Importing from the UK - definitive guide (Q&A)

Marcusm

DOC2015 wrote: »

Oh for insurance, I plan to temporarily add the new car to my policy/ temporarily change my insurance over to the UK reg. Will prob depend on Liberty Direct's policy. Hopefully they'll allow it.

What proof will you carry to establish that the policy has been transferred over? Does Liberty permit you to update and immediately print out a certificate of insurance.

savagethegoat wrote: »

you are wrong to think that Marcus. They will seize it for no tax if they've a mind to, it is possible they may let you proceed if you have all the right paperwork to show it was just purchased, it has insurance in it's own number ( it's no good relying on third party extension as they can't check Irish policies) and it has an MoT.

I'm not suggesting they can't or won't and I certainly would not drive untaxed (I live in London). However, the police are less like to pull you over for absence of tax than absence of insurance. Likewise, they are more likely to exercise discretion in relation to VED than in relation to insurance where I would expect enforcement to be absolute. The OP will be travelling on a combination of motorways and A roads across lots of different police areas.

CJhaughey

You can buy a Days insurance from the RAC, My quote was for 33 stg or something like that for a day.
Easier to deal with a UK company than trying to get a temp cert off an insurer here in many cases.
http://www.rac.co.uk/warpmobileinject/day-insurance

DOC2015

Thanks CJ, I might just do that!

DOC2015

Marcusm wrote: »

What proof will you carry to establish that the policy has been transferred over? Does Liberty permit you to update and immediately print out a certificate of insurance.


I have no idea Marcusm, I'll probably wait until I'm certain of a trip and then ring them. If they do provide the option Ill make sure to have proof.

Marcusm

CJhaughey wrote: »

You can buy a Days insurance from the RAC, My quote was for 33 stg or something like that for a day.
Easier to deal with a UK company than trying to get a temp cert off an insurer here in many cases.
http://www.rac.co.uk/warpmobileinject/day-insurance

That's a fabulous find as they seem to be willing to quote for non UK residents. THat would certainly help a lot of people here who have had issues getting cover before they have brought the car back and may not know the VIN in advance to notify the insurer.

54and56

Hi all,

My company will be buying a commercial VW Touareg similar to this (http://www.carzone.ie/used-cars/volkswagen/touareg/used-2015-151-volkswagen-touareg-3-0t-louth-fpa-201114459455233290) for business use.

Is there an accepted/proven process for ensuring a used Touareg bought in the UK will be accepted as a category B vehicle i.e. a "Car derived and jeep derived van" attracting VRT at the rate of 13.3% of the OMSP when being registered here?

I'd like to know there won't be a problem with Rev Comm registering it as a category B vehicle before I commit to purchasing it in the UK.

Would really appreciate a steer on this.

DOC2015

Sorry Je suis, have no idea about calculating it...although it seems, at least from what Ive heard, that VRT is all over the place and is usually higher on the day than what you see on their site. Joke of a system really.

DOC2015

Probably a stupid question but, Im wondering, if following Rogers guide on page one of this thread, he says to pay the dealer a deposit before heading out to the UK.

Would the deposit be just, say a 1000 or would it be a % of the price of the car? Surely you wouldn't negotiate a price for the car over the phone and before you test drive it yourself?

Anyone do this differently?

bazz26

The amount of the deposit will depend on how much the dealer wants and is designed to reserve the car. Get the dealer to send you more detailed photos of the car so you can have a good view of it. Once settled on a particular car I also get the likes of the AA or RAC to carry out a detailed inspection of it. Based on that inspection then decide if you want to proceed with the purchase and leave a deposit to reserve the car for you. The alternative is to not put a deposit on it and risk arriving over there to find out the car is sold.

If your not getting the car inspected by the RAC or AA then you would want to have a few cars in the area lined up to view in the event your first choice turns out to be less than advertised.

BTW UK dealers are not like Irish dealers where there is large amounts of profit built into the asking price of the car. UK dealers tend to price the cars close to their market value and will quite happily let you walk if they don't get what they want for it. There is always a bit of haggling but at most you may get a few hundred pounds off, don't be expecting a large amount off though.

DOC2015

bazz26 wrote: »

.

BTW UK dealers are not like Irish dealers where there is large amounts of profit built into the asking price of the car. UK dealers tend to price the cars close to their market value and will quite happily let you walk if they don't get what they want for it. There is always a bit of haggling but at most you may get a few hundred pounds off, don't be expecting a large amount off though.

Hmmm, I was expecting at least 10% off what the asking price was because I'm not interested in a dealer warranty (because its useless in Ireland) plus the fact that I'm not trading another car in?

bazz26

No harm in trying but very unlikely. They will also know you are after flying over and will very likely not want to go home empty handed.

DOC2015

So maybe I would be better off not paying a deposit, then walking away if I dont get the deal I want?
I'm hoping that January will be a quiet month for dealers and theyll be anxious to sell.
Have you bought in the UK bazz26?

bazz26

Nope haven't bought myself but I know a few who have. If you are happy to be patient and come home without a car then don't bother with a deposit. You would want about 3 cars to go view in the area though, don't put all your eggs in one basket.

DOC2015

bazz26 wrote: »

You would want about 3 cars to go view in the area though, don't put all your eggs in one basket.

Oh ya definitely at least three...an knowing my luck they'll all be 100 miles apart of each other

bazz26

Get the post code of where you are going and put it into autotrader.co.uk and search for results close to that address.

DOC2015

bazz26 wrote: »

Get the post code of where you are going and put it into autotrader.co.uk and search for results close to that address.

Unfortunately I have to do it the other way round as its a Black Edition A4, hard to get at a decent price without serious mileage on it. Plenty of them around, its's just getting a good deal is another story

Smidge

Would anyone here buy a Cat D insurance repaired car from a garage?
Has a long recent MOT on it.

DOC2015

Personally, Smidge, I don't think I would, unless it was a very very rare car. There's just too much choice out there now to settle for an already crashed car. I know they can be much cheaper but why would you risk your hard-earned money?

Smidge

DOC2015 wrote: »

Personally, Smidge, I don't think I would, unless it was a very very rare car. There's just too much choice out there now to settle for an already crashed car. I know they can be much cheaper but why would you risk your hard-earned money?

Thanks for the reply. I'm finding it incredibly difficult to find what I need(diesel up to 1.6/lowish miles)for my budget tbh hence trying (a bit desperately )to cast the net further a field

Ihackedboardz

I'm going to be purchasing a car from the UK within the next 2 months & I intend to drive back myself to the ferry...

What I what to know is what's the story regarding car tax (I'll be insured etc)? I obviously can't tax it myself as I'm not a UK resident...

What have people done since the UK have gotten rid of the tax disc? have you chanced it with no tax?
How likely are you if your stopped to have your car impounded/ fined etc?

I would presume if you had your proof of insurance/ ferry ticket/ receipt of purchase of the same day most cops would let you away with it.. but it still has me worried...
any experiences with this?

Ps. just to add, I'm buying from a dealership, not from a private seller

54and56

Ihackedboardz wrote: »

I'm going to be purchasing a car from the UK within the next 2 months & I intend to drive back myself to the ferry...

What I what to know is what's the story regarding car tax (I'll be insured etc)? I obviously can't tax it myself as I'm not a UK resident...

What have people done since the UK have gotten rid of the tax disc? have you chanced it with no tax?
How likely are you if your stopped to have your car impounded/ fined etc?

I would presume if you had your proof of insurance/ ferry ticket/ receipt of purchase of the same day most cops would let you away with it.. but it still has me worried...
any experiences with this?

Ps. just to add, I'm buying from a dealership, not from a private seller

Check out post # 4113 and 4114 on the previous page, they answer more or less the question you asked.

54and56

DOC2015 wrote: »

Sorry Je suis, have no idea about calculating it...although it seems, at least from what Ive heard, that VRT is all over the place and is usually higher on the day than what you see on their site. Joke of a system really.

Thanks DOC2015, I'm not so worried about the actual OMSP applied on the day as the fact the jeep will be accepted as a category B vehicle i.e. a commercial jeep rather than a category A passenger vehicle.

Also, does anyone know why vehicles being imported into Ireland are classified for VRT purposes into category A and B etc on the Citizens Information website http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/moving_country/moving_to_ireland/coming_to_live_in_ireland/importing_car_into_ireland.html but the Rev Comm site uses M and N classifications as outlined here - http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/moving_country/moving_to_ireland/coming_to_live_in_ireland/importing_car_into_ireland.html?

Confused.com

flanzer

I'm hoping to go in the next couple of months. Looking at a Mazda 6 2.2 Sport. Before Christmas the VRT was coming up as €2.5k and it's still showing €2.5k today. Is it likely to drop in the coming days/weeks now that we're a year older?
Thanks

th hen

flanzer wrote: »

I'm hoping to go in the next couple of months. Looking at a Mazda 6 2.2 Sport. Before Christmas the VRT was coming up as €2.5k and it's still showing €2.5k today. Is it likely to drop in the coming days/weeks now that we're a year older?
Thanks

don't think it drops until after the actual date of first registration, the cars birth date as such lol. if the car was registered on may 1st I don't think vrt price will drop until after that but I could be wrong,

bazz26

I think Revenue review the OMSP on a monthly basis rather than on the birthday of first registration. The OMSP can fluctuate up as well as down.

Mc-BigE

hi guys , not sure this should be in motors or money section, but im interested in buying a newish car, im looking at Irish cars and uk cars, im looking for the best deals on finance, should i be looking at "in-house" car finance from the dealer, CU, Bank or other? some car dealers are offering 3 or 4 % on PCP deals for new cars, but C.U. want 6 or 7 % and banks are more again.

whats peoples option on PCP ?

is there any UK companys (motor or bank) that will take on a non-UK resident

car loan?, might be interested in this if it works out cheaper

thanks

bazz26

I don't think UK financial institutions will lend to non UK residents the same as Irish lenders wouldn't give a loan to an non Irish resident.

Also generally, PCP rates can work out cheaper on brand new cars rather than second hand ones. The likes of BMW however offer PCP on some of their used cars upto a certain age. The majority of PCP terms are only upto a max of 3 years and you need equity in the car at the end of the term in order to use it as a deposit for the next one.

Pete123456

I think in terms of a lending institution a credit union will probably have the best rates, but to get a cu loan you would have to have an established track record with them. Banks rates aren't (too) bad but can have fine print. The U.K. also has a credit scoring system much like the states so even if you did manage to get some place to lend to you the rates would be exponential cause you have no score or history.

Be sure to remember with pcp you will not own the car until you make the final payment and that the deposit can be big as can the balloon payment at the end. Make sure you read all terms and conditions carefully!

DOC2015

Guys anyone ever pay a deposit and then find that when you went to pick up the car, it was a disappointment. Are you locked in once you've paid the deposit legally?

Explosive_Cornflake

DOC2015 wrote: »

Guys anyone ever pay a deposit and then find that when you went to pick up the car, it was a disappointment. Are you locked in once you've paid the deposit legally?

It's sort of the point of a deposit. If you can't be sure, you'd need to wing it without a deposit. That our buy someething else from that dealer.