neilc71

Apparently only for new cars in Portugal.

RichardHenshall

Some lateral thinking - could you 'hire' the car from the vendor until after you've got it 'home' to the UK and then buy it once home? I don't think it would be as illegal to drive a foreign rented car in the UK. I can think of one occasion when I was given a Spanish car at a French airport rental outlet - what if I had been French?

Or could you advertise for a Portuguese citizen (not resident in the UK) to drive it from the ferry to your home?

blownaway

Why, buy a PT registered car which is usually hyped in price and take it to the UK?

Why not simply buy a much cheaper, already UK registered car?

Interesting - most people want to bring cars INTO Portugal because Portugal is very expensive for car purchase.

neilc71

Not in this situation. The car is the only one for sale in the world at the moment and due to the euro exchange rate it is much cheaper than buying one in the UK. It is also in much better condition than a UK car. It's a collector car so the rules are different compared to normal cars.

I managed to get insurance at the last minute through Adrian Flux who were extremely helpful. I'm currently in Spain north of Madrid about 1/3rd of the way home with the car. Very happy! After all of this, I learnt that the best way to get a car out of Portugal if you're UK resident would be to buy export plates from Germany for any EU location and from a supplier who doesn't require only German registration details. I managed to drive mine back thanks to the dealer who allowed me to keep the existing plates until I get home.

gedscottish

So what is it, Intergrale Evo 2? 190 cosworth evo 2? Come on, I'm curious now!

neilc71

Back in the UK now, managed 1,200kms in 12 hours yesterday all at the speed limit! Virtually no cars on the road, think I wen over an hour near Le Mans without seeing a single car on my side of the road!

gedscottish

Outstanding car, well done.. Sit back, drive, enjoy and watch your wise investment appreciate! Should really move to Portugal to keep it rot free though!

P.s I was almost spot on, first thought after e30 was intergrale but got it 2nd time, cosworth evolution!

Slow land

Hi, I too am buying a classic car in Portugal and want to drive it back, so I'd really like to learn from your experiences Neil. Would you mind sharing the details of getting insurance, transferring ownership and driving the car in UK on Portuguese plates. Im buying from a private chap ( a German expat) so we are both unsure of the Portugal system.

Many thanks, Richard

neilc71

Sure.

For a start, it's now illegal to drive a foreign registered vehicle in the UK if you're a UK resident/citizen. So if you get the car into the country and drive it you risk your licence if you're pulled over by the police and they know the rule change.

I drove mine off the Ferry where a transporter met me and drove the car to my house. Luckily I only live 20 miles from Portsmouth.

To drive the car back from Portugal you have two options. You can drive it at the original owners risk, or you can buy a transit plate from somewhere like Germany and use those.

Export plates / transit plates delivery for export and transit

Basically if you drive it away on his plates, all the risk is with the registered owner in Portugal until you get it back to the UK. The dealer I bought mine from was pretty reluctant to agree this but after a day or so there he relented and let me take the car. The only real worry if you drive sensibly is the fines for the tolls, you can't pay them as a foreigner, and the tolls are automated. In total it's only about 14 euro so I just gave the dealer 14 euro and that solved that issue.

As for insurance, I got mine from Adrian Flux through Equity Red Star. It was extremely difficult and finally the underwriter took pity on me and let it go through. Hagerty Insurance apparently is also another option, but they wouldn't insure me in the end, I think because of the value of the car and the fact they also required a tracker to have been fitted and one they know. Depending on the value of the car they might not require a tracker.

Once you get the car into the country you register with the HMRC online NOVA system. If the car is originally German, it will be tax free to import into the UK, so it should be relatively easy to complete the forms. If you need any help with them PM me but read the questions carefully and check the online help. It's a really excellent system actually, mine got improved within 40 minutes of filling in the details online. If you're buying from a dealer, you will need their VAT registration details, and also a proper invoice number, a tax invoice in effect so make sure you get one of those.

Once you've got the car imported and the NOVA import clearance, you need a pack from the DVLA to register an imported car, but basically all you need is an MOT and a V55/5 form. Have a look on the DVLA site for the document pack.

If you've got any other questions PM me, hope that helps.

It's 1,700kms from Lisbon to Portsmouth ish I did it in two days but one of those was a 12 hour drive from mid-spain to Caen for the ferry in France.

Cheers,
Neil

gedscottish

Very informative!

Slow land

Neil, thanks this is really useful. Thanks for taking the time, Richard

mfesharne

Neil

What happens if you're a registered UK resident with a home in the UK and a holiday home here and you want to drive your PT registered car to the UK for a holiday. (As a lot of people here do)

Is that illegal?

C'mon guys, if you're buying/moving classic cars, do please tell us what they are!

neilc71

Yes, I believe that is now illegal. Whatever country you are resident in, you have the right to take a car registered in that country and drive it anywhere in the EU. However you cannot take a car registered in another country where you are not resident, and drive it in the country you are resident in. Insurance and the legality of driving it are two different things.

That's why in Germany they have this export plate thing, it's a plate and an insurance policy until you arrive at your destination. However some companies have even stopped doing factory collection as for example in Germany if you buy a car in the winter it has to be fitted with winter tyres. Not so in the UK. So cars were being driven across Germany with summer tyres on, accidents ensued, no more factory collection. Mercedes being an example of this.

I have called DVLA and triple checked it, the law was changed recently. The first advisor I spoke to told me it was OK to drive it in the UK until I asked him if he was sure, he checked with his supervisor and confirmed that it was OK to drive it to a port, but no further. It is documented as such on the DVLA website now.

neilc71

FYI note on the NOVA, you must apply for this within 14 days of the car arriving in the UK, so make sure you do this. I'm not sure what happens if you don't apply for the NOVA, but I wouldn't put it past HMRC to levy a fee/charge even if your car originates from the EU and has already had it's VAT paid.