car nightmare!!
 

we have sold our home and are moving to north Casa Blanca within a couple of weeks. Having heard that second hand cars are expensive, we decided to buy a LHD car here in the UK and register it in Spain. Went to a LHD car dealer last week and bought a very nice KIA. Trouble is that it is French registered. don't have the time to go through the re-registering it in UK process or want to change everything over (lights and dash speedo) only to change it back. It is parked in the garage and I cant get insurance on it as it is not UK registered. The car dealer is no help. Called several insurance companies in Spain but they cant insure a French registered car either!Any ideas if there is a company that can import the car in Spain for me and get it registered? HELP!!

Re: car nightmare!!
 

Hi and a warm welcome to the Spanish forum on BE. Myself and Fred James are the moderators for the Spanish forums whilst BEVS moderates Europe. Moderators are there to ensure that the site runs smoothly within the rules of BE. This is so that members gain the information that they are looking for and find their experiences on the forums to be friendly and worthwhile.

Problems and complaints should always be addressed to a moderator who will look into the matter and deal with it efficiently and fairly. Our members who post in the Spain Forums are usually friendly and helpful with a wealth of knowledge about the issues of living in Spain. I hope that you enjoy your time participating in the forums.

Please let me know if you need any further help.

Rosemary

Re: car nightmare!!
 

With the current exchange rate second-hand cars are now reasonably priced in Spain! I would take it back to the dealer and cut your losses and buy in Spain.

It could be a nightmare sorting out the paperwork and will not be able to avoid the registration tax as you have not owned the car for 6 months.

Re: car nightmare!!
 

I was afraid of that. Don't know how well I will get on with the dealer as far as getting my money back! What if he were to offer to exchange it for a Spanish registered car. would that be as problematic as far as getting it insured with a Spanish company?

Re: car nightmare!!
 

We bought a French registered car but had to change everything over to UK reg to gain insurance and then when we brought it to Spain we had to go through it all again but we did it that way because we wanted to own the car for more than six months before registering it here. Then it was the cheapest and best way for us but the prices here have changed a lot so not sure whether I would do the same thing now.

Rosemary

Re: car nightmare!!
 

Have you looked for UK registered LHD cars?

If you buy a Spanish LHD car, you will need to be sure that there are no outstanding debts / taxes on it when you move to Spain.

I emplyed someone in CB North to re register my UK registered car to Spanish plates. Took about a week or so and cost me around €1000 including registration tax, "MOT", plates etc.

Fred mentioned the registration tax, you wont avoid that if you havent owned the car for more than 6 months

Re: car nightmare!!
 

So much for the "common market".

True, second-hand cars are much cheaper nowadays, and transfer of ownership is a relative doddle, so it makes sense to just buy one here. And it fairly easy to find out if there are back-taxes or outstanding tickets. Just bring the seller to trafico with you when you file the paperwork. It'll all come out in the wash at that point.

I've never understood the logic of buying everything in the UK. We know a few who refuse to buy things here in Spain in favour of buying from the UK, including household appliances. They sell the same stuff here. Usually at much better prices, without the hassle and expense of shipping, and in the case of cars, import and matriculation costs.

Re: car nightmare!!
 

thanks everyone so much for your input. We have no problem with paying the registration tax or any other fees to get the car legal in Spain. We will be living permanently in Spain so want to be 'legal' and not try to dodge paying for anything. (We wont be buying UK appliances and bringing them with us either). We will not be bringing much with us at all and intend to buy anything we need in Spain. The advise we were getting regarding good second hand cars was that they were expensive in Spain due to lack of them. Cost isn't the main problem with us it more of a time issue now so whichever solution is the quickest, we will pay for. We have been advised that there are companies that specialise in registering imported cars in Spain and will see if they can offer a solution. Anyone had any dealings with 'We Register Any Car.com' ?

Re: car nightmare!!
 

On the subject of second hand cars, there is a massive volume of hire cars around, most companies keep them for about a year, so there should be a massive volume of recent, second hand cars, where do they all go ?

Re: car nightmare!!
 

Hi know the problem. Bought new in France imported back to the UK and then speedo lights and rear fogs and the like.

Come back to Spain repeat the exercise save for speedo. Use a great guy advertised on Costa Blanca news (have no financial involvement) total cost 1000 euros.

However and this is just a remark nothing else. We are now moving back to the UK so I will be selling the Honda here in Spain if poss and if the price is too low will take it back to the UK for have the headlights and all that would be necessary is the rewiring at the back. Then paying the DVLA

I seem to believe that to be legal here it has to have their equivalent of a MOT.

One thing that caught us out was the Certificate of Conformity I would get on quickly it has to be an original and not a photocopy.

Re: car nightmare!!
 

A bit late for you, but my advice to others would be to buy from a reputable dealer in Spain.

In my experience cars are not much more expensive in Spain. Any (small) potential saving by buying in UK is outweighed by the cost of fuel, ferry and re-registration. You also run the risk of buying a stolen car and / or with associated tax liability and fines. IMHO it is simply not worth the hassle.

I would suggest you ignore any other advice you may have received from that source.

Re: car nightmare!!
 

Out of curiosity;
What is make, model, age and mileage and how much did you pay for this car?

Re: car nightmare!!
 

Kia Carnival (Sedona) 2007 and 95811 kilometrage. £5,650. its in very good condition, like new, no signs of wear, not even on drivers seat. Go on, now tell me that it would have been much cheaper over there.

Re: car nightmare!!
 

Re: car nightmare!!
 

I would not be that cruel ............. and Fred beat me too it <LOL>


You can easily verify that for yourself after you get here.

Re: car nightmare!!
 

If you sort on price below €8k (which is what you paid) there are 77 cars available. And remember these are the asking prices!

It's time this myth about S/H cars in Spain being expensive was exposed.

Re: car nightmare!!
 

Looks like about the same price. But you will spend as much as another €1000 getting it all Spanish legalised and matriculated. Not to mention what you'll spend getting it first legal in the UK.

Re: car nightmare!!
 

This tired old argument discussed on this forum so many times.

It is such a shame new comers fall for the pub gossip.

Re: car nightmare!!
 

To be fair, when the GBP was nearing parity with the Euro it was possibly true. Also the Spanish are buying new cars more frequently now so there are more S/H ones on the market.

If you look at the price of new cars in Spain compared to the UK, especially EU sourced cars like VAG, with all the dealer/manufacturer discounts and the Plan PIVE, they are really cheap. Take something at the bottom end like the SEAT Mii city car - with all the discounts it's the equivalent of £4500 on the road.

Re: car nightmare!!
 

Doooooooohhh.Lots on that site but some have seen a lot of miles.


Well I will console myself in the knowledge that the nice 2007 models with 90-95k on the clock are €8500-€9500 so I didn't do bad on the purchase price. Even if I spend a couple of thousand getting it over and registered I still wont be at much of a loss. Humour me.

Re: car nightmare!!
 

OK Javea but there are car transporters going back to the UK. Then if you ask nicely I know a removal guy (no financial involvement) who brought my wife's Honda Civic across with the furniture. He lives in Moraira not sure where you are ending up

Whatever best of luck

Re: car nightmare!!
 

Thanks Porth. Feel enough of a chump as it is.
If all else fails that sounds like a plan. I might get back to you. Don't want to be 'smuggling' it in though, what about import duty? or can I sort that out when I get it there?
By the way, I didn't 'listen to pub gossip', I asked the advise of a few Brits living in Spain, but as they moved over many years ago it may have been different then.

Re: car nightmare!!
 

Well loads of people have spent large amounts of money on property that has crashed and lost half or more of its value. Does that help?

It must take some of the sting out of a hasty decision on a car, surely?:D

Re: car nightmare!!
 

have sent you a pm

Re: car nightmare!!
 

Knights in Nerja may insure your car Knight Insurance Services Spain - Company Profile

Re: car nightmare!!
 

Our broker (no financial involvement) who works with Liberty Seguros might have an alternative suggestion.

Re: car nightmare!!
 

Hi Goldwinger, for driving around Europe there is specific kind of insurance called Green Card. Maybe this might be helpful https://www.allianz.co.uk/news/drivi...een-cards.html

Re: car nightmare!!
 

The green card is issued only to people who have car insurance so it doesn't help in this case.

Anyway, you don't need it in the EU so it's pretty irrelevant.

Re: car nightmare!!
 

Hi and a warm welcome to the Spanish forum on BE. Myself and Fred James are the moderators for the Spanish forums whilst BEVS moderates Europe. Moderators are there to ensure that the site runs smoothly within the rules of BE. This is so that members gain the information that they are looking for and find their experiences on the forums to be friendly and worthwhile.

Problems and complaints should always be addressed to a moderator who will look into the matter and deal with it efficiently and fairly. Our members who post in the Spain Forums are usually friendly and helpful with a wealth of knowledge about the issues of living in Spain. I hope that you enjoy your time participating in the forums.

Please let me know if you need any further help.

Rosemary