Driving in the UK: An American’s Survival Guide - Road Signs, Roundabouts, and Rental Car Blunders!

This week on the Anglotopia Podcast, we discuss the unique experiences and challenges faced by American drivers navigating the roads of the UK. We share personal anecdotes, practical tips, and insights into the cultural differences in driving, including the importance of understanding road signs, speed limits, and the etiquette of driving in a foreign country. We also discuss the quirks of roundabouts, the nuances of renting a car, and the significance of being courteous on the road, as well as other tips and tricks to reduce your anxiety about driving in the UK. It can actually be a lot of fun to drive in Britain. This episode will get you prepared and teach you what to expect.

[@eamonquinn5188]

I live near Swindon, the Magic Roundabout is indeed magic, it might look scary, you just have to know where you want to go and aim for it, whilst still being aware that you have to give way to traffic from the right. It's a very efficient 5 way junction. Also, you should definitely indicate before your exit that you want to leave the roundabout, you might have got yourself in the wrong lane , which might ordinarily not be a good lane for that exit, if there could be any doubt about your intentions, indicate!

[@richardlytton]

There is wrong information in this video. The X sign means no stopping or parking. It's called a clearway. When approaching a roundabout to turn left, indicate left before you reach the roundabout. If going straight on, indicate left as you pass the exit before the one you want. If you are turning right, indicate right before you before you reach the roundabout. Then, as you pass the exit before the one you want, change your indicators to left.

[@anglotopia]

Thank you! I knew I was wrong about the sign. It's been a while since I drove there, so I figured something I would say would be wrong.

[@peterlee2622]

Totally agree about not getting an electric hire car if you are going any distance. If you do get an EV, your trips are probably going to be 50 to 100% longer than in a ICE car because you will have to wait while the car is recharged. A point about fuel stations - I believe the colour of the fuel dispensing pipes are different from in the US. In the UK, diesel comes from a BLACK hose and petrol comes from a GREEN one (for Unleaded petrol). And in many petrol stations, there are two kinds of unleaded. One is labelled E5 and contains 5% ethanol and the other is labelled E10 and contains 10% ethanol. The E10 is cheaper by a few pence per litre. As all rental cars will be fairly new, they will all be able to use E10 fuel so always choose this nozzle to save yourself some money! And finally, I agree about driving in big cities. I make it a rule to never drive in central London, Birmingham, Manchester etc unless I really have to - and I have been driving in the UK for 55 years!

[@eamonquinn5188]

Whenever you drive on the "other" side of the road, it's tricky to be aware that the opposite side of the car is near the kerb, maybe nearer than you thought, at least for the first day or 2

[@ronniel5941]

I’ve returned quite a few rental cars at Heathrow and had no trouble- they always seemed keener to check the barcode on the windscreen to ensure it was still the same car, than bothering about scratches.

[@brigidsingleton1596]

Oh and, dont forget, we _don't_ have jaywalking here. We are raised as children how to cross* the road safely on crossings, and without crossings, so know how to do it, and traffic needs to watch out for pedestrians... (in England* at least, the rules / laws are probably different in Scotland and Wales, and I know they are in Northern Ireland).😊

[@brigidsingleton1596]

And... 'Diesel' is pronounced _Diezel_ it was my dog's name so I know how to say it properly ( _not_ diesel... Diezel despite its spelling!) 👍🙂🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿💜🇬🇧🤭🖖

[@simonrobbins8357]

You got muddled over left and right several times😂 For example the story of driving on a narrow road and meeting a car head on, three times you said you pulled to the left when you should have gone right, uh no, in the UK you should have pulled left, I assume you meant you pulled right US style when you should have gone left😀 Also the descriptions for indicating in a roundabout were for a US roundabout. In the UK if you’re turning left you just signal left but if you’re turning right you change the signal halfway round just before you exit. As for parking, the size of the average car in the UK has increased a lot since the 1960s but the standard car park space hasn’t. By comparison I believe cars in the US despite still being massive, have actually got a bit smaller. At least 2020 Lincoln Continental is several inches smaller than it was in the 1960s because I just looked it up to check I wasn’t just making it up😂 Oh, and the bridge to Wales is free now. By the way, you shouldn’t let your friend drive your rental car, the I insurance is probably invalid. Very few people have insurance to drive any car, only their own. Sometimes, people have policies which allow them to let other people drive their car but not to drive other people’s cars, but if it was a hire car, the owner of the car, the hire company would have to authorise an additional driver. Even if an owner has a policy which lets them lend their car to someone else, it’s almost always for the minimum legal cover not for fully comprehensive cover.

[@eamonquinn5188]

Windy little country roads, hmm. It's often legal to drive the national speed limit, i.e. 60 mph on a single carriageway road, including single lanes it really isn't sensible to drive faster than you would feel comfortable braking suddenly if you come face to face with a car coming the other way, however locals might assume they know the backroads like the back of their hands and come roaring round the bend at 60

[@laguna3fase4]

The national speed limit is 60mph on A Roads unless posted differently, NOT 70mph. You are unlikely to be pulled over by the police, but very likely to be caught for speeding with a Speed Camera. There are cameras everywhere. Sometimes they are temporary hidden in a speed enforcement van.( they usually have a sign on to indicate they a checking for speeders).

[@wulfgold]

Pretty sure that if you don't have a Manual License and you're driving a Manual it's an offence and your Insurer will definitely not pay out on an accident - as is typical with insurers, any excuse not to pay out, but not having an appropriate licence can really screw you. Fun Fact: most folk are Right-handed and most folk have a dominant eye too (Right one), due to that + driving on the left it means your right eye is more focused on the centre line so you have better vision (both sides), so actually... it DOES makes sense to drive on the left. However, the left/right thing in different nations mostly comes down to a lot of other factors and not due to this - and it'd be insanely costly to change at this stage.

[@anglotopia]

In the USA, there are no 'manual' or 'automatic' licenses. You just have a license; they don't care what kind of car it's for! But yeah, if you never driven one and rent a manual, that's not going to go well for anyone!

[@wulfgold]

@@anglotopia it's definitely something you should inform the Insurance Company - they're absolute weiners about damage or payouts - although, I expect that's the same in the US - read the small print - ALL of it lol

[@sjbict]

Yes you need a new copy as several laws get changed EVERY year Infact there are new ones coming in the next couple of weeks. all can be found on the UK Govt website allong with the official Highway code and practice tests. FREE

[@Hoopifrood]

National speed limit is only 70 mph on dual carriageway & motorway. 60 mph on ordinary roads.

[@sjbict]

Unless signposted otherwise on those roads.

[@brigidsingleton1596]

So... Youve been driving here in the UK for twenty years (plus?) and still cannot correctly pronounce _Birmingham_ - _Birmingum_ (others?) (or spell _kerb_ correctly!) ... Still acting like 'newbie American visitors' ?! Lol?!😊

[@anglotopia]

We've given up all hope of attempting to 'correctly' pronounce English place names; we always do it wrong to someone when a place name can be pronounced 20 different ways depending on where in England you're from. So, we make a best effort.