MOT

[Jacks]

We currently have an English registered car and the MOT is due to expire, does anyone know if you can have a Control Technique on an English registered car? Is it legal to drive an English registered car without an MOT in France?

Thanks

[Will]

"...does anyone know if you can have a Control Technique on an English registered car?"

Yes, in fact is necessary as part of the procedure to re-register a vehicle over four years old in France.

"Is it legal to drive an English registered car without an MOT in France?"

A controversial one - I'd say that from the point of view that a vehicle without MoT or CT will most likely have its insurance invalidated so it is unlikely to be legal.

I'm fully aware about this question potentially reopening the can of worms about registering vehicles in France, so my responses are deliberately brief. 

[derf]

As Will says, no problems getting the Control Technique done and it would cover the vehicle while it is in France but the CT would not be legal if you take the car back to the UK if it's still on UK plates you would need a UK MOT to drive legally there.

"Is it legal to drive an English registered car without an MOT in France?"

Not going to answer that one

[Suandpete]

I have always understood that in order for any "foreign" car to be legal here it must be legal in the country in which it is registered.

Su

www.inchocks.co.uk

[Weedon]

Having no valid MOT in the UK does not invalidate the insurance although if you had to make a claim an insurance engineer might ask to see it but they could not refute any claim for that reason.  If the MOT runs out and you take the car back to the UK still registered there, you are only legally covered to drive to the nearest testing station, having pre-booked it.  And that doesn't mean you can drive it 350 miles to your home town to get it done!

In the UK if you present a vehicle for an MOT on foreign plates the VIN number would be written on the test certificate in place of the registration number maybe thats what happens here although I have no knowledge of the procedure here, but I will in August when we are due the first one.

weedon

[BJSLIV]

As the DVLA put it.

If you are abroad but the vehicle is off the road in the UK, you may also declare SORN to DVLA at that time. If a vehicle is abroad when the licence expires but is still registered in the UK you must relicense your vehicle. If you are no longer registered in the UK you must comply with the licensing regulations of the country concerned.

Though I'm not sure how you would get an MOT certificate renewed if you are abroad, and you cannot relicense without an MoT if the car is old enough to require one.

[Val_2]

Lets just say that if you have no valid MOT for an english car being used in France and no french CT either, I  would NOT like to be stopped by the gendarmerie for an inspection of documents or have an accident - they will probably throw the book at you. We forgot to get the very first CT done on one of our vehicles and were 3 months late, an inspection resulted in a threat of a 900€ fine unless the CT was done and papers produced within 7 days. I would not take any chances here with the terrible standard of french driving where having a fully registered,controlled and insured vehicle is concerned, the penalties are heavy with prison sentences dished out most of the time.