In Portugal the car insurance system is similar to England, though there are some differences. Many people are unaware of these differences, which can result in drivers landing in serious trouble in Portugal.
Samantha Milner describes her first telling off as an expat driving in Portugal; “It happened when my husband came to collect me from the airport with our eight-year-old son. He was sat in the front on his special chair and they were stopped by the local police. It turns out that children under the age of twelve aren’t allowed in the front of a car. Nobody had told us this before so it was something new that we had learnt about the driving experience in Portugal.”
Many people go to Portugal with their English car and keep it for many years, which unless transferred over is illegal. They don’t realise that after ninety days their insurance is invalid and that they are driving illegally without insurance in a foreign country. Many English people play cat and mouse with the Portuguese authorities hoping they will never be caught. The truth is though that the police have the right to take your car whenever they wish if you don’t have the proper paperwork.
The car tax is incredibly cheap in Portugal compared to in the UK. You will often pay the same for your tax and insurance combined than the cost of just your tax in England.
“When you take out car insurance be aware of the rip offs that are doing the rounds, especially among the expats,” said Samantha. “A friend of ours purchased a car that was 15-years-old, so it was quite a banger. One insurance company repeatedly tried to sell him fully comprehensive insurance, which he didn’t even want. But further investigation showed that in Portugal full insurance is not available to cars that are over ten-years-old. The only option is third party fire and theft.
“So please beware of this before you take out insurance or drive your British car in Portugal.”
Living in the sun is proud to announce Samantha Milner’s personal account of the car insurance and driving a British car in Portugal. You can read her account in full by visiting: http://livinginthesun.info/
For more information about living in Portugal visit: http://www.livinginthesun.info/
