buying a car

Was wondering if anyone could help me here? I'll be coming over in November and will want to purchase a car almost immediately after arriving. I would probably be doing this before we found a house. I will be paying cash.  How do I register it without an address? Could I use my aunties address? Can I buy a car without UK license? Will I be able to get insurance on the car without any job, house or local references?

I really did not want to have to spend the money to rent a car when we first got to England. It seems like a waste of money, but then I started wondering about the whole purchasing thing. It may not work.

Any suggestions or help would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Rebecca

http://www.dvla.gov.uk/ [nofollow]

DVLA's website should provide the answers.

Could I use my aunties address?   Can I buy a car without UK license?

Yes and yes.

DVLA will accept any British address you give and send the new registration there.    All you need to do is put your name and whatever address you want to use on the old registration which the seller will send off to DVLA.   There is no fee for the transfer and no requirement to produce a license or any other documents for the change of ownership.  (There is no certificate of title as in some U.S. states either.)

Will I be able to get insurance on the car without any job, house or local references?

Yes.   Whether or not you have a job is irrelevant, although they will ask your occupation for the premium assessment.   They'll need an address to give a quote, but you can just the use the same address as for your car registration.      You don't need any references or proof of abode, or anything like that.

The premium will be affected by the postal code of the address you give, and by the fact that you won't have a U.K. license though.

i would suggest bringing over a letter from your US car insurance company if you have a no claims or anything.  you can also get a copy of your driving record from your state motor vehicle departmnet.  my car insurance in the UK did want to see the US car insurance letter but they were interested in the driving record on my US licence.  didn't help for my premiums a lot but...

Do you need to pay your car insurance premium all at once up front or do they bill you monthly?

Most companies offer an installment plan, either billed monthly to your credit card or taken as a direct debit from your bank account (must be U.K. account for the latter). 

You'll pay a little extra over the year compared to paying up front.

So it might be hard to get off the plane with cash in hand, buy a car, get insurance and register it with no bank account or UK credit card? ANy idea of car insurance costs. I will not be buying a fancy car or an expensive one. We were hoping to spend 3,000-4,000 pounds.

So it might be hard to get off the plane with cash in hand, buy a car, get insurance and register it with no bank account or UK credit card?

No problem with buying and registration.   

You can charge the full premium or the installments to a U.S. credit card as well if you wish.   It's only if you want to set up the direct debit that you would need a U.K. bank account.   I think there might even be some brokers who will arrange installments with you paying cash at a local branch every so often, although that's not something I've ever tried.

ANy idea of car insurance costs. I will not be buying a fancy car or an expensive one. We were hoping to spend 3,000-4,000 pounds.

Unfortunately, that's the "How long is a piece of string?" question. 

Premiums vary tremendously with model and engine size, location, the number of years you've been driving, your age. etc.     Not having a U.K. license is going to push up the price too (as I'm British and have held a U.K. license over 20 years,  I can't offer specifics on that one).

Obviously it will also depend upon the type of cover you want.  U.K. insurance is generally in three types:

1.  "Third party only."   Covers you only for liability for damage or injury to others.  This is the only cover required by law, everything else is optional.

2.  "Third party, fire & theft," commonly abbreviated as TPF&T.     As above plus, well, you can guess...... 

3.  "Fully comprehensive."   All of the above plus you're covered for damage you cause to your own vehicle and often for other things like cracked windshields etc.   Exact details vary though.

As I said though, premiums can vary enormously.  I'm on about £180 per year TPF&T, but that's at age 39, U.K. license since '83, no points, low-risk area, full no-claim discount.   It's not uncommon to hear horror stories about newly licensed 17-year-olds in the bigger cities being quoted £3000 plus for third-party only on small cars.   

If you have somebody with a U.K. license who is willing, it might work out cheaper to have him or her take out the policy with you as a named second driver.