Need a little help please...

Gotcha Michael,,thanks! 

  Yes Ruth i am still telling myself I will pack light!! I can pack light!! LOL

Debbie:  Might I suggest that you book your car online thru Hertz UK (www.hertz.co.uk)? I have had the best experience with them the many times I have rented cars in the UK. Also, do yourself a favor and don't rent a car in London proper--not only will you have to pay the London congestion charge, but driving there as a foreigner on the other side of the road is not something you want to do! I've driven 10's-of-thousands of miles in the UK but London is one place in which I will NOT drive--too congested and too easy to get lost. You would be better to arrange to pick up your car at Heathrow airport when you are ready to leave London--just take the Heathrow Express train from Paddington station to the airport (www.heathrowexpress.com), go to the car rental office (whichever you've booked through ahead of time) and drive out of the airport. There is also the Gatwick Express (www.gatwickexpress.com) if you choose to go pick up your rental car there instead--it leaves from Victoria Station. Granted, you will still encounter quite a bit of traffic (same with Gatwick), but it's a LOT better than trying to drive out of the center of London! Each of the UK car rental websites have customer support webpages where you can ask questions and get some pretty good advice.

Also, if you book your car rental with a VISA card, you will not have to purchase the additional Collision Damage/Theft Waiver because VISA already covers you for that--here is their information: http://usa.visa.com/personal/cards/benefits/bft_dmg_waiver_personal.html.

I hope this helps make your trip more enjoyable! By the way, where are you planning to go in the UK?

Wow.. nice going Rob!   Plenty of excellent advice there, should be of great help to many. 

P.S. - As a Londoner myself, I try never to drive anywhere in the center of town (certainly within the congestion charge zone) if I can help it. It's so much quicker and easier to jump on the underground and of course, no parking problems!         

I guess that tells a story, when even a Londoner avoids driving in London...lol.  Although, it's a sad reflection on modern times.. 

Thanks Toby and Rob,,

 Funny Rob everything you mentioned we did ,  

we did go back to heathrow and rented the car with Hertz and drove out from there and loved just using the tube in London no way would want to drive there,,, My husband is a much better driver and me the co pilot telling him where to turn,,lol being that on our trip i hit the curb put a knot on the tire and almost ran into a car long story... I have driven several times in europe with no problems but not sure what was going on there,,,Think I was trying to find a few ppl here on POE when i hit the curb,,LOL;-))))

No worries Rob,, we have already been on our trip to England we went on aug 25 and came back on sept 5th  had a wonderful time cant wait for the next, and yes we used all the wonderful transportation there was to offer,,;-)))

 We have also been to Scotland and Ireland twice each i am a europe addict,,,LOL;-))))

Did I bother to look at the date of your original post? NO-O-O-O-O-O-O-O! Will the advice help someone else? I hope so! At any rate, I'll try to pay more attention to time-sensitive posts . . . ah, senior moments (gotta love 'em)!!!