Driving Right hand drive car In France

Hogzy

Hey guys!

Thinking of planing a trip to France soon and bringing the car with me. However im kinda nervous about driving a right hand drive car on the right side of the road.
Iv drivin a left hand drive on the right side in USA and i got on perfect.
is It hard to get used to etc etc... I would consider myself a good driver and im relatively confident!

amcalester

If you've driven on the left before you should get on grand, but don't forget to chane your headlights so they are raised on the right and not the left. Otherwise you'll be blinding oncomming traffic.

Neilw

It's no big deal, did about 1500 miles last summer with no problems. Only issue I can think of is toll booths can be a pain if your on your own.

Make sure your left mirror is adjusted out and always take a look over your shoulder before pulling out.

Drexl Spivey

On national roads and motorways that will be no problem.

On smaller roads, it could be a bit odd when you want to overtake trucks (visibility)

Overall, you'll be grand.

Hagar

I've driven one here for over 3 years and one thing I found invaluable was an oversized clip-on interior mirror. Adjust it so that you can see not only the rear view but out the rear passenger window. An absolute must to see who is in your blind-spot. Watch out for scooters, they buzz about like flies.

Hogzy

Hagar wrote: »

I found invaluable was an oversized clip-on interior mirror

Where did you get it?

Whats the deal with insurance, Will my premium go up for the month or do i even need to notify them?

Our man in Havana

I have driven all over France and Eastern Europe in a RHD car. The only real problem are the toll booths and self service petrol places where you drive up to a booth to pay. No problem if you have a passenger but a pain if you are on your own.

Just take extra care when overtaking on single carriageway roads.

You can buy stickers to adjust your headlights so that you are not blinding on coming traffic. There are heavy fines for not having your lights adjusted and the Gendarmerie are not very forgiving of offenders.

WRT insurance your Irish policy will cover you in France and all the other EU/EEA states and Switzerland.

Berty

Your are obliged by french law to carry a first aid kit, headlight bulb kit and a high vis vest.

Be very careful coming back onto the road from a petrol station or side road. You can be caught out.

I love driving in France especially the south west where its very laid back.

As mentioned not having a passenger will drive you bonkers at car parks and toll roads.

Im going to France in the morning and hiring a car so will be left hand drive on the right. I love it except reversing out of diagonal spaces is annoying because you are looking over your other shoulder.

Dont miss me too much. I am flying back on Tuesday. May even be on boards in my hotel boredom tomorrow.

Hagar

Hogzy wrote: »

Where did you get it?

Whats the deal with insurance, Will my premium go up for the month or do i even need to notify them?

The car shop in Blanchis where I got mine but I'm sure you can get them in most car shops.
Check with your insurance company. You will have basic 3rd party at least but I would advise you to pay the small extra premium to ensure fully comp cover. It is also worth taking out AA or RAC extra cover as a breakdown on a motorway will get very expensive very quickly. It will also get your car transported home for repairs if need be. Worth paying the extra for the peace of mind.
Warning triangle and hi-viz are obligatory and must be in the car NOT in the boot.

Our man in Havana

If your car is over 8 years old the AA will absolutely rape you for European cover. Also there is a line in the terms and conditions that states they will only cover recovery charges up to the value of the car. So if your car is not worth much it is pretty much a pointless exercise.

mumhaabu

Having a competent passenger in the front passenger side is handy for overtaking otherwise you have to go into the path of oncoming traffic before getting visibilty, or else fall well back which will make overtaking harder unless you have a fairly zippy car, Take care you can't beat having a LHD for driving on the wrong side of the road though.

Max_Damage

Driving in France with a RHD car is grand. Overtaking though can be fun....

bazzachazza

Get Sat Nav and high Viz jackets for each of your passengers and you (legal requirement)

L1011

Think you're also required to have a warning triangle? Generally you'll get kits that have all the required bits and pieces together in a bag for the boot in motor factors (or Halfrauds) cheap enough.

Someone on here has said the preferred location for the hi-viz vest is on your seat back rather than in the boot - not sure if thats a legal requirement or a suggestion; but having the vest is a legal requirement.

L1011

Off Eurotunnel's website:


"French driving laws have changed. From 1 October 2008, all vehicles driven in France, including vehicles registered outside of France, MUST have one Hi-Viz reflective jacket and one warning triangle in their vehicle. The reflective jacket has to conform to EU standard and must be inside the car – not in the boot. On the spot fines varying between €90 and €135 will apply."

Hagar

It's a legal requirement to have it in the car rather than the boot. That's why I highlighted it. It took me by surprise too but the logic is that you put on the jacket inside the car before stepping out onto the motorway. Many people drape them over the backs of their seats like truckers. A side benefit is that the Gendarmarie can see you are complying with the law and usually quickly wave you through checkpoints etc.
It's actually not a legal requirement to carry a set of spare bulbs but it is strongly advised.

Edit Eurotunnel site is incorrect. It was 1st July.

L1011

I managed to miss the last lines of that post of yours before I made my two Hagar

mumhaabu

bazzachazza wrote: »

Get Sat Nav and high Viz jackets for each of your passengers and you (legal requirement)

Are Sat Navs a legal requirement? Geez Garmin and TomTom must be delighted, a touch of Haughey in Sarkozy I presume!

NinjaTruncs

I'm going to France in a few weeks and the main thing i'm concerned with is aligning my headlight, I've a 07 Bravo anyone know where i can get the headlight kits for one of these?

Our man in Havana

Halfords or the AA will have them.

Carawaystick

bazzachazza wrote: »

Get Sat Nav and high Viz jackets for each of your passengers and you (legal requirement)

Having a satnav is NOT a legal requirement.

Having a Hi-Viz jacket inside the car cabin IS a legal requirement.

Spare bulbs, breakdown triangle etc are a good idea to have.

You need to inform your insurance company where you are going - some give you a letter confirming cover, some don't. This should be free for a month or less.
If you are going to Spain, you should get a bail bond from your insurance co. This might not be free.

If you have HID lights, they might not need to be changed, I don't change mine, the upkick to the left is very low and doesn't hit cars coming the other way.
If you have halogen projector lights, these can be more awkward to get the deflector set correctly. there are some instructions on the pack. you'll need to check against a wall at night to see where they go best.


Petrol's waaay dearer than here, Diesel's cheaper than here. You should only buy fuel in supermarket stations, they are considerably cheaper than other places ( >10cents per litre) you may need to pay by plastic though, Maestro and Visa work fine for me all the time. Getting a Maestro card is handy - it's the same as Laser card only you're away foreign.

You also need to carry your license at all times, along with your insurance cert and registration cert. I usually just keep a copy of the reg cert stamped in a cop shop. I usually bring a copy of my driving license stamped too - i got my wallet and license stolen before so the Gendarmes reckoned I'd be fine with the copy and the report of the original being stolen.

ardmacha

Many people drape them over the backs of their seats like truckers. A side benefit is that the Gendarmarie can see you are complying with the law and usually quickly wave you through checkpoints etc.

Good idea about the seat. Watch out if you are stopped at a checkpoint as they might ask you to get out to open the boot, and you might not have the presence of mind to put on the hi-vis jacket. I am not sure what the exact rules are on this, for instance does it apply where there are street lights.

Carawaystick

ardmacha wrote: »

Good idea about the seat. Watch out if you are stopped at a checkpoint as they might ask you to get out to open the boot, and you might not have the presence of mind to put on the hi-vis jacket. I am not sure what the exact rules are on this, for instance does it apply where there are street lights.

I think it's only on Motorways that you need to put on the jacket.

baldyback

Carawaystick - What is the bail bond that was recommended for spain?

What documentation do you need to produce in Roslare?

Thanks

bazzachazza

Sorry didnt mean to confuse some people. Maybe i should have used a full stop. Obviously sat navs are not a legal requirement. I was speaking about high visibility jackets as a legal requirement and as said you HAVE to get out of the car on motorways wearing them and you should have one for every passenger in the car. I was suggesting that you should invest in a sat nav as a useful tool for navigating as it will always know where you are as its switched on and receiving sat signal. But dont forget the map

Our man in Havana

You won't have to produce any documents in Rosslare for your car. You will need your passports obviously.

Bail Bond: a guarantee to be lodged with the police in the event of an accident or major traffic violation - no longer a legal requirement for Spain and most insurance companies have stopped issuing them.

http://driving.drive-alive.co.uk/driving-in-spain.htm

Nomad81

Bond-007 wrote: »

You won't have to produce any documents in Rosslare for your car. You will need your passports obviously.

How about on arrival in Cherbourg? What docs to the folks at the other port check?

Our man in Havana

Again only passports are checked.

You need to bring the Driving licence, Registration cert, Insurance and NCT. It is highly unlikely you will need to produce these documents unless stopped by the Gendarmerie for a traffic offence.