDP and he went onto this big tangent about how he's been a "proud card-carrying AAA member for 40 years" or some such, talked about it like it was a club, he'd meet other members for dinners and whatnot.

I think America was basically a different country before the 90s.

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It was. I remember taking road trips with the assumption that our destination location would be a very different place. Different accent, styles, restaurants, overall feel.

Today, it’s almost the same everywhere I go

You don't even need to be a member. Just walk in, show your driver's license, pay $20 or so and walk out with your international drivers permit.

I love how AAA is lobbying/positioning itself to basically be a less shitty private DMV where possible.

What’s IDP in the context of roadside service insurance?

Maybe International Driving Permit? Our local version of AAA issues them, but you don't have to be a member.

Not GP. One of the things that AAA makes easy is getting an IDP, which is not related to roadside assistance (or vehicle insurance).

IDP is “International Driving Permit”, which is a booklet that certifies that the person has a driving license in <country> for <class of vehicles>. It includes the photo of the person and the date of birth. It includes translation in various languages so that when you’re in another country and rent a vehicle (or drive one) and the police (or enforcers) need to check if you have a valid license, you can show this (as well as your original license, if asked for). Anecdotally, I’ve heard that the process to get it through AAA seems quicker and easier than from the DMV.

> Anecdotally, I’ve heard that the process to get it through AAA seems quicker and easier than from the DMV.

You heard right, but that's because you won't get one at all from the any state DMV. The AAA is the only authorized entity allowed to issue IDPs in the USA. I wish I was making it up, because I'd rather go to my (excellent) DMV office than across town.

"The American Automobile Association (AAA) is the official organization authorized by the U.S. Department of State to issue IDPs" from https://www.usa.gov/international-drivers-license

No, you can get an IDP online. Linked from the state department:

https://www.aataidp.com/

It's easier than going to an AAA office. Slightly more expensive but worth it. They mail it to you quite quickly.

Oh! Today I learned, thanks! I didn’t even know that was a thing. Would you need that for renting a car in another country?

Oddly enough, no car rental place has ever checked. Supposedly the police care, but I haven't seen much evidence of that either. Given they only cost $25, I keep one with me anyway.

Fair enough. If you’ve already jumped through the hoops of getting a passport, that’s a trivial extra expense. Use it one time ever and you’d be pretty happy to have spent it.

It has to be renewed yearly FYI.

In Korea last year I was asked. And they did check both the IDP and my original driving license, as they should have.

Depends very much on the country. Many countries don't care, some like Japan will absolutely refuse to let you drive a car without one.

And it has to be the correct flavor of IDP too, meaning proper 1949 Geneva Convention on proper 1940s cardboard, none of that new-fangled 1969 Vienna Convention nonsense. Oh, your country has signed up to 1969 but not 1949? No car in Japan for you then.

I wasn't even aware you could get them at the DNV. I've always gone to AAA to get one. They have always seemed like a bit of a scam to me since anytime I've been stopped in a foreign country the police have been more interested in my passport and actual drivers license.

Depending on the country, there might be a reciprocal agreement that allows driving with your state license.

I've been a few places where that's the case, and a couple others where the car rental place actually validated the IDP.

Random note just cause people are looking - if you do get your IDP, make sure to get the stamp for your certs (e.g., car, motorcycle, whatever) on EVERY page of the AAA IDP, for every language. My friend's plans for a motorcycle trip in Japan with us were shot when he showed up and there was a stamp missing from the Arabic page or some such, and the Japanese rental agency was insistent on the IDP looking exactly as it's supposed to per their SOP, and refused to rent to him, even though there was the correct stamp on the Japanese page.

When I got my IDP next year they only stamped the english page and I asked them to stamp all the pages, the AAA people pushed back and said it's not necessary. I shared my story about no, it really is, and they pushed back more. I said I really need to get all my stamps or I need my money back, since the IDP is useless to me without all the stamps (this is after I was no longer a AAA number) and the lady finally rolled her eyes and stamped it.

They're absolutely a scam. Slovenia technically requires them to rent a car. They don't have a translation to Slovene.

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