Jump to content

CoC not required!


Rob Roy
 Share

Recommended Posts

We have just returned from our Prefecture (Dept 19, Correze) where we have successfully re-registered a Citroen Xsara Picasso bought in the UK 2 weeks ago, without needing a Certificate of Conformity.

Whilst checking up on the Prefecture site on the internet on what paperwork was needed for a Carte Griste (it's been 6 years since I last did one) I came across the following information:-

"Si le véhicule était auparavant immatriculé dans un pays de l'Union européenne et que son PTAC est inférieur ou égal à 3,5 tonnes, vous pouvez présenter à la place de ces documents votre certificat d'immatriculation à condition qu'il comporte toutes les informations nécessaires à son immatriculation."

I printed this and took it with me in case I needed to back up my argument (!) but when the lady at the desk asked me for a CoC I told her that according to their site it wasn't required as the Registration document was fully completed; one of her colleagues then agreed that if it was an EU registration a CoC was not necessary.

It cost 258€ for the carte grise which we'll receive in the post sometime soon hopefully. Happy Days!
Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote user="Rob Roy"]We have just returned from our Prefecture (Dept 19, Correze) where we have successfully re-registered a Citroen Xsara Picasso bought in the UK 2 weeks ago, without needing a Certificate of Conformity.

Whilst checking up on the Prefecture site on the internet on what paperwork was needed for a Carte Griste (it's been 6 years since I last did one) I came across the following information:-

"Si le véhicule était auparavant immatriculé dans un pays de l'Union européenne et que son PTAC est inférieur ou égal à 3,5 tonnes, vous pouvez présenter à la place de ces documents votre certificat d'immatriculation à condition qu'il comporte toutes les informations nécessaires à son immatriculation."

I printed this and took it with me in case I needed to back up my argument (!) but when the lady at the desk asked me for a CoC I told her that according to their site it wasn't required as the Registration document was fully completed; one of her colleagues then agreed that if it was an EU registration a CoC was not necessary.

It cost 258€ for the carte grise which we'll receive in the post sometime soon hopefully. Happy Days![/quote]

Can you post a link to that site please, couldn't find it on 16 site? Excellent info. thanks.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I Google.fr'd "Système d'immatriculation des véhicules Picardie" and after a bit of hunting down found the same info on the Somme prefecture.gouv site so I suspect that all the préfectures will have the same info but it will no doubt take some time to filter down.

There is hope yet for me to register my Caterham, I had a similar battle with the DVLA in 1998 so it will be fun to get one over on the French was well, one problem is that the way they had to begrudgingly grant me a V5 meant that most of the boxes contain blank fields, there is not even enough data for a DOT test centre to do an emissions test.

Do you by any chance know what fields they used for info so that I can print something plausible in mine or do you think that they just accepted it as it was?

Or for anybody else with knowledge what boxes on a V5 contain information relevant to a French matriculation?

It seems to indicate that EU rulings are gradually filtering down to French administration.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote user="Rob Roy"]Copied from our 'Certificat Provisoire d'Immatriculation' the following sections are used: D1, D2, D2.1, D3, E, F.1, F.2, F.3, G, G.1, J, J.1, J.2, J.3, K, P.1, P.2, P.3, P.6, Q, S.1, S.2, U.1, U.2, V.7, V.9, X.1 Hope this helps.[/quote]

My V5 doesnt even have most of those fields, of the ones it does have the only ones with any info in are:

B, B1, D1, D5, X, D4, J, E, P5, R

Basically just the date of registration, make, body type, tax class, displacement, fuel, wheelplan, vehicle category, Vin number, engine number, and colour.

Just seen that it was regsitered in 2002 not 1998.

I think that I will need to create some figures for CO2, type approval number, mass in service and the emissions at the very least

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The main one to have is a type approval number that ties up with a "type mines" code.

Add in some weights and a noise limit and thats it.

A person of....err....flexible morals....could find this information on the internet and print out their own CofC. As long as it looks legit, it should be fine - they dont appear to check them for authenticity, and the several "real" ones I have bought in the past have all varied in appearance somewhat even from the same manufacturer.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

As an example of how much credence government websites should be

afforded 'on the ground' so to speak this one specifically states that if not

in French a CoC must be officially translated but I bet if you ran a

poll you'd find that only a very small minority had had to jump through

that particular hoop.

The part about using the original registration document (V5) is not really new and has been mentioned here many times before, if it bears the full EU approval number then it should be accepted regardless of what other categories are or are not filled in, the biggest problem being convincing prefecture staff to actually type the number into the computer as they are usually to blinkered and preconditioned to think outside the envelope where imported car = CoC, end of story !

Strictly speaking under the new rules for registration it's down to the prefecture to obtain any missing info not the applicant but I think we're more likely to see pink elephants flying over the Eifel Tower before that happens !

[url]http://ec.europa.eu/enterprise/sectors/automotive/motor-vehicle-registration/index_en.htm[/url]

If the system was geared up to facilitate registration as opposed to hinder then life would be a lot easier but them the same can be said about many other areas of the so called 'Union; !

Link to comment
Share on other sites

very true. the Tarn prefecture and the sous prefecture in Castres demand a C of C no matter what. Arguing with them is pointless - I have tried a few times, including the latest which was for a Citroen C2 and the V5 contained all the correct numbers including a Type Mines. They wouldnt even vaguely consider the notion of trying to do it.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just the opposite for me. Went to Beziers couple of months ago to register a Volkswagon CC bought in UK. Beforehand I had sourced a CoC from Germany and also a French language one. Arrived at Beziers and was told immediately that I didn't want any of those bits of paper as the UK V5 was sufficient!!

Nice surprise though.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...
It's a bit late, but Happy New Year to everyone..

Has anyone tried to register a vehicle in Limoges yet without a CoC?

Just acquired a 'new' (loosely speaking), or 'newer' vehicle from UK and need to register it. Somewhat peeved to discover that, unlike the first time I registered a Peugeot imported from UK, when the CoC was free, they now want £80 'administrative costs'.

Therefore if I can avoid this it would of course be preferable.

Anyone ??

Thanks
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Looking at the Haute-Vienne website it says exactly the same as I found on the Correze site. I printed the page to back up my request in case there was any query, but had no problem.

http://www.haute-vienne.gouv.fr/Demarches-administratives/Cartes-grises#F1050

Scroll down to where it says 'Justificatif de conformité' and you will see it says if you have the original (complete) registration document from an EU country you don't need a CofC as well.
Link to comment
Share on other sites

A couple of points regarding the above posts

1)   The information in the OP is also on the government site referring to immatriculations in general - [url]http://vosdroits.service-public.fr/particuliers/F1050.xhtml[/url]

2)  It is also stated in the above place that you don't need to use the Prefecture where you live, so if you have problems there, try another one [:D]

"À savoir : la démarche peut être effectuée dans le département de votre choix, pas nécessairement celui où vous résidez"

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...
Success at Limoges!

Strangely they did ask for a CoC but when I explained I didn't think it was necessary and asked if that were true, they agreed that there was no requirement . Begs the question why they asked if I had one, but there you go.

I did, as suggested take with me a print out from the prefecture web-site reference the CoC.

So, £80 saved!
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 10 months later...
Indre et Loire [37] still insisting on a CoC, despite me sending them the latest Internet info from the Government. I've tried again, highlighting why I no longer need to produce a CoC, but I'm expecting a Gallic shrug.

If that's the case I'll ask for the dossier to be returned, then go to 36 at Chateauroux as Indre do reproduce faithfully on their website the updated information and do seem to be aware that a CoC is not needed for EU cars with the latest EC style V5
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 months later...
An extract from a post that I put on the Ssangyong Owners Club Forum yesterday:

"Legislation in France has changed due to EU harmonisation. Provided that you have a new V5 which is EC compliant under directive 1999/37 EC you can re-register your SY in France without a CoC. You can now do this in any department; it doesn't have to be the one you live in, and a current UK MOT is acceptable.

After a long struggle with Indre et Loire who kept rejecting my application without reason, at one stage stating that I needed to get a CoC from Subaru France ! I went this morning to the Indre Prefecture and all went well except for one teensy weensy missing item - The 'EC compliant' V5C doesn't have the type inserted in box D2 - 'Malheureusement monsieur, vous avez besoin d'un CoC - Desolé.'

Spoke to DVLA who said they couldn't reissue a corrected V5, and the reason the information was missing was because it hadn't been provided by SY. I retorted that the directive was effective from 1999, and the car was registered in 2000, so they were in breach of EU regulation is issuing a non-compliant document, and If I had all the required details to put in box D2 [from SY] why hadn't they? Long embarrassed silence and I'm waiting for their legal dept to call me back today."

I actually had a full French translation of everything required to fill in a French carte grise. However dear old DVLA had cut corners on the V5C and omitted to fill in D2 - "Type Variante Version" and because it wasn't on the V5 the prefecture won't accept it.

Fortunately Ssangyong smiled kindly on me and will send me a CoC FOC.

It does, however, beg the question why DVLA are issuing V5C's which are required to be Euro-compliant, but when put to the acid test they prove to be non-compliant.

......and needless to say I'm still awaiting the promised telephone call from DVLA.........
Link to comment
Share on other sites

My aren't we bristly !

I think you'll find that D2 itself is not the issue but the subsections of variant and version it's the absence of those which are the stumbling block however the fact that the directive says (if available) clearly denotes it as optional information and therefore absolves DVLA of any wrong doing, corner cutting, or accusations of issuing non compliant documents.

Quote:

(D.2) type

- variant (if available)

- version (if available)

Every V5 that I've seen has the type specified but I've yet to see one which has anything for variant or version and in fact not every vehicle will have either in which case there will be nothing from the manufacturer to put there anyway.

On a French carte grise variant/version are D.2.1 which is defined as 'Code nationale d'indentification du type (en cas de reception CE)' and it's the ability to tick that box which  determines whether a CoC is required or not.

Your statement that 'a current UK MOT is acceptable' is incorrect, it's acceptable only if under 6 months old.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...
Now that France has finally complied with the European Commission rulings that it must revoke the 100bhp limit, I have now been able to get my Honda motor cycle out of the garage where it has been for the last 6 years. It is insured, and the next step is of course to register it here. My problem will be that the bike was registered pre 2001 - the time when V5's also became C of C's. The bike will soon be a 'classic', and is standard in every way, with a full Honda history, flat beam headlights, and a speedo in both mph/kph. I have spoken to Honda UK, and they say that they can send me - for a fee - a letter stating the model details, date of manufacture, motorcycle name and model - however of course all of this is already on my V5. I have written to my local prefecture in Angouleme asking for their position, however they have repeatedly failed to respond to my correspondence. Can anybody advise? Is it worth just chancing it using the info given on this thread?
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...