Non-resident buying a car for holiday use?

DSLRST

Hello all,
I hope you can help me.

I currently live abroad. I have close relatives in Ireland. I have a place to park up the car for 46 weeks it will not be used.

I have a valid US drivers license.

I will be in Ireland about 6 weeks per year.

Can I purchase, tax, NCT, and insure a car in Ireland?

I can not give the rental car companies €3,000.00 per year without stock options!:)

Any assistance is greatly appreciated.

Thanks

biko

It seems to be a waste of car if it's only used a few weeks every year, not mentioning the hassle of getting it running after having it sit garaged for 46 weeks.
As a non-resident you can probably tax and NCT the car but I'm not sure about insurance. Also it may be tricky to freeze insurance while you're not here.
Possibly you can become a named driver on someone else's car for the duration.

I'd shop around more at rental companies. Perhaps Enterprise's Month-Or-More Rental Plan will work?
http://www.enterprise.ie/car_rental/corporateClassIntro.do

Ded_Zebra

I'm not sure if you can do that in Ireland but i had no trouble doing it the other way around. I went to America on holiday for 5 weeks.I bought a car there and then insured it (I could get a temp tag for 30 days as it was in Florida, unfortunately no such thing exists here in Ireland) drove it anywhere I wanted to go and then sold it at the end of my trip. It is a bit of hassle to sell it on but the cost of it is almost nothing.
I understand that this hassle will be a lot if you want a car for 6 weeks every year but the fact that you could buy a car with current tax and insurance every time you come saves money. You will also have no maintenance costs.

Hope that is some help.

Triangla

It would be cheaper to buy a car for the few weeks you are here then sell it again.

No need to worry about tax, NCT or wear and tear.

Buy something for €2,000 use for a few weeks then sell again.

bbsrs

DSLRST wrote: »

Hello all,
I hope you can help me.

I currently live abroad. I have close relatives in Ireland. I have a place to park up the car for 46 weeks it will not be used.

I have a valid US drivers license.

I will be in Ireland about 6 weeks per year.

Can I purchase, tax, NCT, and insure a car in Ireland?

I can not give the rental car companies €3,000.00 per year without stock options!:)

Any assistance is greatly appreciated.

Thanks

What rental company are you using and what size car are you renting €3000 for 6 weeks seems very expensive . I regularly rent cars for roughly €20 per day for a mid sized saloon.

DSLRST

I am looking for something that will last a few years. Budget is $8,000.00.

I can park it, have it started weekly and looked after by a relative.

I figure I could break even in 3 years based on rental costs.

I just need to know how to go about it to get it insured and taxed without much trouble.

Thanks again for any assistance.

DSLRST

Biko
The "month or more" is for businesses in Ireland.
Thanks for the reply.

ShadowHearth

bbsrs wrote: »

What rental company are you using and what size car are you renting €3000 for 6 weeks seems very expensive . I regularly rent cars for roughly €20 per day for a mid sized saloon.

If you can get that as you saying then that would be less then 1000eu for 6 weeks. Looks like a no brainer just to rent so. Wil work out cheaper and way less hassle.

Other problem is that no company will insure for only 6 weeks in Ireland.

Ded_Zebra

DSLRST wrote: »

I am looking for something that will last a few years. Budget is $8,000.00.

I can park it, have it started weekly and looked after by a relative.

I figure I could break even in 3 years based on rental costs.

I just need to know how to go about it to get it insured and taxed without much trouble.

Thanks again for any assistance.

Well the problem with leaving it sitting for months and months on end it that parts, rubber components in particular, will degrade and need to be replaced. Also if you keep it for a few years you will need to service it, buy tyres for it, buy it new batteries etc. If you buy a cheap car for maybe €1000-€1500 you can drive it for the 6 weeks and then sell it on again quickly for 700-1000 when you are leaving. This will be far cheaper and possibly less trouble.

DSLRST

Bbsrs
I have tried multiple companies over the last 15 years, when you need to transport 4-5 people and all the luggage from coast to coast twice on holidays, you need an estate, mondeo sized vehicle, with CDW, taxes etc. 6 weeks is about €3,000.

If you have any ideas on the ownership option, please let me know.
Thanks again.

ted1

call the nearest Garage/ 2nd had car dealer. they may do a deal, they could give yo a car on that runs well but has being sitting on the forecourt for a while.

djimi

Have you spoken to any Irish insurance companies yet? I suspect if you are going to have a stumbling block in your plan this is where it might be.

Assuming all is okay and they will insure you, insurance is done on an annual basis in Ireland, however you can take out a policy and cancel it at any time, and you will be entitled to a refund of the difference (after a few weeks anyway). How much it will cost you and how much you get back you will need to work out; not having a no claims bonus could make it expensive, and you probably wouldnt get refunded as much as you think you will (if you cancel after 3 months for example you wont get 75% of what you paid back).

biko

You or relative can buy and NCT car.
Tax can be paid by relative for 3 months, between 150-250 depending on car.

For insurance you can get insurance from a company and then cancel it or try to get some special deal.
Mail some insurance companies and ask about your particular situation.

If your relative owns a car they can name you on their own insurance policy for 6 weeks as additional driver. Note that they are meant to be the main driver of the car otherwise.

Cushie Butterfield

You won't get insured by an insurance co as the holder of a US Driver's Licence, even as a named driver - you would have to hold an Irish (or at least an EU one). Insurance on a rental car is a different matter.

Ded_Zebra

Cushie Butterfield wrote: »

You won't get insured by an insurance co as the holder of a US Driver's Licence - you would have to hold an Irish (or at least an EU one). Insurance on a rental car is a different matter.

Having an Irish license was certainly not a problem for me when I bought insurance in America so I can't see it being that much of a problem the other way round

djimi

Ded_Zebra wrote: »

Having an Irish license was certainly not a problem for me when I bought insurance in America so I can't see it being that much of a problem the other way round

It seems that online quoting assumptions specify that you hold an Irish/UK/EU license, but Im not sure if that is just for obtaining an online quote, or if its a problem overall.

Cushie Butterfield

Ded_Zebra wrote: »

Having an Irish license was certainly not a problem for me when I bought insurance in America so I can't see it being that much of a problem the other way round

Nor for me when I lived there before getting a US one, but whenever I returned to Ireland on holiday I used various family member's cars, who used different insurances co's. In all cases it was always stipulated that I had to have an Irish licence (which I did) in order to be added to their policies.

I have a brother & sister currently living there & it's the same for them when they come home.

Ded_Zebra

djimi wrote: »

It seems that online quoting assumptions specify that you hold an Irish/UK/EU license, but Im not sure if that is just for obtaining an online quote, or if its a problem overall.

AFAIK that is one of the assumptions for the online quotes, however, if you ring them up and tell them that you have a US license then they will be able to fill out a quote for you. I know definitely that there is no problem with getting insurance in Ireland with an Australian license. you might have to pay a bit more though

ScumLord

I'd be fairly shocked that renting wouldn't be the cheaper option all round. Car's have gotten ridiculously cheap to rent in the last few years.

You could buy the car, not bother with the Tax and insurance, then play the dumb tourist if you get caught and say you rented the car off a man called John Joe Ward outside the airport and you have to drop it back to Ballymun when you're finished.

munchkin_utd

DSLRST wrote: »

Bbsrs
I have tried multiple companies over the last 15 years, when you need to transport 4-5 people and all the luggage from coast to coast twice on holidays, you need an estate, mondeo sized vehicle, with CDW, taxes etc. 6 weeks is about €3,000.

If you have any ideas on the ownership option, please let me know.
Thanks again.

+1

had this problem last summer for a 5week stint and ended up driving our own car from Germany via England instead which cost the guts of a grand all told for ferries petrol and a couple of nights hotel, but was less than the rental charges before even looking at flight costs for 3full price and an infant.

For this summer for the same dates we did last year - an Astra type car with enterprise is 44euro/ day and an insignia sized car 62/ day incl. VAT. Over multiple weeks that really adds up.
This includes no extra insurance so any damage costs you up to 1600euro in excess (or pay 20/day more again!) and only for 1 driver which is 7euro per day extra also.

The prices at christmas are a similarly high level, although everything in between is admitedly much much more affordable and an insignia even for mid may till the end of june (which in Ireland can be as good for weather as july/ august) is only 30euro odd a day with enterprise.

ballooba

munchkin_utd wrote: »

This includes no extra insurance so any damage costs you up to 1600euro in excess (or pay 20/day more again!) and only for 1 driver which is 7euro per day extra also.

http://www.carhireexcess.ie/ 50 euro a year.

bbsrs

You should buy a Californian VW samba bus in the states , ship it over so it arrives when you're here then sell it for a tidy profit to fund your holiday vehicle. Do that every year and you'll have free holiday and motoring. Nice.