Transport > Car Travel > United Kingdom

Driving in the United Kingdom

Traffic congestion, parking hassles and expensive fuel mean that having a car can be a hassle if you're planning on spending a lot of time the in Britain's larger towns and cities. However having access to a car gives you a lot of freedom and it is still the best way to explore the countryside.

Driving in the countryside is characterised by picturesque country lanes that are very often harrowingly narrow, with stonewalls or high hedges defining either side. They are fun to drive; but when doing so you must be almost constantly prepared to bring your vehicle to a crawl and negotiate some sort of compromise with the oncoming traffic.

Britons drive on the left-hand side of the road. The driver and all passengers must wear seat belts. It is illegal for a driver to use a mobile phone while driving. Speed limits vary often; they are generally 30 mph (48 kph) where street lighting is in place in towns and cities, 40 mph (64 kph) in suburban areas, 60 mph (97 kph) on non-divided highways, and 70 mph (113 kph) on motorways and divided highways which provide multiple lanes in your direction.

It appears that no one pays much attention to the speed limit on motorways, but they are much more strictly enforced when you're driving on ordinary roads. Speed cameras are everywhere including the most out-of-the-way country lanes. You will also find red light cameras and bus lane cameras in the bigger cities and you may receive a fine in the mail if you're caught speeding, driving in a bus lane or running a red light.

Free parking is difficult even in the smallest villages where pay-and-display machines are common and it is usually best to avoid driving into the centre of larger towns and cities and instead follow signs to a park and ride car park and catch a bus or train into the city centre. A £5 congestion charge has recently been introduced for any car driving into central London; see the London section for more details. If you have to take a car into London your best bet is to park at North Greenwich tube station (£5 per day) and take the tube into town.

Renting a Car in the UK

For most travellers renting a car is the most practical option for driving around Great Britain.

All the big international rental car chains are represented in the UK, most with offices at all the main airports. EasyCar is generally the cheapest rental car company for short rentals but their excess mileage charges can make them very expensive if you're planning on doing a lot of driving. Most of the larger rental car companies offer rental packages with unlimited mileage.

Rental car companies often try to upgrade your insurance cover, charging around £9 a day to reduce the excess that you would otherwise have to pay if you have an accident. This is really overpriced and it can substantially increase the cost of your car rental. It is a much better idea to take out travel insurance that covers this excess.

Car rental companies include:

Avis

181-183 Warwick Road, Kensington, London W14

Tube Earls Court, Kensington Olympia, West Kensington Train Kensington Olympia

Tel 0870 010 7968

Website www.avis.co.uk

Open Mon-Thu 8am-6pm, Fri 8am-7pm, Sat 8am-1pm

Budget

Park Road, Bracknell, Berkshire

Tel 0870 1539170

Website www.budget.co.uk

easyCar

245 Warwick Road, London W14

Tel 0906 333 3333

Tube Earls Court, Kensington Olympia, West Kensington Train Kensington Olympia

Website www.easycar.com

Open Mon 7am-noon & 1pm-6pm, Tue-Thu 8am-1pm & 2pm-7pm, Fri 9am-2pm & 3pm-8pm, Sat 8am-2pm, Sun 2pm-8pm

Europcar

245 Warwick Road, London W14

Tel (020) 7610 4347

Tube Earls Court, Kensington Olympia, West Kensington Train Kensington Olympia

Website www.europcar.co.uk

Open Mon 7am-noon & 1pm-6pm, Tue-Thu 8am-1pm & 2pm-7pm, Fri 9am-2pm & 3pm-8pm, Sat 8am-2pm, Sun 2pm-8pm

Hertz

201-203 Fulham Palace Road, London W6

Tel (020) 7381 8200

Website www.hertz.co.uk

Open Mon-Fri 8am-6pm, Sat 9am-1pm

Thrifty

Chelsea Cloisters Garage, Sloane Avenue, London SW3

Tube South Kensington

Tel (020) 7262 2223

Website www.thrifty.co.uk

Open Mon-Fri 8.30am-6pm, Sat 9am-1pm, Sun 9am-noon

Buying a Car in the UK

Many travellers base themselves in London for at least a few months before travelling around the UK and Europe, and often buy a car there. In London it is easy to buy, register and insure a car, mainly because of less bureaucracy and the ease of getting all the paperwork sorted out in a place where everyone speaks English. Because of the number of travellers looking to buy a car, London and other big cities in the UK are the easiest places to sell your car when you have finished with it. There are a number of publications such as Auto Trader (website www.autotrader.co.uk), Exchange and Mart (website www.exchangeandmart.co.uk) and Loot (website www.loot.co.uk) that advertise second hand vehicles.

The UK is the most popular place in Europe for travellers to buy a second hand car, but vehicles made for British conditions are not always the most convenient for exploring the continent. Because England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man, Cyprus and Malta are the only European countries where people drive on the left, you will be stuck with a right-hand-drive vehicle which is less than ideal once you cross the Channel and have to drive on the right side of the road. If you plan on spending more than 70% of your time in continental Europe, you might find find it easier to buy your car in Europe. If you have friends on the continent, things will be much easier (and cheaper to insure) if you get the car in registered in their name.

All cars in the United Kingdom have a registration document that shows the car's registered keeper (but not necessarily the legal owner).

When you buy a used car you should fill in part of the registration document and send it to the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA; website www.dvla.gov.uk).

If the car you are buying has a two part registration document you will be given the top half of the document when you buy the car, which should be completed and send to the DVLA.

If your car comes with a three-part registration document you will have to complete the blue section marked ‘Your Details' and both you and the person selling the car will have to sign the declaration on the form. It is the person selling the car's responsibility to send this form into the DVLA.

If you don't have a registration document you will need to apply for one using form V62, which is available from any post office.

The person selling the car has to complete section six of the V5C registration certificate and you both need to sign the declaration in section eight of this form. It is the responsibility of the person selling the car to send this form into the DVLA.

After buying the car and transferring the registration documents you will need a vehicle licence (also known as a tax disc). The vehicle licence is affixed to the left-hand side of the car windscreen and it shows the car's registration number and the date until which you have paid the car's vehicle excise duty (VED). The rate of vehicle excise duty varies according to the type of car and you can buy a vehicle licence for either six or 12 months. A 12-month vehicle excise duty generally ranges from £65-160.

When you apply for your vehicle licence (tax disc) you will need to produce a valid MOT certificate. An MOT certificate shows that your car complies with roadworthiness and environmental requirements. All cars over three years old need to be tested for a MOT certificate once a year. The MOT test fee is £42.10, however you may need to pay for expensive repairs before your car can be retested if it fails the MOT.