Holidays are an opportunity to travel in France, but also outside our borders. Many motorists take the precaution of making a copy of their official papers. The argus takes stock of the usefulness and legal value of these documents.
Forgetting your driver’s license, registration certificate or even your green insurance card before going on vacation is the fear of every motorist. Photocopy these documents or take a picture of them with your smartphone makes it possible to be certain of having the information contained therein, but the value of these copies is more than relative. As for the provisional license for young drivers, it is not valid everywhere. The argus make the point.
Physical or digital copies without legal value
The Highway Code makes it compulsory in particular to hold a driving licence, registration certificate and green card for the vehicle.
These documents are indeed systematically requested in the event of a roadside check, and forgetting them can be unfortunate. The copy of these official papers has no legal value. Presenting them will therefore be difficult in the event of an inspection. The police will then be entitled to verbalize the driver for the missing documents. And the penalties provided can spoil the trip to his vacation spot.
The failure to present the driver’s license or the registration certificate of his vehicle during a roadside check is sanctioned by the fine provided for first class fines of up to €38. Failure to present proof of insurance constitutes a second-class offense (fixed fine reduced by €22, which may be increased to €150).
But if the offender does not present his driver’s license, his registration certificate or his insurance certificate within five days, he then commits a fourth class offense punishable by a fixed fine of 135 € which can be increased €375 in the event of late payment.
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Useful documents in case of loss, theft or to prove your identity
Although copies of official documents have no legal value in principle, they can nevertheless be useful in certain situations. These physical or digital copies may be used to report the loss or theft of papers in order to redo them. The references and information on these documents will greatly facilitate these formalities and help to go faster. A significant advantage, but it is not the only one.
In the event of an inspection, these copies may also be used to prove his identity. since this can be demonstrated by any means. Thus, the copy of the driver’s license, the national identity card or the passport, confirmed by the testimonies of the people of his entourage, may be sufficient to establish his identity with the police. These few copies can thus avoid a visit to the station for a painful identity verification procedure that can last for hours.
Abroad: provisional license banned and French license not always sufficient
After successfully passing the driving license tests, young drivers receive a driving license examination certificate (CEPC) valid for four months. This certificate only allows driving in France. It is therefore impossible to venture outside the borders of France. For this, you have to wait to receive the final driving license, within about a month after the exam.
As for the French driving license, it allows you to drive anywhere in Europe. Outside the European Economic Area (EEC), it is often necessary to obtain an international driving license in order to drive legally. The application for an international permit must be made online at theNational Agency for Secured Titles (ANTS), and the time to obtain it is currently eleven weeks on average. Anticipating this step is therefore essential to take the wheel away from home!
