Malta - British Expat Forum

Hi,

A second question I had.. Right now I live in the US so will be traveling to the UK, buying a car and driving it down as part of our relocation like many other people.

The question is whether to get UK car insurance for the drive down and then cancel and get Maltese or simply get Maltese. I have had a quote from [deleted] but they only offer third party. No fire or theft or anything and they are expensive.

When we arrive we will be taxing it locally and paying the annual circulation tax so our tax disk from the UK would get replaced. We wont qualify for any exemption as we wont have owned the car for longer than a few months.

Any recommendation? Any recommendations as to local insurers?

Thanks

Paul

There are several in Malta recommended on the "recommended suppliers" forum, which costs £25 per annum to subscribe to, with 50% going to Gozo SPCA

from the recommended suppliers forum, a link for subscribers

insurance - car, health, home, travel
http://www.britishexpat.com/expatforum/malta/viewtopic.php?t=8434

details on the premium boards
http://www.britishexpat.com/expatforum/malta/profile.php?mode=suppliers

Importing a car into Malta can work out very expensive and time consuming. Do you really need a car to get from UK to Malta?

As you are relocating from the US I would suggest waiting until you arrive in Malta then buying & insuring one already registered here, thus avoiding the hassle. Could work out a lot cheaper in the long run.

I totaly agree with pumabob, traveling from the US to buy a car in the UK and then drive it to Malta is madness.
The cars on Malta may seem expensive but there are lots to choose from and once you have added the fuel, ferry, hotels, registration tax and distance involved it just doesn't make sense to drive one from the UK.

Terry

Thanks for the responses. I did my research and if you want certain cars like an Audi or something similar then you pay a lot in Malta as they are all imported just like any other car on the Island and there is a markup. Driving it down means you end up actually saving a few thousand. its not a huge amount, but enough. plus my wife and I are taking a holiday break during relocation and we are driving down over a 2-3 week period. Hence the idea.

pauljd701 wrote:Thanks for the responses. I did my research and if you want certain cars like an Audi or something similar then you pay a lot in Malta as they are all imported just like any other car on the Island and there is a markup. Driving it down means you end up actually saving a few thousand. its not a huge amount, but enough. plus my wife and I are taking a holiday break during relocation and we are driving down over a 2-3 week period. Hence the idea.

Double check the import duty if you're buying something like an Audi. Its based on emissions, so it can be crippling. I used to have a 2010 M3 which was going to cost me 29,000 euros to import!! (p.s. I miss that car )

I ended up getting a 320d eD, which was almost new and it cost 4,500 euros to import. Definitely check this import duty, as its not just new cars that it affects.

Apologies if you're one step ahead of me

There are companies on the island that will get the car from the UK to Malta and registered in your name for a fee, it may pay you to explore this avenue.
Getting insurance would probably be easier in the UK as it will be on UK plates and just for a month should be ample. Don't forget breakdown insurance as the car will be of unknown reliability and you will be travelling through three or four countries (depending on the route you choose).

Good luck.

Terry
ps. we drove here from France in our car with dog, so have some experience of what you are planning.

Thanks for all the responses. I m looking again at the costs, and from what I can gather, I'm going to be responsible for the registration fee, which you can calculate on the gov web site. The reg fee is the same as what some sites refer to as duty? Is that true? I guess I just want to have a clear idea of the fees. Just as an FYI, to import my car looks like it will cost about 6-7k euros. I know that sounds insane... But I'm getting it off my brother for 10k, and it has less than 30k on the clock. I looked at similar cars on the island as well as importing etc. no way can you get a car on the island for this price, at that mileage.

So does anyone have a recent definitive cost summary they feel they can post as a guide?

Thanks

Paul

I meant no way can you get This car, not just any car!