Renting a van in Stuttgart: the practical guide

In Stuttgart the sensible place to rent a van is where the vehicles already are: with a local rental firm in Feuerbach, Vaihingen, Bad Cannstatt or Zuffenhausen, or directly from a private owner in your own district. For the usual panel vans an ordinary category B car licence is enough, and if you pack and drive yourself, a move normally costs far less than hiring a removal company.

Four things really decide how your day goes in Stuttgart: the right size of vehicle, the climb into the Kessel, the basin the city sits in, with its gradients and narrow residential streets, the Umweltzone low-emission zone, and what the rental actually includes. Settle those before you book and there is no surprise at the counter.

What size do you actually need?

The commonest mistake is a vehicle that is too small: two runs across the basin in rush hour easily cost half a day. The second commonest is a vehicle too big for the street, because up on the Halbhöhenlage slopes the bends are tight and the driveways short.

Licence, minimum age and who may drive

The licence is where bookings fall apart, and almost always at the counter. Deal with it first.

• Category B covers panel vans up to the weight limit set by law. The permitted total mass is on the Fahrzeugschein, the German vehicle registration document, and should appear in the listing too: compare both.
• Above that you need an additional category. Older licences issued before today's categories often cover more; if in doubt ask the Führerscheinstelle, the city's driving licence office.
• Minimum age and minimum licence-holding period are set by each rental firm. They are in the rental terms, not in the law.
• Only registered drivers are insured. If your brother takes half the route, he has to be on the contract as an additional driver.
• With a licence issued abroad, a translation or an international permit may be required. The Führerscheinstelle will tell you which papers are accepted; the rules change.

Driving in Stuttgart: the basin, the gradients, the car parks

Stuttgart sits in a bowl, and you notice it at once with a loaded van. Leaving the centre means climbing: the Weinsteige and the approaches to Degerloch want a low gear. Downhill the reverse applies, so use the engine brake rather than cooking the discs. Expect residents-only parking in almost every district close to the centre, too.

• Keep the height in your head: many underground car parks will not take a high roof. The clearance is signed at the entrance.
• Reverse only with someone guiding you. There is nothing to see behind, and the hillside streets are narrow.
• Here stairs often replace the lift. If you live along one of the Staffeln, the city's public stairways, build the carrying distance into your plan.
• Crosswinds on the motorway viaducts and up on the Alb plateau push an empty van around noticeably.

Umweltzone and the sticker

Inside its Umweltzone, Stuttgart admits only vehicles carrying the corresponding sticker, and individual engine types face further restrictions. The shape of the zone, the exemptions and the fines all change, so check the current position with the City of Stuttgart and get written confirmation from the rental firm that the vehicle may enter the zone. An exemption permit is possible in certain cases, but it has to be applied for in advance. Do not assume a rental vehicle automatically qualifies.

A parking ban zone for moving day

In Stuttgart a temporary Halteverbotszone is almost always worth the trouble; otherwise the van ends up parked two streets away.

1. 1Apply for both the old and the new address at the Amt für öffentliche Ordnung, the public order office; this can be done online.
2. 2Respect the notice period and have the signs put up in good time; the city states the deadline and the charge during the process.
3. 3If stopping is absolutely prohibited in front of the loading area, or it is a pedestrian zone, you also need an exemption permit.
4. 4On the day, photograph the zone before you load. That helps if somebody has parked there anyway.

Deposit, insurance and excess

This is where the bill nobody expected comes from. A van gets loaded and unloaded, and that is exactly how you get scratches on the door frame, dents in the load space and damage to the roof. Read before you book, not afterwards:

• Deposit: know the amount in advance and which payment method is accepted. Many firms want a credit card in the driver's name.
• Excess: check explicitly whether roof, load space, tyres and underbody are covered. On a move those are the typical casualties.
• After an accident, call the police. Without a report the claim becomes a slog.
• Included mileage, the fuel rule and the return time: a Sunday evening return is not possible everywhere, and an hour over can count as a whole extra day.
• A one-way rental, returning the van somewhere else, usually costs extra. Ask about it if you are moving away from Stuttgart.

Local rental firm or private owner?

Both work, and both are usually calmer than the counter of one of the big chains. A local firm in Bad Cannstatt or Weilimdorf knows the access roads and often has a sack truck and furniture dollies in the yard; private owners are more flexible about handover times, and in exchange you should document the condition especially carefully. DRIVO is a European marketplace that lets you rent directly from trusted independent and local rental agencies and from private owners, across Europe and North Africa. In practice that means:

• Every cost is shown before you pay, including the DRIVO service fee on the rental, which appears as its own line and is refunded with a free cancellation or a cancellation by the agency.
• Instant booking confirmation and free cancellation up to 48 hours before pick-up.
• You see the deposit and what is included before you book; an optional full-protection add-on at checkout lowers the excess.
• Listings and support in five languages, with help over WhatsApp and the in-app concierge.
• Beyond cars there are vans and utility vehicles, motorhomes and campervans wherever local supply exists.

Taking a van onto the Autobahn

Inside built-up areas the limit is 50 km/h; outside built-up areas it is 100 km/h for cars. On a large part of the Autobahn network there is no general speed limit at all. Where no limit is signposted, the Richtgeschwindigkeit of 130 km/h applies, and that is an advisory speed, not a limit: drive faster and you can be held partly liable in an accident. On the remaining stretches the signposted limit applies, often 100 km/h, 120 km/h or 130 km/h, for instance at city approaches, in roadworks and in noise-sensitive areas, which around Stuttgart you meet often. Your vehicle may also have a maximum speed of its own; the rental firm will tell you what the papers say.

• On the Autobahn you must keep right, and overtaking on the right is prohibited. In slow-moving traffic, form a Rettungsgasse, the emergency corridor, between the left-hand lane and the one next to it.
• A warning triangle, a high-visibility vest and a first-aid kit must be carried. In a van they are not always where you expect them, so find them at pick-up.
• The blood alcohol limit is 0.5 per mille. During the probationary period and for everyone under 21 it is 0.0, meaning no alcohol at all.
• The winter tyre obligation is situational: it depends on road conditions, not on a fixed date. Check the tyres before heading up onto the Schwäbische Alb in winter.
• The Autobahn is toll-free for cars; ask the rental firm whether your vehicle falls into that category. If you drive on into Austria or Switzerland, you need a vignette there.

A short handover checklist

1. 1Film a walk around the vehicle with your phone, load space and roof included.
2. 2Check tyres, lights and safety equipment, and photograph the fuel level and the odometer.
3. 3Write down the vehicle height and leave the note in plain sight in the cab.
4. 4Count straps, blankets and the sack truck, and have them noted on the handover record.
5. 5Set the seat and mirrors and take a test lap around the neighbourhood.