Foreign cars dodging road tax

The Police were wrong. Its a maximum of 6 months in any 12 month period. It will not matter if he leaves the county and returns. It is a matter for the Police and you have been mis-informed. Traffic Wardens have no authority in this area. The Police were basicaly palming you off or you spoke to a civilian officer.

Dear Jimmy,

I understand your frustration and to be honest I agree with you that this system is wrong. However before you write an article, you could have just read around about it:

1. In Austria you ONLY need to buy the sticker when you are using the Motorways! If your car will never enter to any of their motorways (but using only the single carriage ways - double carriage ways) you do not have to buy the motorway sticker. (Just like in Hungary or Slovakia or Czech Republic) So their sticker is not some kind of different version of Road tax in the UK. They differentiate between normal road usage and motorway usage. The second one needs the sticker.

2. Using foreign registered cars in the UK:

European Union vehicles
EU vehicles brought into the UK can be used for six months in any 12-month period. You do not need to register the vehicle in the UK as long as you can show that the vehicle complies with the registration and tax requirements of its home country. It’s the responsibility of the driver to prove how long the vehicle has been in the country. Producing ferry tickets can do this.
If the keeper of the vehicle becomes resident in the UK, the vehicle must be immediately registered and taxed in the UK.
UK residents are not allowed to use a foreign registered vehicle on UK roads. The exception is when a UK resident:
is employed or self-employed in another EU member state
uses a EU registered company car temporarily in the UK for business purposes
Certain vehicles will be required to display a temporary 'Q' plate. Temporary visitor status isn't appropriate to these vehicles.

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/BuyingAndSellingAVehicle/ImportingAndExportingAVehicle

All it takes some research and you have a better picture. But as I said I agree this system is flawed as at the moment police can not determine how long these foreign cars are in the UK.

Put Road tax to one side and think safety, will these cars from foreign countries pass our basic safety test? I have seen some rolling wrecks in my area all bearing foreign number plates and not displaying a road tax disc, are they also avoiding paying insurance too? The police seem reluctant to act and are only interested in speeding offences, I have seen cars with 4 bald tyres which means they have zero grip on the road and likely to run into someone if required to stop in an emergency, Foreign drivers get away with committing any offence because the police fail to act, the police arent bothered because they know these foreigners are transient and would disappear if they were involved in an accident they caused, its far easier to prosecute british drivers because they live here and can be traced, fined and banned.

I have just seen on the news that one of those nasty afghans has murdered three of our lovely brave boys. why do we bother helping these people in the first place if that is how they repay us?

Stop moaning Jimmy! I own 2 cars (one Spanish, one British) and I'm already paying UK road tax (plus) and Spanish tax. Besides, the Spanish car is really old 1980 and I hardly ever use it.

Sorry Denny but could you explain to us lesser Mortals just what these Benefits that go both ways actually are.GB ltd is just a cash cow as far as Europe is concerned,paying much more in than we will ever get out,put another way we are paying for ALL of those foreign countries from Eastern Europe and even Ireland that DO get more out than they ever put in.
Thankfully though there may just be a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel as the EU and the EURO are beginning to crumple and with a bit of luck the whole Edifice known as the EC will collapse and disappear without trace.

yes you get forced to mot trailers and caravans, and it is coming here to the UK in the next 18 months to 2 years max, at a super inflated ball breaking price or face prosecution and being ridden over the table by the police

Hello all, I have been told by friends and relatives who travel on the ferries with vehicles, and a few business lorry drivers that as soon as you roll off the ferry into Belgium, Holland or Germany you have to put your hand in your pocket to pay the authoroties a Road tax plus admin charge and that if you dont they can basically take your car/lorry/van/motorbike and cut it in two, then bill you for it through the courts.
I want the foreigners to get pumped in the same way we do so I say that they should get stopped at the ports and turned over for £60 or £70 the same way we do when we go to their patch, we pay road tax here AND over there and they only pay a much lower road tax there, I have a relative in belgium working and they say the years road tax for a rangerover or landrover sized vehicle is £60 for a WHOLE YEAR

The vast majority of foreign cars pay the respective road tax in their home EU country, so whilst say a Spanish car in the UK isn't contributing to UK road tax, neither is a UK car in spain. Calm down and mind your own business, we're in the European Union where benefits and drawbacks go both ways in these cases.

what alot of people dont realise is that the uk is one of the cheapest places to tax and insure a vehicle in comparison to some other european locations,i know at least 2 germans that visit the uk on a regular basis and own,tax and insure british registered vehicles which they use europe wide as this saves them money over the german system,so to say foreign drivers are getting away with something isnt actually correct.

In Germany you even need an MOT on your caravan or trailer, but the MOTs, as in a lot of EU countries then last two years.

what alot of people dont realise is that the uk is one of the cheapest places to tax and insure a vehicle in comparison to some other european locations,i know at least 2 germans that visit the uk on a regular basis and own,tax and insure british registered vehicles which they use europe wide as this saves them money over the german system,so to say foreign drivers are getting away with something isnt actually correct.