Bringing a brand new car from UK to Poland

Hi all,

I have recently started a new job which was supposed to be based in London (where I live) however the company has asked me to spend the first 6 months in Gdansk. In all my excitement I have leased a new car (felt I deserved it after many years of working so hard!) but this was before they asked me to work out of Poland. I really don't want to leave the car at home and there is very little option other than to forfeit the lease and pay almost €4000 in fees. I will require my own transportation in Gdansk and am considering bringing it over. I won't beat around the bush, it's a reasonably expensive car (not posh, but at the upper end of what is considered normal and very desirable to the average boy racer).

By asking the following, I don't mean to offend but like most Londoners I have a sort of ingrained view of Poland and the average driver which is obviously contributing towards my concern. I would like to find what car crime is like in Gdansk and if the average Pole thinks twice before buying a new car so as to avoid the heartache associated with the odd scrape or knock (assuming they can afford it). How common is it to walk up to your car and find a new scratch, scrape or dent? I have driven in many countries so am confident I can adjust to the driving style in Poland but it's what I don't have any control over that worries me. I'm sorry if I'm sounding overprotective here but if you've ever owned a lease car you will know that you have to go the extra mile to keep it in good condition.

Any advice from people who have done the same or helpful hints and tips from locals would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

As a rhd car it will stand out like a sore thumb and as its UK reg the undesirables would have it stripped down and sold within minutes

if you worry about it so much why not have full insurance coverage of the car?

I have had an English car in Poland for years now.

You need to have it fully insured for a year. The only company who do this is Stuart Collins insurance.
The do not require you to get an MOT or tax from UK. Just a safety check in Poland.

They have given me great service over the years.

Your car will be fine in Poland. I haven't had any problems so far, Just the typical little scratch due to other drivers doors.

Don't worry what some idiots on here say. Most posters do not have a single nice thing to say.

If you have any more questions just ask.

One problem you'll have is trying to overtake trucks on the road coz you won't see oncoming traffic.

Poles drive very fast and Poland has the highest road deaths per population in the EU, thousands die every year mainly due to bad driving habits and drink driving. I've driven a fair amount all over Europe and by far the worst, most careless, non-law abiding drivers I've encountered are found here....no I've never driven in Russia before you point out they are worse.

Speed limits are seen as minimum-speed targets, stopping for pedestrians doesn't exist and a car's road-worthiness is a philosophy that doesn't compute for a huge amount of people.... a Polish equivalent of an 'MOT' annual stamp can be exchanged for a bottle of vodka.

A UK-reg car doesn't stick out here, many Poles living in the UK drive them home when they return for holidays/time off etc.

You're neighbours will just think you're a Pole that's returned to Gdansk.

I think you're nuts to drive here with a RHD (for not being able to see oncoming traffic while over taking) but your car (probably) won't be nicked or damaged. It won't necessarily be targeted just coz it has a yellow reg plate on the back. Then again, if you end up living in a rough kip overrun with Lechia Gdansk hooligans then yea, you and your motor could be. So choose where you're going to live carefully.

Another worry would be the warranty, if something goes wrong will the company you're leasing from cough up for services to be done here? Or would you have to transport it back to England yourself? Also a mechanic here, if he had to do some work would charge quite a bit extra for 2 reasons, a) you're a rich Westerner (in his eyes) so he can rip you off and b) parts for RHDs as you know aren't the same as ones for LHDs so they're going to cost more for him to get and install.

Couldn't a mate take over your car for the 6 months and you could split the charges?

Lower than in London. Also, if you live in an apartment built in the last 15 years or so, you'll most probably have a designated parking place in the underground car park that's below the building.


Probably no more common than in the UK.


Make sure your no claims bonus is insured.


Small camera fitted to the far side of the windscreen and an screen fixed to the other corner solves that problem.


That would be my concern.

Good thinkin Batman :)

I was wondering if one could also do that with used cars... Assuming one buys a car that has valid both road tax and the MOT (usually the case), can one just drive away and not need to worry about ever coming back for the MOT and just continue renewing the insurance policy? Are their rates reasonable (compared to the Polish premiums)? And will there be anything else to take care of if one continues to live abroad for a number of years - is there no time limit or other?

Thank you guys. Didn't think off the over taking. That worries me.

You'd still need to get the standard yearly Polish equivalent of the MOT, it's cheap though, I think it's around 100zl.

Your standard insurance policy will not cover you if you are living abroad. They'll only cover you if you're travelling on a holiday or business, but not if you have a permanent address. I know that in Ireland for example, insurance is cheaper outside of Dublin....so you can insure your car with an address at your parents house and live in Dublin, however, if you have a crash in Dublin they will want to know what you were doing there and they will go as far as to investigate whether you live/work there...if they find you do, they'll rip up your policy and laugh at your claim.

However, Polish insurance is a lot cheaper than in the UK.....over here you only insure the car, not the driver, so for example, when I started driving, a quote for me to be insured on a car in Ireland (where I'm from) was roughly 2000 Euro, same policy in Poland was 1400zl.....or 350 Euro.

It might be different for RHD, but you'd need to contact the people that ForFour wrote about.

The Polish safety check is easy and only 100zl, No need for a UK MOT or TAX.
Stuart Collins are happy for the car to be in Poland and will insure me fully comp for the year as long as the car is road legal to Polish rules.

Insurance has been around £450 a year for the last 5 years, The amount hasn't changed much. You have to pay for the full year up front and the insurance is underwritten from AXA.


Don't worry about it to much, I drive around 1000km a month and as long as you overtake when you know it is safe. Otherwise i don't overtake unless i can fully see what is coming. I do not stick to the arse of the car in front, having a bigger gap gives you more room to see ahead.

If you are worrying just buy a duel camera for your car, So it will record front and back. £100 fitted.

quote=Harry]nadj: How common is it to walk up to your car and find a new scratch, scrape or dent?
Probably no more common than in the UK.[/quote]

I'd have to disagree. OK - if you park only in underground car parks and not on the street or if you live in small town. But on the whole cars take a lot of risks and they'll always try to squeeze into a space which is too small especially in big cities, and especially in winter when there's snow covering the lines in the parking spaces and people seem to think it's a free for all. There's definitely a selfish attitude here to accidents. If you can get away with it then you're OK. Leaving a note in someone's windscreen about damage would be seen as crazy.


You just have to look at cars here and see many have dents and scrapes there are, many more than in the UK. People just get used to it. It's nearly impossible to buy a decent 2nd hand car in Poland which hasn't had work done on it. I've tried. Really Poles don't seem to care about their cars otherwise they'd drive more sensibly. There are a lot of decent cars here however leasing is much more cost effective here and most Poles with a decent job will have a company car which they'll thrape and not care about damage. Also there are more and more bikes on the road and Polish driving mentality seems to transfer to this mode of transport too - they're quite hard to chase if they hit you in traffic.... But maybe you're used to this if you live in London. On the positive side things are slowly getting better. Find a decent body shop in Gdansk they're much cheaper than in the UK.

Am i understanding you correctly you have a UK reg car here and are able to get a Polish safety check done on it??

Yes you can, You need to take your V5 with you and they will check it give you the print out and all for 99zl. I even took an invoice for my school. :)

I went to the local Ford garage. They were very helpful.

I have my Irish reg car here. I went to local test center and they said no they wouldn't/couldn't test it? I assume a v5 is a regestration document?

Yes that's the one.
Snaps,If you get stuck with a mechanic in Sidzina or Sucha I used the Bosh service centre garage in Bialka to fit air con pump,re gas and test.They were spot on but a little more expensive than 'Fred in a shed'.

The V5 is the reg document. They should test it, it's against the law if they say no. As you are only proving it is road legal in Poland.

Take it to one of the main dealers who offer the service. They all charge 99zl for the test.

What kind of document do you get from them when its been tested?


Ok ive tried many places to get my car tested, All which said the RHD was an instant fail??

Its strange that forfor44 has been able to get his car tested, ive just hit a brick wall.

Sorry you are having problems.
I haven't had a single problem. I went to Ford and they said they can do it.
They gave me the safety check they give Polish cars. As it is in Poland any car needs a safety check.

Did you try any major garages?

I drove a UK plated RHD decent Audi and then a nice Mercedes for 6 years in Poland, only parked them on the street at night for about 6 months in total, i drove around 80,000 miles in total mostly in the country it has to be said and experienced no problems at all. There's a fair few German and UK plated cars full time in Poland anyway so yours wont stand out so much. If you're living in a flat you will probably have access to secure parking or maybe look into that if you don't.

Some bast@rd did steal the heated wing mirror (only the actual mirror) off the Merc on the street in broad day light, but other than that no problems at all.


Humm yeah i suppose that did happen more than usual.

A stamp with date on the registration book

Yes ive tried a few test centers and main dealers in and around southern Malapolska (Tried 5 places). They take one look at the steering wheel and say its an instant fail due to steering wheel!

Where abouts are you Forfour44? I could try Krakow??

Just wondering whats the story with headlights as well, Ive had no problems with mine (People flashing me), And according to Citroen my headlights are OK for driving both sides of the road?

And now all this business has gone on in the European court regarding RHD cars, I wonder if anyone has succesfully registered a RHD car yet here?

Locally I know of a few UK reg cars here (In the country) Nice cars too, 1 a Jag and the other a Golf GTI.