Driving In The EU After No Deal Brexit

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  • Just for those who think no-deal Brexit won’t change anything for them personally, they might like to consider any holiday planning they might need to make to drive in any EU or EEA country should no-deal happen.

    At the moment, you require NONE of the following.

    Post no-deal Brexit, you will need ALL of them.


    • You will need European Breakdown Cover in addition to your current British insurance cover. You will need to obtain this from an EU approved insurer. Cover issued by a non-approved insurer would not be valid on the continent.
    • The Association of British Insurers (ABI) advises that British drivers are required to carry ‘a physical copy’ of their “Green Card”.
    • If you want to take your pet with you, your British Pet Passport will no longer be accepted on the continent because UK will be categorised as “an unlisted country”.
    • UK-registered cars will need to display a GB sticker when driving in any of the 27 EU countries – including the Republic of Ireland.

    If your car is beyond economical repair you will have to return it to UK at your own expense.

    You will also have to ensure that you have all the correct documentation such as an International Driving Permit and Green Card insurance documents.

    Though European Insurance authorities (rather than the EU Commission) waived the need for a green card in the event of a no-deal Brexit, this has not been confirmed by the European Commission. No deal Brexit means you WILL need one no matter what the insurers say.

    Motorists should contact their vehicle insurers to obtain a green card at their own expense Ensure you apply in plenty of time. You will be turned back at the border if you are found not to have one. If you get through immigration and are later found to not have one you could possibly be arrested for entering the country illegally and deported. Your car will certainly be impounded.

    The following actions are mandatory and will be at the pet owner’s expense.

    You must have your pet microchipped and vaccinated against rabies before it can travel*. Your pet must have a blood sample taken at least 30 days after its last rabies vaccination (whether that’s a booster or initial vaccination). Your vet may recommend a booster rabies vaccination before this test.

    1. Your vet must send the blood sample to an EU-approved blood testing laboratory.
    2. The results of the blood test must show that the vaccination was successful (Your pet must have a rabies antibody level of at least 0.5 IU/ml).
    3. You must wait three months from the date the successful blood sample was taken before you travel.
    4. You must take your pet to an Official Veterinarian (ensure it is an EU approved vet), no more than 10 days before travel to get a health certificate.

    All of these things will be at your expense.


    Blue EU registration plates that display the ‘GB’ initials will no longer be accepted.

    UK residents involved in a road traffic accident in an EU or EEA country should not expect to be able to make a claim in respect of that accident via a UK-based Claims Representative or the UK Motor Insurers’ Bureau (MIB)’.


    • When driving on the continent you will need to be in possession of ALL of the following:
    • Warning Triangle
    • GB Sticker
    • Headlamp Beam Converters
    • Adult High Visibility Vest
    • First Aid Kit
    • Foil Blanket
    • Fire extinguisher
    • NF Approved Breathalyser Twin Pack
    • Universal Spare Bulb Set
    • European Driving Guidance Leaflet

    All items must conform to EU standards.


    France especially has very strict driving laws in place for drivers from non-EU countries. The Gendarmerie are aware that not all of these items are required in UK and most British drivers don’t have them. If you are stopped they WILL want to see all of these items and they will be hot to trot if you haven't. You could be arrested and your car impounded if you fail to comply. The French charge release fees for vehicles that will make your eyes water.

    The British are not at all popular anywhere on the continent, but especially so in France and it would be extremely unwise to give the Gendarmerie – who have a well deserved reputation for bloody mindedness at the best of times - or any other EU traffic police officers any excuse to use the very strict laws they have. Push your luck at your own risk.

    UK residents will need to bring any claim against either the driver or the insurer of the vehicle in the country where the accident happened.

    In the event of an accident in an EU or EEA country caused by an uninsured or an untraced driver, it is highly unlikely that UK claimants will ever receive compensation.

    You voted for this. Enjoy your holiday.


    *Yes, I know Rabies is extremely rare in UK on account of Britain being an island, but they won't care. They've given up trying to debunk the myths and lies about Eurocrats. They know the British have a negative attitude and will never change so they see no point in trying to be reasonable any more. They might as well just enforce their rules and to hell with what The Sun says.

  • The British are not at all popular anywhere on the continent, but especially so in France and it would be extremely unwise to give the Gendarmerie – who have a well deserved reputation for bloody mindedness at the best of times - or any other EU traffic police officers any excuse to use the very strict laws they have. Push your luck at your own risk.

    Oh, and I was just beginning to be taken in by those remainers who were claiming that those nice Europeans were our 'friends'. Thank you for restoring the faith I had in my own perceptions....

  • Oh, and I was just beginning to be taken in by those remainers who were claiming that those nice Europeans were our 'friends'. Thank you for restoring the faith I had in my own perceptions....

    Playing the victim...? And there was me recalling something about "Britain holds all the cards".

    Britain started this. Britain has been the protagonist in the whole fiasco. Britain has been the one slagging the Europeans off all along and creating all the hostility. Britain has been the one telling the world that Europe needs us more than we need them.

    Britain is the one threatening to renege on a legally binding, international treaty.

    Britain has been the one telling it's own people that there would be no consequences.

    Britain has been the one telling its own people that nothing will change and we will get our cake and eat it.

    Europe is now treating Britain as a non-member, which is exactly what we wanted.

    Don't complain, or play the victim when you get what you voted for.

  • Jenny, all we are doing is leaving the club that we joined a few decades back, with a view to getting a trade deal instead. Why all the emotion about this? Trade deals aren't new, and it's not at all the case that other countries have to take on the laws of other countries in order to sign up.

    This is highly charged for political reasons (on both sides), but actually it is no big deal. The EU simply does not work well for the UK. They should just let us go and afford us the same courtesies that they extend to other countries.

    This 'cake and eat it' milarky is just bonkers. All we want is a bloody trade deal!

    The only reason for the Bill is to prevent the EU from taking hostile action against us. They say they wouldn't, in which case it won't be necessary to implement it, will it?

  • Jenny, all we are doing is leaving the club that we joined a few decades back, with a view to getting a trade deal instead. Why all the emotion about this? Trade deals aren't new, and it's not at all the case that other countries have to take on the laws of other countries in order to sign up.

    This is highly charged for political reasons (on both sides), but actually it is no big deal. The EU simply does not work well for the UK. They should just let us go and afford us the same courtesies that they extend to other countries.

    This 'cake and eat it' milarky is just bonkers. All we want is a bloody trade deal!

    The only reason for the Bill is to prevent the EU from taking hostile action against us. They say they wouldn't, in which case it won't be necessary to implement it, will it?

    Breaking a signed treaty is a hostile Action against them

  • Well, I guess you Iranians are familiar with hostile actions against its neighbours and the wider world.

    We are only threatening to break the treaty as the EU has breached faith. What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.

    The EU broke nothing. They just dont play your games.

  • Jenny, all we are doing is leaving the club that we joined a few decades back, with a view to getting a trade deal instead. Why all the emotion about this? Trade deals aren't new, and it's not at all the case that other countries have to take on the laws of other countries in order to sign up.

    This is highly charged for political reasons (on both sides), but actually it is no big deal. The EU simply does not work well for the UK. They should just let us go and afford us the same courtesies that they extend to other countries.

    This 'cake and eat it' milarky is just bonkers. All we want is a bloody trade deal!

    The only reason for the Bill is to prevent the EU from taking hostile action against us. They say they wouldn't, in which case it won't be necessary to implement it, will it?

    All we want is a trade deal. Makes it sound so simple doesn't it....? "Give us what we want, while we give you nothing in return and we'll be happy."

    But hold on here..... Britain had it all. The only thing we had to do was conform to the rules of the club, the same as all the other members.

    But Britain decided it didn't like the rules of the club and so it left.

    If you leave a club and stop paying your membership, you don't get the benefits. That's not too simple a concept to grasp, is it..?

    Remember this: It's THEIR club. We can't make any demands from the outside. We relinquished our voice in the European Assembly the day Farage and his cohorts walked out laughing and waving and hurling abuse.

    in order to get something you have to give something. The EU wants access to British fishing waters. If we'd given them that (and honoured the legally binding international treaty that we signed last year), we'd have probably got what we wanted.

    But Britain wants to take everything and give nothing in return. That's not the sort of offer that's going to impress anybody.

    The EU owes Britain nothing. We are entitled to nothing.

    Sure, the EU will take a financial hit, but to them, the integrity of the single market is so important that they're willing to take that hit*. Surely that should tell you something. If you can't grasp that, then you have no chance of ever understanding anything.

    Regarding the amendments to the Withdrawal Agreement, the EU has a signed document that has the force of law behind it. They rather like it. Why should they give it up on the word of an untrustworthy liar who they seem to be quite convinced (as am I) that he would exploit it as soon as possible, if not sooner....... and then laugh in the EU's face for being so stupid as to let him get away with it.

    The issue here is one of trust. Johnson has shown himself to be completely untrustworthy. Nobody can have any confidence in any of his promises. The EU's position on any form of agreement must be to obtain a written treaty, signed on behalf of Parliament and ratified by Royal Assent with the full weight of international law behind it, not the word of a conspicuous charlatan in whose word of honour nobody can have the slightest confidence.

    And that's what they have - a legal document, that is. Why on earth would they give that up bearing in mind the sheer blatant dishonesty of the man they're dealing with..?


    * I was hollering that message from the rooftops four years ago and was told it was "project fear". How hollow that taunt must sound now.

  • Completely wrong, Jenny. We are not asking to keep all the ‘benefits’ of being part of their club. We just want a trade deal. Like Canada’s.

    The EU wants one too, apparently. So by refusing us what they have given Canada, they seem to be happy to inflict pain on themselves.

    I thought the EU was many things, but masochistic was not one of them, until now.

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