Hi folks,

I'm interested in buying a car in Italy, not sure about the legalaties of driving it home.

It's UK registered, never registered in Italy as it's been used by a trader. MOT expired last Jan.

My insurers don't insist on a MOT but the car must be in roadworthy condition. I might arrange a mechanical inspection before collecting, but is there an issue as the car would be untaxed? I can pre book MOT in Dover so will only be driving to the garage.

Any guidance out there?

Ken

A quick search turned up this thread.

Prebooking an MOT should legally exempt you from any RFL requirement in respect of the UK part of the drive from the ship to the testing station.

As for the rest, I guess you have to weigh up the risks & make your own choice. My gut feel is that you'll probably fall foul of some EU regulation, but that enforcement is unlikely unless you are involved in some sort of incident.

I believe the reciprocal agreements mean the car has to be legal to drive in its home country, but you could argue that, with valid insurance and a pre-booked MOT at the nearest testing station, you're meeting that requirement!

The one thing I'd want to be absolutely certain of is that I had proper and effective insurance cover for the entire trip. Getting that wrong could seriously spoil the rest of your life if the worst happens.

Thanks for the info, I wouldn't expect problems but if I attract the attention of foreign police by making a mistake or worse being involved in an accident, then these things are important.

No doubt an accident would lead to lots of questions from my Insurer but I worked for the company for over 20 years and know that they would honour a valid claim, I would never drive a car unless I was satisfied that it was in good mechanical order, neither would I buy it.