snikpoh

You're right - I misread the facts.

As a UK resident, a UK plated vehicle can stay in Spain for as long as it wants (subject to MOT and road tax etc.).

Fred James

No, the law is as stated in the link Longlegpete gave.

Often you see it quoted that you can only use it for 6 months in a year - that's technically correct because if you used it for more than 6 months you would become a resident.

The car can stay as long as you like as long as it is legal.

amideislas

So, do you want to drive it back every year to get MOT?

Other than some minor short-term convenience or driving back and forth one or more times per year, I can't see many scenarios where bringing your UK-registered car to Spain for the long term makes any sense at all. Well, presuming you want to stay legal, which is indeed highly advisable, because if you get caught, it can get ugly.

Longlegpete

I just checked on line at askMID and indeed it is showing as having insurance so the answer to your question is yes it does show up

Hornets_Nest

This has probably been mentioned before - however I can't find anything.

Do Spanish insurance companies accept No Claim Bonus earned in the UK?

Longlegpete

Mine gave me 50% but as i mentioned before in the end its the price you pay that's the deciding factor, the cover normally includes European brakedown cover, how good that is i hope i never find out but as with most insurances you only know when you try them!

Mitzyboy

Mine did. I had to get a letter from my last insurance company in the UK declaring what my NCD was, and after that they were happy to offer it

But as Longlegpete says, it of course depends on what start figure you are working from, hence it's worth ringing around. I initially went with Mapfre and they too offer breakdown cover in Spain and the rest of europe.

newpower

Why if your staying do you want a right hand drive car in spain?

snikpoh

Why not?

My wife kept hers because we had it from new and knew exactly what the service history was.

It's never been an issue to have a RHD car here (on Spanish plates of course!).

Mitzyboy

There can be many reasons. I owned the car I bought with me for 14 years in total. I didnt want to change it, and the stories you hear about RHD cars being a problem to drive in a LHD country are not true in my experience of driving a RHD car in Spain for 6 years

bolton wanderer

Many thanks for all your replies. .... really appreciate you taking the time to respond

I'm now happy about the legality of leaving our car in the basement car park during our absence from Spain. The reason we wish to keep the UK registration is so that we can still use it throughout the rest of Europe (incl UK). If we buy a Spanish registered car then, as UK resident, we cannot use this in the UK

Thanks Longlegpete for confirming that Spanish insurer Liberty seguros appears on the DVLA database. This means that I will be able to tax the car online and demonstrate that the car is legal in the country of registration.
I've just found their website.....[URL="http://www.libertyexpatriates.es/spain-car-insurance"]

Mitzyboy

.... and you'll take the car back to the UK every year for an MOT?

Bri and Katee

We had a UK registered car that we exported to Spain and re-registered it here. Since doing that it has been driven back to the UK, in fact this year we drove it back, all the way to Yorkshire, drove it around for the five weeks were home and then all the way back to Murcia. No problems at all with the law.

I spoke with the DVLA and they said as long as it was registered, road worthy in the country of registration and insured for european travel, as long as it was in our names with our Spanish address on its documents there was no problem driving it in the UK as european traffic law allows.

You may be confused in that as a UK resident you cannot drive a foreign registered car as your permanent transport in the UK, but returning as such for a holiday it is permissible.

snikpoh

... and that's the point, if you are Spanish resident, driving a Spanish plated vehicle in UK is not an issue.

The problem comes when you are either Spanish registered with a UK plated car or are UK resident with a Spanish plated car.

Bri and Katee

You have it wrong. According to dvla you can drive a foreign registered car as a UK resident in the UK. As long as that vehicle is only visiting the country and is not being kept there in which case it must be re registered. Keeping it there and driving it is breaking the law, temporary visit as per holiday is not.

Think about it. You could rent a car from Hertz or Europcar or any number of others. It is registered in Spain. France elsewhere. You have rented it to drive home back to the UK. In your scenario once you set wheels in the UK you are breaking the law! It's a give and take situation with leeway as far as the dvla is concerned. The police might have a different outlook and issue a ticket if you don't have all your supporting paperwork, ie a return ferry ticket or a date to return the vehicle to an office of the rental company.