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Illegal cars in France

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By (user no longer on site) OP   
over a year ago

Just read an article about British cars being in France - illegally!

All vehicles which are permanently left in France or over 90 days need to be French registered apparently. French police are confiscating them and auctioning them off. A 2006 Masseratti has just been sold for 2900€! Unfortunately the auction is only open to specially selected garages

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

Same applies with foreign cars here!

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By *carboroughladMan
over a year ago

weaverthorpe

That will be a European thing then lol

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By *istalloverCouple
over a year ago

Pays de la Loire -Normandie -Brittany borderFrance

We pushed ours for 2 years ,

but wouldn't do that now.going back a while you could get away with a French CT (mot )on uk plates with French insurance .

Had a nightmare, japaneese import,exported to germany then back to Uk the cert of conformity had more stamps than a philatelist

But i understand why as we know to some britts running around on sorn cars with no mot ,insurance or tax for years on end .

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By (user no longer on site) OP   
over a year ago


"We pushed ours for 2 years ,

but wouldn't do that now.going back a while you could get away with a French CT (mot )on uk plates with French insurance .

Had a nightmare, japaneese import,exported to germany then back to Uk the cert of conformity had more stamps than a philatelist

But i understand why as we know to some britts running around on sorn cars with no mot ,insurance or tax for years on end ."

Apparently the French authorities are making a big push on it. They are aware the UK mot is every year and not two years as here. Also they are contacting dvla for details. The maseratti was listed for export for years by dvla hence they confiscated it. Also on the new ANTS system you have to quote your social security number to be allowed a French registration. It will affect a lot of Brits who have holiday homes here.

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

I don't believe the post relating to 90 days is correct! This may be relative to your insurance provision maybe? My understanding from DVLA is that it can be overseas (EU) for a year before being considered permanently exported (or scrapped). All UK vehicles up to that point must conform to UK law i.e. taxed, MOT'd and insured.

No doubt someone will disagree!

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By *eedsandyMan
over a year ago

Leeds

You're correct. It's 6 months, not 90 days, before you have to register a UK car in France.

I often wonder why people post nonsense on here without carrying out a google search.

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago


"You're correct. It's 6 months, not 90 days, before you have to register a UK car in France.

I often wonder why people post nonsense on here without carrying out a google search.

"

bearing in mind googles not always correct or true facts or the law

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By *eedsandyMan
over a year ago

Leeds


"You're correct. It's 6 months, not 90 days, before you have to register a UK car in France.

I often wonder why people post nonsense on here without carrying out a google search.

bearing in mind googles not always correct or true facts or the law"

It is if you use it to point you to correct sites.

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago


"I don't believe the post relating to 90 days is correct! This may be relative to your insurance provision maybe? My understanding from DVLA is that it can be overseas (EU) for a year before being considered permanently exported (or scrapped). All UK vehicles up to that point must conform to UK law i.e. taxed, MOT'd and insured.

No doubt someone will disagree!"

I have a holiday home here and stay for up to 6 months at a time. I am a tax resident in UK and my car insurance covers me in EU for up to 6 months in any year. So I don't think this applies to me but to cars that are in France without legal cover, either French or UK if you are not resident. Am I wrong?

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By *eedsandyMan
over a year ago

Leeds

It doesn't matter about insurance cover. Everyone needs insurance cover. Everyone is allowed to have a UK registered car in France for a 6 month period, in any 12 months.

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By *orthyorkypairCouple
over a year ago

North Yorkshire

standard UK insurance normally covers "up to 90 days European cover" assuming this covers holdaying etc , no doubt by asking the insurance company this can be extended to cover a longer period, but my understanding is any "foreign" registered vehcle must be re registered after a peroid of time, in the UK i believe this is 1 year perhaps france is less

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By (user no longer on site) OP   
over a year ago


"You're correct. It's 6 months, not 90 days, before you have to register a UK car in France.

I often wonder why people post nonsense on here without carrying out a google search.

"

If you read the original post it said "permanently ". No mention of temporary. Rule for temporary is up to 6 months. However under current freedom of movement rules an individual is only allowed 90 days. Therefore the owner would need a visa to cover the extra 3 months!

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By (user no longer on site) OP   
over a year ago


"I don't believe the post relating to 90 days is correct! This may be relative to your insurance provision maybe? My understanding from DVLA is that it can be overseas (EU) for a year before being considered permanently exported (or scrapped). All UK vehicles up to that point must conform to UK law i.e. taxed, MOT'd and insured.

No doubt someone will disagree!

I have a holiday home here and stay for up to 6 months at a time. I am a tax resident in UK and my car insurance covers me in EU for up to 6 months in any year. So I don't think this applies to me but to cars that are in France without legal cover, either French or UK if you are not resident. Am I wrong?"

Your not permanent and the car isn't left here in France. It's the ones which are being left in France which are being targeted.

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By (user no longer on site) OP   
over a year ago

[Removed by poster at 31/07/18 19:02:59]

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By (user no longer on site) OP   
over a year ago


"You're correct. It's 6 months, not 90 days, before you have to register a UK car in France.

I often wonder why people post nonsense on here without carrying out a google search.

bearing in mind googles not always correct or true facts or the law

It is if you use it to point you to correct sites.

"

Importing a car from the UK and registering it in France

If you decide that you want to bring your car with you to France, the situation becomes a little more complicated. It is currently possible, even if you are a French resident, to keep your UK driving licence and UK plates, for a short time at least, but you will have to change to French plates and a French licence eventually. Your UK driving licence is valid in France until it expires, while you are allowed to keep UK plates for up to six months if you are a non-resident of France, and up to one month for French residents. The time allowed for French residents can be extended up to a maximum of three months should a vehicle need to be approved via the DRIRE. In the past these time limits have not seemed to have been strictly adhered to, but insurance laws are now tightening and this should no longer be the case. Should you be at all uncertain, I would suggest you take current local advice about registering a car from your Mairie in the first instance. Speaking to a good local insurance broker is also a good idea. Franck Haloche provides a great service for English speakers who are looking for insurance in France - for more details take a look at www.france-insurance.co.uk.

They have extended the 1 month rule to 3 months because of the new ANTS system being "overloaded"

Trust this clarifies the point Leedsandy? Or are you an expert on All things French too?

www.frenchpropertylinks.com - is the link used to confirm PERMANENT resident status where UK cars remain in France PERMANENTLY.

Other French sites are available but in French

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By *entakuruMan
over a year ago

Exeter

This is presumably only if you're caught using it on the roads, right? Not like they're gonna come banging your garage door in if they suspect you've got an old MG stashed in there that hasn't run in years?

The 90 days thing is a bit of a worry though as I frequently spend up to four months over autumn and early winter in France but I don't have a place to store a locally registered car, plus I wouldn't trust/rely on a car that was only used for a short period and then idle for a year or two at a time, because that tends to be the kiss of death for cars, especially older ones.

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By *entakuruMan
over a year ago

Exeter

ah, six months. Yeah that seems more like it.

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By *estofbothCouple
over a year ago

Cardiff

Had our British cars between Spain and France for about 5 years and never registered them, we kept up the mot’s in the U.K. and had them insured and never had any issues, and being young in some expensive metal used to get stopped and searched by the police a lot at the border.

Friend of ours suggested buying a tunnel ticket from the U.K. every now and again just to prove the car had only recently left the U.K. to keep the insurance company happy if anything happened.

Always wondered if this was something they were going to crack down on though, suppose we have brexit to thank for this now becoming an issue.

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By (user no longer on site) OP   
over a year ago


"I don't believe the post relating to 90 days is correct! This may be relative to your insurance provision maybe? My understanding from DVLA is that it can be overseas (EU) for a year before being considered permanently exported (or scrapped). All UK vehicles up to that point must conform to UK law i.e. taxed, MOT'd and insured.

No doubt someone will disagree!"

You may have satisfied the UK authorities, but not the French. The UK also imposes a 6 month rule on foreign vehicles in the UK.

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By (user no longer on site) OP   
over a year ago


"This is presumably only if you're caught using it on the roads, right? Not like they're gonna come banging your garage door in if they suspect you've got an old MG stashed in there that hasn't run in years?

The 90 days thing is a bit of a worry though as I frequently spend up to four months over autumn and early winter in France but I don't have a place to store a locally registered car, plus I wouldn't trust/rely on a car that was only used for a short period and then idle for a year or two at a time, because that tends to be the kiss of death for cars, especially older ones.

"

I would suggest English Facebook page "RHD IN FRANCE" very knowledge an "expert" .

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By *ucianpoundCouple
over a year ago

Cap d’Agde, France

We brought our old English banger to France with us, it had a full Mot at the time and since that was valid for 2 years in France the insurance companies here were quite happy to insure us.

We never registered it here and the advantage was that we never got speeding tickets.

Not so with our French Car where we racked them up in the first 6 months we had it.

In the end we just used it for just local trips but despite the heavy gendarmery presence around the Cap we were never stopped once.

Our trusty old Ford eventually ended up in a breakers yard near Beziers and although we gave it away we still managed to get all the official paper work to say we were no longer the owners

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By *aelic funMan
over a year ago

Carlisle Dumfries France

Don't think that having UK plates in France makes you immune to speeding fines etc. Earlier this year the DVLA and their French equivalent started exchanging information which has resulted in legally enforceable fines from France being sent to UK addresses.

Nowadays the French laws have been tightened in other areas -

you can now only sell a car for scrap/spares via a garage

If you are not in the French tax system you are unable to buy and register a car in France. You now need the French equivalent of the UK Gateway code to do this, an registration is now only done on line.

And unfortunately Brexit looks like meaning all of us who split time between the two countries will not be allowed to spend so much in France (and Europe) in future.

The proposals are you can spend up to 3 months in the EU and then are not allowed to return for 180/190 days. You will also have to buy an international driving licence and a visa.

That, plus UK French residents now having to get a Carte de Sejour if they are staying permanently in France is also part of France's attempts to clamp down on tax avoidance and illegal cars.

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By (user no longer on site) OP   
over a year ago


"Don't think that having UK plates in France makes you immune to speeding fines etc. Earlier this year the DVLA and their French equivalent started exchanging information which has resulted in legally enforceable fines from France being sent to UK addresses.

Nowadays the French laws have been tightened in other areas -

you can now only sell a car for scrap/spares via a garage

If you are not in the French tax system you are unable to buy and register a car in France. You now need the French equivalent of the UK Gateway code to do this, an registration is now only done on line.

And unfortunately Brexit looks like meaning all of us who split time between the two countries will not be allowed to spend so much in France (and Europe) in future.

The proposals are you can spend up to 3 months in the EU and then are not allowed to return for 180/190 days. You will also have to buy an international driving licence and a visa.

That, plus UK French residents now having to get a Carte de Sejour if they are staying permanently in France is also part of France's attempts to clamp down on tax avoidance and illegal cars."

100% correct!

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

A mate has a meeting with the Marie next week so will find out the details for the Rego as there will be a way round the NI issue.

Will keep you posted

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By *anejohnkent6263Couple
over a year ago

canterbury

God if only the UK were as strong as France the UK would be rich...

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By *aelic funMan
over a year ago

Carlisle Dumfries France

Speeding fines revenue in France in 2017 - 1.97 billion euros

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By (user no longer on site) OP   
over a year ago


"Speeding fines revenue in France in 2017 - 1.97 billion euros

"

Now that's no suprise the way they drive!

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By *s2funloversCouple
over a year ago

North Walsham and Spain

This 80km blanket limit on single carriage ways is going to up that revenue nicely, add to that the private covert camera cars... nice little earner. They are in full swing making money here in Basse Normandie

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By *lebfucedCouple
over a year ago

Newport

are these figures correct,if they are it works out at

5,500,000 a day approximately.

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By *aelic funMan
over a year ago

Carlisle Dumfries France

Yes the figures are correct.

Reported in Sud Ouest paper this week and taken from a government report.

Remember that France has way more speed cameras (all types, hand held guns, on cars and now the average speed ones which are catching out people on the A10 in Charente Maritime and presumably elsewhere)

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By *ucianpoundCouple
over a year ago

Cap d’Agde, France


"Yes the figures are correct.

Reported in Sud Ouest paper this week and taken from a government report.

Remember that France has way more speed cameras (all types, hand held guns, on cars and now the average speed ones which are catching out people on the A10 in Charente Maritime and presumably elsewhere)"

Given that the average fine is 45 euros this means that 120,000 people are fined every day!

Perhaps with parking fines as well (although lots of car parks are free in France) but even so it does seem a tad excessive.

Just like the UK, you can't always believe what you read in the papers!

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By (user no longer on site) OP   
over a year ago


"Yes the figures are correct.

Reported in Sud Ouest paper this week and taken from a government report.

Remember that France has way more speed cameras (all types, hand held guns, on cars and now the average speed ones which are catching out people on the A10 in Charente Maritime and presumably elsewhere)

Given that the average fine is 45 euros this means that 120,000 people are fined every day!

Perhaps with parking fines as well (although lots of car parks are free in France) but even so it does seem a tad excessive.

Just like the UK, you can't always believe what you read in the papers!"

Actually the 45€ fine is only if it is just over the limit and paid within the shortest period of time. Like the UK it goes up if not paid quickly. But more the point, the way they drive it's more likely that they are well over the limit!

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By *mmmMaybeCouple
over a year ago

West Wales


"God if only the UK were as strong as France the UK would be rich..."

Annoyingly our stupid government signed up to this reciprocal agreement without checking the other EU countries rules. The French make it "difficult" for the UK authorities to get info on their citizens. We on the other hand make it easy. In many other countries the onus is on the authorities to prove who was driving with no legal obligation to tell the authorities (unlike the UK)..

So its very onesided & should really be kicked into touch until there's a level playing field.

S

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By (user no longer on site)
over a year ago

My pal asked the question in the Marie re NI number for a rego and you are spot on. However they are now looking at how Mr Foreigner gets around this as they havent been asked the question before.

Will keep you posted.

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By (user no longer on site) OP   
over a year ago


"My pal asked the question in the Marie re NI number for a rego and you are spot on. However they are now looking at how Mr Foreigner gets around this as they havent been asked the question before.

Will keep you posted."

Actually it has always been that way! However when you went to the prefecture to do it they just asked for proof of address and never for the NI number - they assumed everyone was a French taxpayer! The new ANTS system required you to logon to it by going through "connect France " which is another gov't system. You can set up an account on ANTS and log all the information but it won't complete the transaction - based on several attempts by myself. The French find it complicated let alone a foreigner and to add pressures - you only have 15 mins to do it!!!!

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