:welcome: Hello Blacksnape :

https://www.expatforum.com/expats/f.../france-expat-forum-expats-living-france/1463978-registering-uk-car-france.html

 

Other than to strongly suggest you sell the car in the UK and buy something else here, I can’t offer any other ideas.

 

We are moving from the UK To live permanently in France this month and bringing our UK registered, right- hand drive car with us. Where and how do we start to register and insure the car and are there other things we should do to be able to drive our car here. Thanks for any advice and tips.

Yes, consider seriously whether bringing a Brit car to France, aside from the potential complications that might arise from Brexit, is a sensible idea. The driver will always be on the wrong side for tollbooths, parking barriers, etc. You will always be looked down upon by the French and a potential target for any vandalism from the French yobbo brigade.

Sell it in UK, and get a French car local to where you will be living.

 

You will always be looked down upon by the French and a potential target for any vandalism from the French yobbo brigade.

Sell it in UK, and get a French car local to where you will be living.

I have registered 2 ex-uk cars here .. simply because I prefer RHD due to my arthritis .. not ready for automatic yet !
Certainly nobody has looked down on me .. no vandalism .. and no problems with servicing or CTs.

Though IMO how well you will get on with your RHD might depend on where you live .. we are in a tourist area with lots of summer traffic plus mostly limited to 80 kph .. we have no toll booths as we have no motorways as we live in Brittany .. and the cashier in the booth at the petrol station likes having a word with me as I get out of my car to pay for my petrol.

There are inconveniences .. but how much they impinge on your equanimity will depend very much on where you live.

 

If you are going to bring your UK car then be aware that the moment that you leave the uk and reside in France you will have to insure it with a French company The french are very used to insuring a vehicle on UK plates but be prepared for a shock with the price If you want comprehensive insurance you need "toutes risques" Most towns will have insurance agents it is just a case of slogging round and comparing policies If your french is good then you could search for "comparateur assurance voiture" which will take you o companies such as Le Lynx or Les Furets which are comparison sites However be aware that if your RHD vehicle is written off then you will get the market value in France ie not very much.Once you arrive in France you have one month to re register your vehicle How to do it is explained on the "Service Public" website which is the official french govt site Search on the site for "immatriculation d'une vehicule etrangere" It tells what docs you need to get Do not try to do it online go to a firm lier Feu Vert or Cartaplac which for a small fee will do it for you.If you decide t sell your RHD car in the UK there are UK companies that sell LHD vehicles to wannabe expats and some will handle all the paperwork too Search LHD cars for sale in UK Hope this helps Bonne Chance

 

If your plan is to live in France 'permanently' then sell the UK car in the UK and buy car in France.

Don't give it another thought.

 

As I said previously.

A plus point is that the garage (assuming you are sensible and buy through a garage/proper authorised dealer) will make sure that the vehicle is roadworthy and with no obvious defects (they don't want you back every five minutes with little problems.) That is what we have done here in Spain and we find that we get excellent service with no rip-offs and the wife of the owner also handles the insurance so that when our car was shunted from the rear, repairs were put into action post haste and we had a free replacement car while they were being done, although that wasn't in the insurance policy.

Beware, Arthur Daley has branches everywhere.

 

When we first arrived we had two U.K. cars and apart from the getting out at toll booths if only one of us in the car, never had any problems. When I lived in the UK I had US cars so LHD and again only problem was being alone at tolls or pay on the way out car parks. Never have I felt that the French looked down on me or were they vandalised. As to servicing my UK Mercs , they loved it because the same model was never brought out in France and it was high spec.

I tried to buy a new car in France and gave up. It was more you get what we have not what you want. So I flew to Germany and ordered one from a dealer there. I got exactly what I wanted. It depends on how you drive if you are a tailgater and always want to overtake go LHD.

 

I tried to buy a new car in France and gave up. It was more you get what we have not what you want.

<snip>

Of course you can order whatever you want in whatever spec in France for flying out loud.

With regards to driving a RHD in France. Well....you can't overtake safely. It is that simple.

If you potter about then that is fine. But the person behind does not want to 'potter about' and waiting around why you are 'pottering about' is going to encourage them do stupid things. 'That's fine' I hear you say. But you will become the meat in the sandwich when it goes wrong.

LHD !!! for your own safety.

 

I've known a few Brits who hang onto their RHD car for a good year or two after moving to France. OK, most of the folks I know who have done this moved here for employment, so did have some employer support for running the administrative gauntlets involved. And, they made frequent trips (by car) back to the UK to visit friends and family, and occasionally for business.

They ultimately got LHD cars when they got tired of the hassles involved. (And switched back to a RHD when they moved back to the UK on retirement.)

Key thing is to find a garage where you can work with the folks who run it (both for registering the car, and for later maintenance and repair work) and to work with your insurance provider.

 

There is an additional element to this question that I have not seen discussed previously in this thread, or any other threads. Demonstrating one's commitment to living and fully being in France.

As many have pointed out, you can live with a RHD vehicle in France without major problems. Some have even noted that on difficult mountain roads, RHD might even be safer, since you have a better view of the edge of the road (and the void below).

However, the mere presence of a RHD car in France, especially when it still has UK registration, loudly states I HAVE NOT INTEGRATED INTO FRENCH LIFE.

And, in fact, that is often exactly the case. More than any other expat community Brits (dare I say English) are known to, or at least strongly suspected of, clumping together into little enclaves.

If you have decided to move your physical life to France, but you are not ready for total immersion, keeping your RHD vehicle will loudly broadcast your intentions -- Regarde, les Anglais sont arrivés.

On the other hand, adopting and adapting to the values, habits, ways of life, etc. of your new home will likewise signal your openness to commit to fully accept all the consequences of your choice.

Dump the RHD.

 

I doubt that anyone would be integrated into French life.

The car will have to be registered in France within a month.

I know of at least one forum member who has been here for a fair number of years, is well integrated, but has kept their RHD vehicle.

 

Do you know what...if I ever moved back to the UK........I would actually prefer to drive a LHD.

I would

I don't give a shît about integrating....I want my steering on the side I can drive it

 

We are moving from the UK To live permanently in France this month and bringing our UK registered, right- hand drive car with us.

Unless it's a classic, it would be better not to bother. Having driven a RHD car in Europe and a LHD car in Britain I'd never recommend it.

 

For years I drove LHD cars in the U.K , had one out today. Nobody ever remarked about it being LHD or inferred I was not integrated into the U.K. I have two cars in France one LHD and one RHD. The car from the U.K. was brought here one month old and insured right away with AXA, no problem. It was within 2 weeks registered and plated French. Not one person in France has ever made any comment including the police that it is RHD.

I do not know what immersion in France means. I speak, read and write French to the extent sometimes I now think in French. I have bought property in France, pay my taxes here and even taken French nationality. I have not had one motoring offence ticket here. So, where am I doing any wrong by driving a car I choose to drive in France? And when I say drive, I can drive.

I would say that to really show your commitment and that you have integrated into France is to take French nationality. I will never be integrated because I do not know what that means either. I am happy to be kindly accepted for what I am not what other people say I should do or be and let others do the same.

 

You know when you are fully integrated into France when you dream in French-regardless which side of the bed you sleep on

 

Ahem. But I sometimes dream in French, or Dutch/Flemish or English or Spanish so would I be integrated in all the countries that speak those languages?

 

That all depends on what sort of dreams you have

 

What nonsense about not being integrated if you drive a RHD car! Fair enough if you don't bother getting it sorted onto French plates etc, I think that does stand out if you are obviously living here full time and running around on UK plates. We usually have one of each and have done for the 20 years on and off that we've lived here. Our RHD car is one that we can use to cart builders stuff in, and lots of people as required (it has 6 seats that can be removed) and if we'd bought it here it would have cost us twice as much as we paid in the UK, and we wouldn't have been able to drive out here after we'd flown into the UK from Oz! I think if you live in town or want to overtake all the time then yes it can be a PITA. We do a lot of country driving on windy, forest roads. I actually often feel safer in the UK car as I can pull right over onto the verge easier (handy with a huge logging truck coming at you!) adn with the bends even if I do need to overtake a tractor or something I can often see better than I can in the French car. Motorways are a bit of a pain but as I have 3 front seats it is easy for me to scoot over, or I have a passenger so doesn't matter, ditto with fuel (although most around here are automatic now so you get out no matter what side you are driving in!).

To the OP it is a quite easy process (or was until the new cetralised system took over but that is hopeless regardless of where your car is from!), go get your CT (MOT equivalent), then take all your papers to the tax office to get the form you need from them then send off for your carte grise.

 

What nonsense about not being integrated if you drive a RHD car!...

I think you, and a few others, may have misinterpreted my comment. What I said was, you risk being seen as someone who has not integrated. Brits, especially English, are often suspected of staying apart and not integrating into french life. When someone you do not (yet) know sees that RHD car, it fits into their prejudice.

Rather than see my comment as a rule about moving from the U.K. to France, think of it in terms of wanting to make a good initial impression. BTW, The phrase "make a good impression" may sound shallow. But, in fact, in order to do that, you first have to be open to learning about the local culture, norms and values.

 

Suggest you join this group..
Excellent info. Look in FILES for solid advice..
https://www.facebook.com/groups/1194914370612560/

 

OK, let's not quibble over a relatively minor point. Berkinet has a point regarding the impression it makes and impressions (particularly first ones) can be important, not to mention long-lasting. OTOH, it's obviously up to the individual to what extent they wish to integrate (or to demonstrate their state of integration).

Use the RHD car for as long as you feel comfortable doing so. When the inconveniences start to get to you, consider getting a LHD car.