Cathy wrote:
Will I need an International Driving Licence to drive a hire car in New Zealand?

Cathy

Simple answer is that you shouldn't require one.

As far as the law goes you can drive on a foreign licence here in NZ for
up to a year (by which time you are required to get an NZ drivers licence)

As for hire companies I never had a problem in the past just presenting
my UK licence (in fact when I did have an IDL (IDP?? it's a Permit not
Licence from memory) they asked for my UK licence and ignored the IDL)

Although I have never had a problem, the best advice is still to contact
the hire company you are getting the car from (you can normally find a
contact e-mail address on their websites) to find out what their policy
actually is.

More importantly you should make sure that the hire company explains the
major differences in the road rules between the UK and NZ (even though
we drive on the same side of the road there are some rule differences
that can catch out the unwary (or jet-lagged!!)). The main ones which
should be noted a-

The give way to the right rule - this applies when you are turning and
can be very confusing at first and should definitely be explained to you
by the hire car company (if it isn't then ask them when you pick up the
car) - put simply if you are making a turn and there is another car also
wishing to make a turn into the same space then in most cases if it is
going to hit the drivers door (ie is coming from the right) then you
have to give way to it.

When parking you have to park in the direction of travel - ie on the
left hand side of the road except on one way streets.

You always have to carry your drivers licence with you (unlike the UK
where you have time to present it to a local police station you have to
be able to instantly produce it here)

You can undertake - this can be disconcerting at first as cars pass on
either side (legally) on the motorway.

I hope this is of help.

Ian