Registering a car in UK

AmyMaria

Hey Everyone,

I'm moving to the UK at the end of August and I would like to bring my car with me as I have a lot of things to move & will probably need it just to get back and forth. Have a few questions regarding it though & the more I read the more confused I'm getting.

Unfortunately my Irish insurance is going to run out on the 21st of August, which is the Friday before I intend to leave (on the Monday). I don't really want to take out another Irish insurance policy only to cancel it and lose the money.

Can anyone recommend an insurance company/broker in the UK that will accept my Irish no claims bonus and will be flexible about my proof of address? And will also insure me temporarily while I register the car in the UK?

Also if anyone can advise me as to how expensive this registration process is?

cackhanded

I was initially going to go down that route of registering my car when I moved a couple of years ago - in the end the hassle and cost of doing so was just not worth it.

Not easy to find companies to insure you on the VIN number, which you have to do as part of the process. www.ajinsurance.co.uk were one that would quote me and would accept my Irish NCB. I wouldn't be confident of any insurance company being "flexible" about your proof of address.

The process itself isn't that expensive (£60 or so for the DVLA iirc) and you also need an MOT cert (costs about £40 for a test). The real hit is in your insurance premiums which will be extremely high due to the car having no history in the UK. They do decrease year on year but not enough to make it worthwhile.

Your best bet is to try and sell you car in Ireland and buy something in the UK. If you take out insurance for another year and cancel it at a later date you get a refund pro rata for the unused part (less any admin fee).

You can also bring your car over and drive on your Irish insurance for up to 6 months as long as you are not moving over permanently (you're not, are you?:D), so you could drive over with your stuff and then bring it back in a couple of months and sell in Ireland.

afatbollix

The amount of paper work you have to do is alot.

The insurance has to be on the Vin number and the insurance company over here would only insure me for 2 weeks on the vin number.

You need a MOT

You need a certificate of Mutual Recognition shows that your vehicle is suitable to be driven on UK roads.
https://www.gov.uk/importing-vehicles-into-the-uk/mutual-recognition
I was able to get one online from Audi Germany if you cant get one its a £100 fee.

All details here.
https://www.gov.uk/importing-vehicles-into-the-uk/registering-an-imported-vehicle

But just so you know its not worth it. Sell your car in Ireland and buy a car in the UK.

Long Gone

afatbollix wrote: »

Sell your car in Ireland and buy a car in the UK.

Absolutely the best course to take - Second hand cars are dirt cheap in the UK.

magicmushroom

I'm moving home to the UK in October and like you Amy I will be taking a car over.

I'm selling my Irish reg car here and buying a UK reg one instead from Newry.
I can insure it straight away using my Mum and Dad's UK address - this can be changed later when I find my own place.

This is all much easier than taking an Irish car over and registering it.

Long Gone

magicmushroom wrote: »

I'm moving home to the UK in October and like you Amy I will be taking a car over.

I'm selling my Irish reg car here and buying a UK reg one instead from Newry.
I can insure it straight away using my Mum and Dad's UK address - this can be changed later when I find my own place.

This is all much easier than taking an Irish car over and registering it.

Good thinking Batman - Given how cheap cars are in the UK and how (relatively) expensive they are in Ireland there is no point whatsoever in bringing an Irish car to the UK and then having to go to the hassle of having it re-registered, MOT'd etc..

magicmushroom

Long Gone wrote: »

Good thinking Batman - Given how cheap cars are in the UK and how (relatively) expensive they are in Ireland there is no point whatsoever in bringing an Irish car to the UK and then having to go to the hassle of having it re-registered, MOT'd etc..

Haha thanks

Yeah, it just saves the hassle - I've seen some great cars online and the prices are great!

There's also a good amount for sale in the ROI with UK plates so there's not really any need even to travel up to the North if it's a problem getting up there.

Bebo stunnah

cackhanded wrote: »

The real hit is in your insurance premiums which will be extremely high due to the car having no history in the UK. They do decrease year on year but not enough to make it worthwhile.

Would this be any different if the car was originally registered in the UK? My car was imported in 2008, it's an 04 reg, my log book even has the old reg on it. I'd love to bring it over with me but if all the paperwork and expense I've heard of is true I wouldn't bother.

Dr_Bill

As previous posters have stated while it can be done, its not easy. I have been down this road myself and it was particularly difficult to obtain UK insurance via the VIN number, once I did manage to obtain a UK plate then it gets interesting with the insurance companies.

Oh its an import! we won't insure you, have you modified the guts out of it? nope... No worries, did you ring your bank manager and ask for a loan for car insurance? you'll need it! At the time I was quoted anywhere from £800 - £3000+

I would renew your insurance for say 4-8 weeks to allow to move, buy a car in the UK/NI and flog the Irish one. So much easier and a whole lot less hassle. You don't want an NI reg car really because you are supposed to only MOT these in the North at a dedicated test centre.

magicmushroom

Dr_Bill wrote: »

You don't want an NI reg car really because you are supposed to only MOT these in the North at a dedicated test centre

I panicked there - I just phoned the MOT centre at home in the UK (Watford) and they told me this is wrong, there is no issue at all getting an MOT on an NI car, they've done them many times and it's exactly the same and a car that was originally registered in the UK.

Long Gone

Dr_Bill wrote: »

You don't want an NI reg car really because you are supposed to only MOT these in the North at a dedicated test centre.

Completely untrue. There is no difference whatsoever between having a car registered on the UK mainland or registered in Northern Ireland.

NB : I am not making a political point here - Just pointing out that as far as the DVLA are concerned it makes absolutely no difference what part of the UK your car was registered in, and as far as they are concerned the UK is the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

ballsymchugh

Bebo stunnah wrote: »

Would this be any different if the car was originally registered in the UK? My car was imported in 2008, it's an 04 reg, my log book even has the old reg on it. I'd love to bring it over with me but if all the paperwork and expense I've heard of is true I wouldn't bother.

if your car was originally registered in the UK, then get an MOT using the VIN, get insurance on the VIN (should be easy to get it, given that it's originally a UK reg) and then take those pieces of paper with the irish registration cert and 50 squids or so to the local DVLA office, and it'll be sorted in a few minutes.
you'll get your old registration number again.
i did that a few years ago.

as everyone else has said though, you get much more bang for your buck in the UK when buying a car. sell an irish car before you go, and enjoy paying feck all motor tax too.