driving in australia (not hiring a car)

brettcta

my sister's pissing off to australia in september for 12 months (i give it 2 months tops before she wants to come home). she has been driving here in the UK since november last year (when she passed her test).

my question to you, fare patrons of the overseas & travel planning forum, is if she was to be added to my cousin's car insurance in australia, would she be able to drive, given she's held her license for under 12 months in the UK?

also, given her age, 19, will that be a preventative factor?

muchos gracias

claire16c

You need to find out from your cousin in australia what her insurance policy covers.

Some countries do have more lax rules than ours.

For example in Canada it seems to be like the car is insured rather than the person. So when I was there I could drive my sisters car, her mother-in laws car etc. No one asks to see your license.

And actually I remember when I was in Oz someone we stayed with said would I mind driving us home in their car, when we were out one night, if they ended up drinking. They never did in the end, but perhaps their insurance covered other drivers.

Gloomendoom

From my experience, she will be covered third party for her cousin's car. It's automatically included with the the annual road tax. If she wants more cover, her cousin will have to sort that with her insurer. She may be ok.

Other than that, driving in Oz is really no different to here. A few funny road signs but that is about it.

Loads of info on driving licence requirements in Oz here...

http://austroads.com.au/driver-licences/overseas-driver-licences

Bob_the_Saver

brettcta wrote: »

also, given her age, 19, will that be a preventative factor?

muchos gracias

One can only hope so from the Possums's perspective.

spottydog

Gloomendoom wrote: »

From my experience, she will be covered third party for her cousin's car. It's automatically included with the the annual road tax. If she wants more cover, her cousin will have to sort that with her insurer. She may be ok.

Not quite, it depends on the state and I don't think any include the 3rd party cover like you have in the UK. For example in NSW part of the rego is paying for ctp (compulsory third party) only covers medical costs for the person you hit not vehicle damage. Insurance in Australia doesn't generally require the driver to be named. There is usually an extra excess for inexperienced drivers and you can put restrictions on the insurance (I have mine set to limit to over 40's). Insurance isn't actually required to drive in Australia but if you hit something without insurance then you canexpect a big bill.

Generally having a licence for less than a year in Australia would require the driver to display P plates, I don't know how that works for international licences.

The key difference I've found between driving in the 2 countries is in Aus they very rarely speed but will also sit right up on your bumper and you can undertake as well as overtake (apart from Melbourne which has some weird right turn rules around the trams)

dzug1

Gloomendoom wrote: »

Other than that, driving in Oz is really no different to here. A few funny road signs but that is about it.

There are a few funnies - there's a give way to the right rule at junctions where no priority is signposted for example. And the no centre turn at certain junctions (with trams) in Melbourne.

Oh and the Highway Code says 'no dinking'. Other than that it refers to cyclists, I never did find out what it meant.

The most common accident (outside the cities) is dozing off and colliding with a tree

Gloomendoom

spottydog wrote: »

Not quite, it depends on the state and I don't think any include the 3rd party cover like you have in the UK. For example in NSW part of the rego is paying for ctp (compulsory third party) only covers medical costs for the person you hit not vehicle damage. Insurance in Australia doesn't generally require the driver to be named. There is usually an extra excess for inexperienced drivers and you can put restrictions on the insurance (I have mine set to limit to over 40's). Insurance isn't actually required to drive in Australia but if you hit something without insurance then you canexpect a big bill.

Generally having a licence for less than a year in Australia would require the driver to display P plates, I don't know how that works for international licences.

The key difference I've found between driving in the 2 countries is in Aus they very rarely speed but will also sit right up on your bumper and you can undertake as well as overtake (apart from Melbourne which has some weird right turn rules around the trams)

Ah yes! I'd forgotten about the undertaking thing. Related to that, it seems acceptable to sit in the outside lane for miles and miles whatever speed you are doing. It's quite frustrating until you get used to it as all your instincts tell you that it is wrong to undertake.

Macca83_2

I went to Australia for a year. My mate had only passed her test two months prior to us leaving. She's dual nationality and had no problem in converting her UK drivers license to a full Australian one. She did not have to display p plates. It was five years ago though

dazzer68

Great place to drive, big long open roads, hardly any traffic. Its a great experience and good luck to her. If shes travelling far, fill up with fuel at ever oppurtunity, outback you never where the next fuel stop will be!

woodencupboard

dazzer68 wrote: »

If shes travelling far, fill up with fuel at ever oppurtunity, outback you never where the next fuel stop will be!

To be fair, if you're driving far in Oz you look at a map and see where the fuel stops are before setting out. Negating the need to constantly stop and filling up. But a good sentiment though

If you are unsure carry extra Fuel+Water over what you would normally carry/have with you.

Almo

We have hook turns in Melbourne at junctions which have tram tracks running through them (and only those junctions). To turn right across the traffic you actually approach the junction in the left lane and sit to the very left in the junction, then when the lights go amber you make the turn.

Those unfamiliar with driving in Melbourne are often caught out by it (there are signs at each junction which requires hook turns though) and other drivers get pretty irate by that, not to mention tram drivers, if they get held up by it. Aside from that, the thing to watch is that Australians have a healthy disregard for amber lights, and view them as a challenge rather than a warning. This means that when you should be able to start your hook turn, there are often people still coming through behind you. Accidents do happen as a result.

I learnt to drive here, in a manual, which is relatively unusual. When I first passed my test I did occasionally stall at lights/on hills and people are not at all understanding, I assume because they think you're driving an auto and can't imagine what the problem is. We have found Melbourne drivers to not be particularly generous about letting people in/out (my partner drove in the UK from age 17 until we moved here).

Those are the only things I can think of!