Legal requirements in France......advice please (1 Viewer)

[MillieMoocher]

A question if I may please about the spare bulbs.

I’m off to France in the car in July, and all external lights are LEDs...what’s the expectation there, please? I’m not sure how I’d change the light should it fail, I suspect you’d need to buy a new unit!

 

[Podney]

Have you thought about gas, electric, water, where to stay, how to pay?

Yes,all sorted thanks.

 

[yodeli]

A question if I may please about the spare bulbs.

I’m off to France in the car in July, and all external lights are LEDs...what’s the expectation there, please? I’m not sure how I’d change the light should it fail, I suspect you’d need to buy a new unit!

TBH I don't think I have spare bulbs let alone if they were LEDs, but major difference is that within a few seconds I have a list of excuses I can give them in reply.
Now if a foreigner, I would make sure I have what's needed to have my lights changed if any goes faulty. Then if caught you can tell them "sorry I have never been able to do the job" Désolée, je n'ai jamais su faire ça"
To get the right pronunciation enter this in google translate and press on the little sign speaker. You should not worry too much as the lights nowdays are very difficult to reach. I don't think the Police would annoy you with it.
If in despair, PM me to have my mobile number so you can call me if any prob!

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[MillieMoocher]

Merci bien @yodeli, tu est tres gentile

 

[Lot lover]

@milliethehymer, at least you did not use the less than polite word "shiksa"?

 

[MillieMoocher]

@milliethehymer, at least you did not use the less than polite word "shiksa"?

Obviously my phonetic spelling has let me down I have no idea of our Yodeli’s religious bent

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[thidwick]

As a continental colleague said to me (you have to imagine the French accent).....
“Sure you need a set of spare bulbs, but any set of spare bulbs will do”.

Seriously though, there’s an AA website where you can download quite good pdf docs of different requirements and hints for various countries.

 

[yodeli]

I have no idea of our Yodeli’s religious bent

@milliethehymer, at least you did not use the less than polite word "shiksa"?

Shiska? Religious bent? Wot's that?.....

 

[Barclaybasher]

OK

So you need everything stated above, and the warning triangles should be taken

BUT

I've only ever been asked for my passport.......................

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[MillieMoocher]

Shiska? Religious bent? Wot's that?.....

I had to look it up before I posted, it’s word that is a derogatory terms for “a non Jewish female”.

In English, the word Gentile is used to describe a person not of the Jewish faith, but not derogatory.

So I think Lot Lover was making an international pun

I thought the word “gentile” in French meant “kind”...as in generous, nice, and so on.. which was what I meant !

 

[Millcourt]

Just never say "Va te faire foutre" to a Gendarme!

 

[Reallyretired]

I carry a spare set of bulbs, some of them may even be the right ones, though some are a pig to fix.

I returned from the continent Yesterday with, according to the display, one left hand rear light and one reversing light dud. It goes in for annual service on Monday so the garage can fix em.

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[yodeli]

gentile

This is what it means yes, but...try it with 2 "l" , and the english meaning will vanish
The letter"i" followed by 2 "L"gives in French the sound "y" as in you

 

[RandallC]

Sorry BULBS are planted in the earth, You may be talking about LAMPS and Luminaires.

Once and Engineer ALWAYS an Engineer.

 

[LesW]

Sorry BULBS are what you fit in LAMPS...

Once a Mechanic, ALWAYS a Mechanic...

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[RandallC]

And there in lies the difference between reality and the bill to get you vehicle serviced. Ha Ha.

 

[scrapjack]

Just about everything has been mentioned, however, there is a need to ensure everything is in date. Particularly I am thinking of the Breathalyzer, only because I know the two I have are out of date.

 

[Clarky]

Just about everything has been mentioned, however, there is a need to ensure everything is in date. Particularly I am thinking of the Breathalyzer, only because I know the two I have are out of date.

Forget it. They are not required.

Richard.

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[nicholsong]

Forget it. They are not required.

Richard.

Richard, I am sure you know that there is a law 'requiring' them but there was never one passed to establish the penalty - so carrying them is pointless, therefore in practice 'not required', as you say.

Unfortunately that does not stop people marketing them as 'required' e.g. Ports, Ferry Companies etc., but it is a bit of a con.

Geoff

 

[Clarky]

Richard, I am sure you know that there is a law 'requiring' them but there was never one passed to establish the penalty - so carrying them is pointless, therefore in practice 'not required', as you say.

Unfortunately that does not stop people marketing them as 'required' e.g. Ports, Ferry Companies etc., but it is a bit of a con.

Geoff

Yes, I'm aware that the letter of the law says that they should be carried but that there is no penalty for not carrying them.
This is one of those areas where the law really is 'an ass'.

I remember searching for them in France when the law was first introduced. Being a law abiding sort of chap I looked for them and they couldn't be found so didn't bother again. That was several years ago and I haven't bothered since despite spending long periods in France each year.

Richard.

 

[Larby]

I thought the fine for not having 2 was €11. If you used 1 then you wouldn't have 2 so would need to carry 3.
But then it was a non-starter law.
My son picked a pack up on ferry, asked me if mine where in date , no son no longer needed. A male shelf stacker reared up and aggressively told me they were.

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[gus-lopez]

We pulled up at a stop sign in Brittany, on tickover, wife said clear here, my side was clear so pulled out. Gendarmes pulled me in and i was fined! On leaving he said in English your wheels must not turn!

Trafico officers require wheels stopped for the count of 4 here.

I had my mh repaired in Portugal this year and they did not need my V5, I know that's not France but it is on mainland Europe. I think you maybe came across a jobsworth.

No quite common here. The local Ford dealers spare parts man will not serve you without the chassis number & only grudgingly with a registration number. Even better is to go in there asking for parts which were never originally fitted to your vehicle.Utter nightmare, but hysterical at the time. I got them in the end even though it was like a monty python sketch.

I thought the fine for not having 2 was €11. If you used 1 then you wouldn't have 2 so would need to carry 3.
But then it was a non-starter law.
My son picked a pack up on ferry, asked me if mine where in date , no son no longer needed. A male shelf stacker reared up and aggressively told me they were.

But you only had to carry 1 not 2. You couldn't be asked to carry any more than the required amount & , as I posted before ,you couldn't be asked to actually use that as it would leave you with none & they would therefore be ' conspiring to commit an offence ' by actually asking. So it was never even a starter.

 

[nicholsong]

Yes, I'm aware that the letter of the law says that they should be carried but that there is no penalty for not carrying them.
This is one of those areas where the law really is 'an ass'.

I remember searching for them in France when the law was first introduced. Being a law abiding sort of chap I looked for them and they couldn't be found so didn't bother again. That was several years ago and I haven't bothered since despite spending long periods in France each year.

Richard.

I was quite sure you did know. I just posted to add the warning that the marketing 'as required' is a con., and why.

Geoff

 

[OurMoreloLife]

Keep your v5 safe with you, if if a disaster occurs and your van is stolen the French police will not get involved until you show your v5. Enjoy your trip lol.

There was I all smug as I have a digital safe installed and thought "I know where I will store my original documents" but if the vehicle is stolen.... there goes my docs too!

I will take a photo of my V5 on my phone for the French police until an original copy can be obtained?

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[nicholsong]

There was I all smug as I have a digital safe installed and thought "I know where I will store my original documents" but if the vehicle is stolen.... there goes my docs too!

I will take a photo of my V5 on my phone for the French police until an original copy can be obtained?

It amuses me that it is a legal requirement to carry registration documents in some countries, but I have seen British Police advice not to do so, and it is not a legal requirement in UK.

So if the vehicle is legal in UK without the V5C what happened to the the idea that it must be legal in country of registration?

Just askin'

Geoff

 

[klaatu]

It’s a requirement of the Vienna Convention on Road Traffic (the same treaty that specifies that a vehicle being driven in a foreign country must meet the legal requirements of its country of registration) that a vehicle being driven in a foreign country must be carrying its registration document.

 

[Absolutelyalan]

I've only just come to this thread....

We spend most of our time in France and the gendarmes do carry out random checks and they do ask to see all your docs. We carry a colour copy of our V5 which is indistinguishable from the original.

A couple of other points - as a previous poster said, you need hi vis vests for everyone in the vehicle, but they must be reachable from the seats before you exit the vehicle, so no stashing them away in a side locker.

Another point to remember is that whenever you come to a town/village and the name sign is bordered in red, that is automatically a 50kpmh limit unless it states otherwise. Most places make a token gesture at slowing you down with a 70 sign - usually about 100 metres from the start of the 50! Assume the limit continues until you pass the town name with a line through it.

And now for the good news - in July, the government intends to reduce the national limit for non-dual carriageway roads from 90 to 80. At the moment there's a lot of yelling from drivers but I'm not sure if it will make much difference.

For all that, France is beautiful and a great place to tour. They love camping cars, as they call us, as witnessed by the many aires. Oh, and on the subject of aires, they are officially classified as car parks so you can get into trouble if you open your awning, set out the picnic tables, hang out the washing, etc.

I hope all that helps. Come on over and have a great time.

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[s20hymer]

hya beware that traffic coming from the right has priority in some small villages even if you are on main road it makes you jump if a car comes straight out of a side road some or most main roads have a passage protected sign

 

[Quick Quick]

Podney
Just back from Bergundy, went through Arras, and into champers territory, and across to Bordeaux land, so you'll have a good drive.
All the above. "Airwave" got it all including one breathalyzer needed. API is advance passenger information for the Eurotunnel, always filling that out.
Cheers

 

[Camdoon]

Been stopped twice in France over the past 4 years.
in 2014 they set up a road block in the middle of a small town and breathalysed everyone passing through. Despite switching my headlights off as they were not aligned for France then switching them on again when I realised I had no lights (Fiat), they took no notice of this and did not ask for a breathalyser.
Stopped last week at a peage coming north from Reims, where they asked for my driving licence and checked it through a tablet. Happy with that, said it was a bit froid and on our way in a couple of minutes.
As for the API; we were taking a 16yo German student to France with us and completed the API early to ensure smooth passage; no problem they did not even look at her on the way over although the French did. On the way back the UK passport controller did have a chat and we did not have the documents immediately to hand but they were happy; I explained we had filled in the API so had expected to be quizzed then. As the CO said "We are far more interested in who is coming in rather than who is leaving". Makes you wonder why the API is not required for entering the country rather than leaving.

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