New UK Driving licence -- and insurance?

geekman · 10 Jan 2020 at 13:06

BusError said:
2) Not be able to drive in BEEPING france after the 31th january while I currently own a lifetime, non expiring licence (for manual!) from there.

Why would you not be able to drive in France with your new UK licence, even after Brexit?

Psycho Sonny · 10 Jan 2020 at 15:27

BusError said:
I ordered the forms, read them carefully, and it's pretty explicit that that's what you get.

I have no problems with automatics --I own a 2019 X5!-- but I'm:
1) Not willing to downgrade my licence and stop driving my manual cars.
2) Not be able to drive in BEEPING france after the 31th january while I currently own a lifetime, non expiring licence (for manual!) from there.

If you think that "there must be a way to explain to them that"... I've just done my citizenship tests and exams and so on, I know very well there "isn't a way to to explain" anything to anyone, as most of that stuff is sub-contracted to external companies who have a "script" to run.

Plenty of people from the UK drive in France all the time. Do they all own French driving licenses?

Swap french license for UK. Then drive in France the same way everyone else does.

Quartz · 10 Jan 2020 at 15:34

BusError said:
I could "exchange" my driving licence for a UK one.

Why can't you have more than one driving license? Can't you have both a UK license and a French license? Perhaps you should contact the French embassy?

-westy- · 11 Jan 2020 at 02:53

Quartz said:
Why can't you have more than one driving license? Can't you have both a UK license and a French license? Perhaps you should contact the French embassy?

no, you can only have 1 driving licence - it would be a reciprocal agreement between the countries involved.

Hades · 11 Jan 2020 at 09:55

Left field question; is there any reason you can't keep your French license and also just pass a UK manual driving test and get that license as well? Then keep both licenses and provide appropriate evidence of driving to insurance companies when required. Why do you have to hand in your old license to take a new UK test?

Kenai · 11 Jan 2020 at 10:20

Hades said:
Left field question; is there any reason you can't keep your French license and also just pass a UK manual driving test and get that license as well? Then keep both licenses and provide appropriate evidence of driving to insurance companies when required. Why do you have to hand in your old license to take a new UK test?

That (I think) was his original plan but he was asking if he'd need to tell insurers he had only held a licence for 0 years. My assumption would be yes, unlike an exchanged one.

Lopéz · 11 Jan 2020 at 11:26

Hades said:
Left field question; is there any reason you can't keep your French license and also just pass a UK manual driving test and get that license as well?

Yes, the reason is 2006/126/EC which states that you cannot hold more than one EU or EEA driving licence.

Hades · 11 Jan 2020 at 11:53

Lopéz said:
Yes, the reason is 2006/126/EC which states that you cannot hold more than one EU or EEA driving licence.

Won't we be leaving those areas on 31st Jan?