UK Motorists heading abroad face obscure laws
Drivers taking to European roads are subject to the laws of the country that they are in.
Penalties that motorists could get range from a €24 (£20.00) fine, for non-possession of cash to pay an on the spot penalty, to a whopping €384 (£320.00) to reclaim an impounded car.
The Automobile Association (AA) issued the warnings in a statement to the Daily Telegraph today. Drivers heading to the continent, this summer, are advised to familiarise themselves with the rules of the country that they will be driving in.
Laws apply equally to motorists in their own vehicles as well as people using a hire car. The €384 redemption fee applies in Tallinn, the capital city of Estonia.
Other laws in place across continental Europe include parking restrictions that are defined by the day of the month, areas that only permit resident driver entry or a deposit from a driver who has been pulled over.
A restricted zone (Zona Traffico Limitato), in Italy, is reserved for residents with special permits. Violators caught on camera can expect a penalty notice, on their return to the UK.
In Portugal, might is right. The smaller of two vehicles meeting on a narrow street, with only passing room for one, has to give way and reverse.
Greece’s police often take the unusual step of removing the license plate of illegally parked cars.
In the UK, there are checkpoints near entry ports, such as Harwich and Portsmouth, where foreign registered vehicles are checked for the correct documentation. The checkpoints were brought in to stop Europeans bringing cars in, and evading paying road tax when the vehicle was here for longer than six months.