First Time Driving in France

sazzywoo1

I am heading off to France for the May Half Term with my two children on an exciting trip taking in Parc Asterix and Centre Parcs. I am driving all the way there and back taking the Eurotunnel both ways. We are also then driving to South Eastern France, near Strasbourg, in August for a 11 night break in Eurocamps. I am borrowing my parents' sat nav for both journeys. What I'm wondering are the following:
European Car Insurance - best way to do this?
European Car Breakdown Cover - best way to do this?
French Driving Kit - what is it that I actually need?
How and where do I buy petrol?
Any other tips on driving in France? Only ever done day trips to a northern port before!!
Thank you.

PeacefulWaters

The AA have a series of online guides that will help you.

Alter_ego

You must have -High vis jacket for each person likely to leave the vehicle in an emergency- Breakdown triangle - One French approved breathalyser (People will tell you 2 so that you have one when one is used, but one is the actual law) There are many other things recommended but I think that's all.
You buy fuel exactly the same type of place as UK Just pay in Euros.
Your UK insurance MUST cover you without doing anything, but if you require more than the legal minimum contact your insurer. Breakdown cover varies, check your UK provider.
Your Satnav must have speed camera warnings switched off, you can have warnings of accident black spots on.

Mrs_Soup

Supermarket service stations often have priced fuel and much like here it is more expensive on motorways. Some motorway service areas are very minimal with just a picnic area and a smelly toilet block. Others are lovely. They tend to be closer together than in UK. Peage means a pay motorway, we normally avoid those if possible. On pay motorways avoid the tollgates which have a t above them as those are for people with an automatic pay device, you can get these yourself but may not be worth it for one trip. Traffic jams are much less common there than here. Watch out for priority a droit roads. Not very common now but if on them you have to give way to traffic joining from the right.

knightstyle

Sorry but the above is NOT correct see http://www.theaa.com/motoring_advice/touring_tips/compulsory_equipment.pdf
You will need one reflective jacket, it must have a CE mark and be in reach of the driver. No need for a breathalyser, you must take proof of insurance and proof of ownership of the vehicle.
We drive a lot in France, it is easy especially on main roads but do be careful when pulling out on minor roads as it is easy to go to the wrong side.
Don't forget to tell your insurance and bank, credit card companies.
Go and have fun.

missbiggles1

knightstyle wrote: »

Sorry but the above is NOT correct see http://www.theaa.com/motoring_advice/touring_tips/compulsory_equipment.pdf
You will need one reflective jacket, it must have a CE mark and be in reach of the driver. No need for a breathalyser, you must take proof of insurance and proof of ownership of the vehicle.
We drive a lot in France, it is easy especially on main roads but do be careful when pulling out on minor roads as it is easy to go to the wrong side.
Don't forget to tell your insurance and bank, credit card companies.
Go and have fun.

That's definitely correct, with the addition of the red breakdown triangle. Also, don't forget to take your EHICs as well as your travel insurance.

zagfles

Alter_ego wrote: »

You must have -High vis jacket for each person likely to leave the vehicle in an emergency-

Yes and these must be in the main car not in the boot.

Breakdown triangle - One French approved breathalyser (People will tell you 2 so that you have one when one is used, but one is the actual law)

I think it's 2 because if you're stopped and have to use one then you haven't got one if you get stopped again! Worth getting 2 anyway as they're cheap.

There are many other things recommended but I think that's all.

Headlight deflectors, GB sticker. Order all this stuff in advance from Amazon or somewhere - don't go to somewhere like Halfords or wait till you get to the port - you'll get ripped off.

You buy fuel exactly the same type of place as UK Just pay in Euros.

A lot of petrol stations are unmanned out of working hours eg evenings/weekends and you pay at pump with a card - people have reported problems with pre-paid cards at pumps so make sure you have a proper credit/debit card.

Your UK insurance MUST cover you without doing anything, but if you require more than the legal minimum contact your insurer. Breakdown cover varies, check your UK provider.

It's often cheaper to get a separate policy for breakdown than to add to an existing UK policy. Look on the usual comparison sites eg GoCompare etc.

Your Satnav must have speed camera warnings switched off, you can have warnings of accident black spots on.

Yup and make sure you understand the rules of the road - main one which gets a lot of Brits is the town border signs are speed limits - when you get to a town sign with a red border that means a 50kph limit, and the end of town sign (town crossed out) it's back to 90kph if not signed otherwise.

Also understand the priorite a droite and the yellow diamond system although in most places the priority is what you'd expect.

missbiggles1

zagfles wrote: »

Yes and these must be in the main car not in the boot. I think it's 2 because if you're stopped and have to use one then you haven't got one if you get stopped again! Worth getting 2 anyway as they're cheap. Headlight deflectors, GB sticker. Order all this stuff in advance from Amazon or somewhere - don't go to somewhere like Halfords or wait till you get to the port - you'll get ripped off. A lot of petrol stations are unmanned out of working hours eg evenings/weekends and you pay at pump with a card - people have reported problems with pre-paid cards at pumps so make sure you have a proper credit/debit card. It's often cheaper to get a separate policy for breakdown than to add to an existing UK policy. Look on the usual comparison sites eg GoCompare etc. Yup and make sure you understand the rules of the road - main one which gets a lot of Brits is the town border signs are speed limits - when you get to a town sign with a red border that means a 50kph limit, and the end of town sign (town crossed out) it's back to 90kph if not signed otherwise.

Also understand the priorite a droite and the yellow diamond system although in most places the priority is what you'd expect.

Breathalysers are recommended but, as there are no fines if you don't have them, nobody bothers.

"The enforcement of the law making it compulsory to carry breathalysers whilst driving in France has been postponed indefinitely. Whilst the law itself is still in place the authorities have recognised problems with the supply of suitable breathalysers and will not issue fines until further notice. "

http://www.brittany-ferries.co.uk/faq/travel-information/do-i-need-to-carry-a-breathalyser-in-my-vehicle

zagfles

missbiggles1 wrote: »

Breathalysers are recommended but, as there are no fines if you don't have them, nobody bothers.

"The enforcement of the law making it compulsory to carry breathalysers whilst driving in France has been postponed indefinitely. Whilst the law itself is still in place the authorities have recognised problems with the supply of suitable breathalysers and will not issue fines until further notice. "

http://www.brittany-ferries.co.uk/faq/travel-information/do-i-need-to-carry-a-breathalyser-in-my-vehicle

But they're pretty cheap so you may as well obey the law even if you don't get fined. Think it was £3 or so for a twin pack when I got mine and you can keep them for next time if you don't use them.

Speaking of which - note the lower drink drive limit in France, a bit over half the English limit - so sharing a bottle of wine over dinner will likely put you over the limit. There's an even lower limit for younger/inexperienced drivers.

On the plus side parking is a lot easier than here - it's mostly free in towns, and where you have to pay it's usually obvious like blue marked bays with "payant" written on the tarmac.

Cameroooon

sazzywoo1 wrote: »

We are also then driving to South Eastern France, near Strasbourg,

The very first thing to buy is a good map because you won't find
Strasbourg in South Eastern France.

danielthomark

zagfles wrote: »

Also understand the priorite a droite

I used to live in a city which had 3 roundabouts in close proximity. 2 were priorite a droite, the middle one wasn't.

To the OP, if you ever do a u-turn, ensure you end up on the correct side of the road, right shoulder next to the kerb!