Travel insurance - Tips & Advice - Holiday driving
The opening of the Euro Tunnel has made it much easier to take your own car when you’re travelling to mainland Europe: in the last three months of 2005 over 2,700 vehicles made the journey, an increase of 71% on 1995*. But if you’re planning a trip to Europe using your own car this year, whether on business or for a holiday, it’s important to be well prepared – and that includes having the right sort of breakdown cover.
Having breakdown cover may not be a legal requirement, but it is most definitely a sensible one. Direct Line’s European breakdown cover provides you with emergency assistance in the event of a breakdown or an accident.
If your car can’t be repaired, we provide a replacement vehicle and make sure your car and your passengers (if any) get back to the UK safely. And if your designated driver falls ill or gets hurt, we’ll even take the stranded passengers home.
It’s the best way to give yourself peace of mind; without cover, breaking down in a foreign country can be a very expensive and stressful business. There are several other common sense steps to take before you embark on your journey. For example, get your car fully serviced to ensure it’s roadworthy – ask them to check your windscreen wipers, brakes, lights and tyres (don’t forget your spare tyre!), in fact anything that could prove harder to fix when you’re in a foreign country and don’t know your way around. Also check your water, oil and tyre tread and pressure levels.
Next, buy up-to-date maps of the areas where you’ll be travelling, pack a spare set of bulbs for your car’s lights, along with blankets, a torch and a first aid kit. Bear in mind that a warning triangle – those small triangles that alert other drivers to the fact that you’ve broken down – are a legal requirement in many European countries. A spare set of bulbs for your lights and headlamp deflector strips are a legal requirement in many European countries, such as France, the Netherlands and Spain, and is recommended throughout the rest of Europe.
You no longer need a green card to drive in Europe but you do need at least third party insurance. You can get also get your car insurance from Direct Line. Finally, you need to have GB identification on your car. If your car has a number plate with a GB Euro sticker on it (in most cases, that will be post-March 2001), that is all you need; if not, you should put a GB sticker on the boot.
As for documents, you’ll obviously have your passports and anyone who is intending to drive should have their driving licence. In fact, it’s a good idea for anyone who has a driving licence to take it with them, even if they’re not intending to drive, as you never know when someone might need to in an emergency.
Ideally you should also have your vehicle registration document (if you can’t find the original, you can apply for a replacement using Form V62, which you can get from a Post Office or direct from the DVLA), and your car insurance details. Be careful not to leave important documents in the car – in fact it can be wise to make a copy of them in case they do get stolen or lost.
If you’re travelling abroad you should also have travel insurance. With Direct Line you have the option of investing in a combined European breakdown and travel cover policy. This option includes protection against costs due to delay or cancellation of your holiday, lost or stolen luggage and medical emergencies for you and your passengers.
With Direct Line English-speaking operators on call 24 hours a day to deal with any problems you may have, and our extensive network of approved repairers across Europe, we will ensure that help is never far away. You can get a European breakdown quote right now, and even save a further 5% on prices if you arrange it online. Taking your car to Europe has never been easier and with Direct Line you can be covered for every eventuality.
* Statistics from Department for Transport (www.dft.gov.uk)
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