Clé France

My earliest Holiday memories are of driving through France and stopping off at small family run hotels when the light started to dim, not booking anywhere just seeing where the road would take us. These are holidays I will never forget.

Many years later I would be the driver of the car and my family would be enjoying the 'carefree' approach that comes with a driving holiday in France. It can be a great way of getting into the heart of the French countryside and experiencing traditional France.

But when you are driving through France there are a few things you need to be aware of.

Did you know that the legal age to drive in France is 18 years of age and even if you have a full licence from another country and you are under that age, then you are still not allowed to drive in France?

Every passenger must wear a seatbelt and it is illegal for a child under the age of 10 to be in the front seat. Babies are allowed to travel in the front passenger seat, but only when placed in an approved rear-facing baby seat and the airbag is turned off.

You must always stop at a zebra crossing, which is enforced by law and when going through a town you will find a lot of them; but you should be very careful when you are the pedestrian, as the French do not seem to obey this rule as much as they should!

Watch your speed!  If you are stopped for speeding you can be fined on the spot and the fines have to be paid in cash there and then, which can be quite expensive.  If you cannot pay or you are travelling more than 25km/h above the speed limit, then your car can be impounded and you could end up with a very hefty fine or even lose your licence. So be careful, especially when on the toll roads, as you do not want your driving holiday to come to an abrupt end!

The motorways are 130km per hour, but this is reduced in bad weather down to 110km per hour and on duel carriageways and main roads the same rules apply, where the speed limit is reduced in bad weather.  A duel carriageway is 110km per hour and main roads are 90km per hour, with the peripherie being 80km per hour and towns or minor roads being a maximum of 50km per hour.  Our top tip to save money would be "don't fill up on the motorway!" Wait until a major intersection near a town or city, and come off the motorway. You will almost certainly find a hypermarket / superstore within a kilometre or so of the exit, offering cut price fuel. The saving can be us much as 15 centimes per litre.

Here are the normal speed limits for driving in France:

• The normal speed limit on French motorways is 130 km/hr (just over 80 mph). - or 110 km/hr in rain.
• The normal speed limit on dual carriageways (divided highways) 110 km/hr
• The normal speed limit on main roads is 90 km/hr (outside built-up areas)
• The normal speed limit in built-up areas is 50 km/hr – unless otherwise indicated.

The French Government do publish information on exactly where speed traps are located and this is one of the reasons why it is illegal to have a radar detector fitted to your vehicle.

In bad weather, fog etc, even during the day, it is compulsory to use your lights but you do not have to keep your lights on during the day at any other time.

Obviously you must have deflectors fitted to your headlights if you have a right-hand drive vehicle and by law you must have a set of replacement bulbs, a warning triangle and a 'gilet' high visibility waistcoat with you at all times.  But it is always advisable to check the regulations prior to your holiday in France, as they do change from time to time.

Most of the rules are common sense and are the same as in the UK such as it is an offence to hold and use a mobile phone while driving in France. Hands-free use of mobile phones is not illegal. Though many drivers ignore this rule, traffic police are clamping down on drivers holding phones to their ears while driving, and drivers are liable to an on-the-spot fine.

The insurance document is most commonly the "green card", though a standard insurance document from any EU country provides basic insurance for your vehicle (third party cover) throughout the Union, whether or not a green card is provided. Check in with your insurer before you arrive in France to insure you are covered correctly. 

Breakdown or accident: If you are involved in any accident involving two or more vehicles while driving in France, you will be asked to fill in a "constat amiable" (an amiable declaration) by the driver of a French car involved. This is standard practice. If possible, call your insurance company at once on your mobile phone. They may put you in touch with a local French representative. If your car is immobilised on or partly on the road due to a breakdown or an accident, you must set up your red warning triangle at a suitable distance behind the vehicle, to alert approaching traffic to the hazard.

If you are involved in an accident involving any sort of injury - even if it is not your fault - you MUST remain until the police have come.

So, armed with all the essential information you need, and with your vehicle well prepared for the journey, enjoy the experience and the beautiful scenery when you are on your driving holiday in France.

Blog submitted by: David at Cle France.

Hi Sharon and David, sorry haven't replied sooner but as you know getting the keys to your property is just the start, still lots to organise and sort out, in a good way of course! 

I would personally like to thank you both for the excellent service and connections your company has provided.

I have written a brief overview of our experiences, here goes...

3 months from dream to reality:

I think back over the years when the children were young and the many holidays in France from tents to gites, I hate to think about the amount of money I've spent on accommodation over that time.

In recent year's its just been the wife and I, still visiting that wonderful country and with retirement not too far in the distance, we found ourselves looking in the estate agents windows every new area we would visit and surprised at what great value for money house prices were, particularly in the countryside areas, where little work opportunities were to be had! 

So last year we decided next time we went away to make it a house hunting holiday. This is when we first became aware of Cle France. Choosing an area to visit we looked online for suitable properties' and with just a click a request for viewing was answered promptly.

This is when Cle France comes into its own. English/French speaking they organised all times and viewings with the local agent in the different areas. All that was left was to turn up on time at the agents office.

On the whole most agents spoke English making it easier for question and answers on site but

If we needed more detail Cle France would ask your questions and give you feedback normally within 24hrs. 

Just a word of warning, if the property looks unbelievable cheep then there's probably a very good reason but that's not to say, you still can get very good value for your money.

Although our first trip didn't bear fruit, it was an invaluable insight into the whole process and what to look for next time to suit your needs.

What the Cle France site does really well is to give you regular updates on new properties available in your selected price range and area.

This made our search so much easier for next time around. When a property came up that matched our criteria and then with a few more background checks made by Cle France, we had no hesitation booking an appointment and hopping on a plane for a long weekend viewing.

On viewing the property and area, both my wife and I had no hesitation in our decision, so putting in an offer.

This again is when the Cle France support and services were invaluable and without fault! 

From their remortgage advisor Tim Durkin, whose excellent advise and service meant we had the money required in our bank account in less than a month for a cash purchase.

Also there was the need for money exchange, again, Cle France put us in touch with a trusted company to deal with all those matters again without any issues. The only depressing factor was the volatility of the pound v euro!

Finally their local estate agent in the area selling the property has changed my view of estate agents for ever, she took us through the whole process, from offer to completion and provided translation and intermediated on our behalf along the way. I cant thank her enough, It made the whole journey of what seemed a very daunting process, to an effortless delight. Even now, after the sale is complete the agent still supports us in our needs. You couldn't ask for anymore.

So from the First viewing to having the keys was just under 3 months, an amazing feat of professionalism from all those involved and many thanks everyone.

Well done Cle France!

Paul Davidson.

Buying a House in France is easy with Cle France, You can do the same, it is easy for you because WE guide YOU through the French Property Buying Process from the very start to completion and beyond!

And as several of our clients say "Follow your heart and make the move"!

With the summer getting hotter the chance of thunderstorms is ever present so we thought we would put together some vocabulary around the weather, after all it isn't just 'the Brits' who like talking about the weather, the French do too especially in rural areas.

En France, l’été is the height of la saison touristique (the tourist season). The colder months of the year do not attract as many visitors, but the hot months of l’été bring in les touristes (tourists) from all over the world to France. It definitely makes it easier to voyager (travel) when you don’t have to worry about packing les vêtements d’hiver!

Remembering ces orages quotidiens (these daily thunderstorms) does remind me of holidays in Provence, but also that la foudre et le tonnerre (lightning and thunder) used to be somewhat rare in northern France, now it gets very hot and there is even the occasional averse de grêle (hailstorm), summer thunderstorms are more regular than ever.

This became apparent when I tried to share mon expérience estivale (my summer experience) with mes amis (my friends) in France. They were used to the couple of weeks of la canicule and la fête de la musique, but mes amis loved talking about un orage rolling in every day!

Voici un vocabulaire des orages :

L’été – Summer

Estival – Summer (adj)

Le temps – Weather

La météo – Weather forecast

La chaleur – Heat

Chaud – Hot

L’orage – Storm, thunderstorm

L’ouragan – Hurricane

La saison – Season

Le nuage – Cloud

Nuageux – Cloudy, overcast

La pluie – Rain

Le soleil – Sun

La grêle – Hail

L’averse de grêle – Hailstorm

La foudre – Lightning

Le tonnerre – Thunder

Tonner – To thunder

Le tourisme – Tourism

Le touriste – Tourist

La climatisation – Air conditioning

Le ventilateur – Fan

La brise – Breeze.

Blog submitted by: Alex at The French Property Network - Cle France.

This blog was originally posted on The French Language Blog pages. 

Question: Bonsoir, I am wondering if Brexit prevents me from renting or buying a premises in France, in which I can live upstairs, and create a social venture, in the ground floor? Can you advise me please?

Merci, Sandra

Answer: Hi Sandra, thanks for your message...

Brexit is a big question, and quite complex for me to try to answer succinctly: 

but there are quite a few articles on our blog pages on the website from various sources, especially from our legal contacts, so do have a browse over those. 

My own view is that the process of 'BREXIT' will potentially take a number of years to negotiate, and in the meantime nothing changes, British people are  still moving to France to live,  in fact we've just had our busiest month in 8 years.

So the consensus of opinion is that for now not much will change. The  process of withdrawing from the EU will not be a speedy one, and the  residency of those ex-pats living in France and elsewhere in the EU will no doubt form a part of that negotiation process.  

When I moved to France a residency  permit known as the ‘Carte De Sejour’ was required; it was a  relatively straightforward application process (or at least as  straightforward as a French bureaucratic process can be!)  Perhaps this could be re-introduced for British residents in the future, but for now we just don't know. Of course owning homes abroad will remain as it is today, there is no restrictions for non EU members on owning a house in France.

Clearly there remain many questions to be answered, and fine details to be ironed out. But what is becoming apparent is that this will be a long process, possibly years in the making, and we will of  course bring further news as and when it becomes available during the  coming months. But in the meantime life continues much as it always  has done: the British have always lived, worked and retired to sunnier  climes, and that will doubtless continue, even if some administrative aspects of live abroad may change.

Here is a link to 4 articles which we have published on the subject that you may find useful on The Legal Implications of Brexit: 

Thanks, Alex.

For everything you need to know about French property visit www.clefrance.co.uk

Hello Sharon,

We had a lovely time with your Cle France agent, she could not have been more helpful, friendly and professional. While we were happy with what we viewed and one or two were very tempting, ”I have to think with my head” not my heart as my wife kept reminding me.

We have not yet fell in love for any but so still looking.

We love visiting the region so “we will be back” as Arnold said.

Best wishes, J&S.

Buying a House in France is easy with Cle France, You can do the same, it is easy for you because WE guide YOU through the French Property Buying Process from the very start to completion and beyond!

And as several of our clients say "Follow your heart and make the move"!