French Car Insurance: Don’t Listen to Steve on Facebook!
French Car Insurance: What You Really Need to Know Car insurance in France is one of those subjects surrounded by endless urban myths, conflicting advice and the inevitable “my friend down the road does it this way” stories. In this episode, I’m joined once again by Fabien from Fab French Insurance to cut through some of the confusion and explain how French car insurance actually works. We talk about the bonus-malus system and how your no-claims history is transferred from another country, why French insurers can be particularly demanding when it comes to proving your insurance history, and what can happen if the information on your application doesn’t match your previous insurance record. We also look at foreign-registered vehicles, including UK cars being driven in France while their owners are waiting for the import process to be completed, temporary French registration plates and the increasingly strict approach to cars that remain permanently on foreign plates. Another big difference is that in France the insurance generally follows the vehicle rather than being based solely around named drivers. So what happens if you lend your car to a friend, neighbour or family member? And what happens to your excess, your no-claims discount and your cover if they have an accident? We also get into the thorny subject of foreign driving licences…Including British licences after Brexit, EU licences and the different rules that can apply depending on where you originally obtained your licence. The main message? Don’t assume that because something was perfectly normal in the UK, US or elsewhere, it works the same way in France. And perhaps most importantly: don’t rely on Steve from Facebook. As Fabien says, “You don’t know what you don’t know.” Sometimes paying for the right advice at the beginning can save you a lot of money and headaches later. Fabien has been working with expats in France for many years, and we’ve worked together for more than a decade, so this is a particularly useful episode if you are moving to France, have recently arrived, are importing a vehicle, or simply want to make sure your existing French car insurance is doing what you think it is. France Made Simple — demystifying life in France and telling it like it is!