Does the insurance of a vehicle registered in a European country work in France?

If you come to France with your vehicle registered in one of the countries of the European Union or in a similar country, you will be covered by your foreign car insurance.

You will be covered at least with the mandatory warranty civil liability, i.e. for damage that your vehicle could cause to others.

But if you have purchased optional warranties (e.g., property damage, theft, fire), some of these warranties may apply in France.

You must check in your contract the covers that apply in France and, and the cases of limitation of guarantees or exclusion of guarantee.

If you have purchased the flight or assistance warranty, you must verify whether, in the event of theft or accident of the vehicle, the insurance covers the following expenses:

• Vehicle towing costs
• Costs of repatriation of passengers, or even of the vehicle
• Accommodation costs during repairs
• Driver's fee to repatriate the vehicle and its occupants

What documents must the driver of a vehicle have?

If you come to France with your vehicle registered in a European Union country or in one of the similar countries, you are exempt from presenting proof of insurance at the border.

Indeed, the license plates of your vehicle are used as proof of insurance.

The territories of the countries of the European Union and of the assimilated countries form a single territory within which insurance is compulsory, but the control of the green card at the borders is abolished.

The bilateral agreement prohibits police checks solely for the purpose of verifying the insurance of vehicles registered in a signatory country.

But the policy can check your insurance at the time of a check for another reason or following an accident.

In this case, you must have a document proving that your car is insured at least for the compulsory civil liability guarantee.

To prove this, you can present a document drawn up in accordance with the regulations of your country which proves that your vehicle is insured.

How long does the insurance of a vehicle registered in a European country work in France?

You can use your foreign insurance in France for Maximum 6 months.

If you stay in France for more than 6 months, you will be considered a resident of that country and you will be obliged to register your car in France. Once the vehicle is registered in France, it is considered to have its usual place of parking in that territory. In this case, you will be obliged to take out car insurance in France.

What is the "green card" system?

The green card scheme is an agreement signed by several countries on motor insurance.

The aim is to facilitate international traffic, while ensuring adequate compensation for victims of accidents caused in one signatory country by vehicles registered in another signatory country.

Thus, the agreement allows car insurance contracts concluded in one of the signatory countries to be effective in the other countries.

Therefore, each signatory country has an obligation to settle a representative office in each of the other signatory countries to deal with international traffic claims.

The agreement also facilitates the crossing of borders by vehicles registered in one of the signatory countries to another signatory country.

This facilitated passage is done via the presentation of the ‘green card’, or international motor insurance card.

Does insurance for a vehicle registered in a country which participates in the green card system work in France?

If your vehicle is registered in a country that participates in the green card system, your foreign insurance covers you in France.

You are covered by your foreign insurance at least with the mandatory guarantee civil liability, i.e. for damage that your vehicle could cause to others.

But if you have purchased optional warranties (e.g., property damage, theft, fire), some of these warranties may apply in France.

You must check with your insurer before you start your trip the coverage that applies in France and, and the cases of limitation of guarantees or exclusion of guarantee.

If you have purchased the flight or assistance guarantee, you should check whether in the event of theft or accident of the vehicle, the insurance covers the following expenses:

• Vehicle towing costs
• Costs of repatriation of passengers, or even of the vehicle
• Accommodation costs during repairs
• Driver's fee to repatriate the vehicle and its occupants

What documents do you need in France?

If you come to France with your vehicle registered in a country participating in the "green card" system, you must present at the border a "green card" or international car insurance card.

How long does the insurance taken out in a country participating in the green card system cover you in France?

Your foreign insurance may cover you during the period when you are entitled to use your car with its foreign plate, i.e 6 months.

If you stay in France for more than 6 months, you will be considered a resident.

In that case, you will also be obliged register your car and take out car insurance in France.

If you come to France with your vehicle registered in a country that is not a signatory to the multilateral agreement and does not participate in the "green card" system, your insurance cannot cover you.

You must purchase a special insurance called “border insurance”.

There is an exception for vehicles registered in a country outside the European Union and entering France from a member country of the European Union, or from the following countries: Holy See, San Marino and Monaco.

The border insurance covers you at least with the mandatory guarantee civil liability, i.e. for damage that your vehicle could cause to others.

You can take out other optional guarantees.

Border insurance can be purchased for a period of 30 or 90 days, renewable only once.