Car Documents - what to do if you lose them?

benszymanski:

Yes - they are very small - I think they are paper size A6. They come in a little plastic holder so they don't get damaged. The insurance certificate is the same size so just tucks in with the ownership document. The MOT is just a stamp on the ownership doc if I remember correctly (too lazy to go and check).

magdalenaGThreads: 7 Posts: 89 Joined: Apr 10, 09	Jul 23, 09, 09:55 / #
Has anyone every lost their car doc's....what are you supposed to do ?

SeanBMThreads: 41 Posts: 8,726 Joined: Mar 10, 08	Jul 23, 09, 11:17 / #
magdalenaG: Has anyone every lost their car doc's....what are you supposed to do ? I think you have to ring up the police and report it. Apparently there used to be a lot of stolen cars passing through and in Poland, well more than there are now. So they take these papers very seriously. You will have to pay for new ones.

magdalenaGThreads: 7 Posts: 89 Joined: Apr 10, 09	Jul 23, 09, 11:30 / #
Thanks Sean,I figured it would entail a trip to the police .. all a pain in the arse really.

dnzThreads: 25 Posts: 804 Joined: Dec 2, 07	Jul 23, 09, 11:43 / #
Can't you just apply to the DVLA for a new set, they usually cost around £20 and take 2 weeks, Regarding Insurance and MOT it should come up fine on the ANPR cameras and you don't really need the physical documents anymore.

SeanBMThreads: 41 Posts: 8,726 Joined: Mar 10, 08	Edited by: SeanBM Jul 23, 09, 11:46 / #
You're going for the double whammy there, Police and bureaucracy. Bring a book to read or a walkman, it could take a while. Actually, just ring them first and ask. I have noticed that people in offices respond better to the annoying ringing of a telephone better than they do to a bored person in a cue. edit dnz: you don't really need the physical documents anymore. Really?. I find that hard to believe, as in if you get stopped by a police person, that they won't insist on some paper.

benszymanskiThreads: 9 Posts: 510 Joined: Feb 29, 08	Jul 23, 09, 14:15 / #
SeanBM: I find that hard to believe, as in if you get stopped by a police person, that they won't insist on some paper. Hang on a sec - which country are we talking about here? Has she lost her Polish or UK documents? As far as the UK DNZ is right - there is no requirement to carry your car documents on you if you are in the UK. The police can easily check your insurance, tax and MOT at the roadside via their computer/radio. If they suspect something is wrong or you don't show up on their database they usually issue you with a "producer" that requires you to produce your documents at a police station of your choice within 7 days. If you have UK documents but are driving in Europe then you have to carry your documents with you at all times. Likewise for foreign vehicles in the UK.

SeanBMThreads: 41 Posts: 8,726 Joined: Mar 10, 08	Jul 23, 09, 14:17 / #
benszymanski: which country are we talking about here? I believe he is asking about Poland.

benszymanskiThreads: 9 Posts: 510 Joined: Feb 29, 08	Jul 23, 09, 14:25 / #
SeanBM: I believe he is asking about Poland. OK in which case he has a major headache. He will need to not only report it to the Police but also sort it out at the vehicle office where you do your car registration. Apologies - I referred to 'she' earlier not 'he' because when I read 'magdalena' in the nickname I straight away presumed the poster was female. I see now that is wrong.

SeanBMThreads: 41 Posts: 8,726 Joined: Mar 10, 08	Jul 23, 09, 14:29 / #
benszymanski: I referred to 'she' earlier not 'he' because when I read 'magdalena' in the nickname Don't worry, I think he is a cross-dresser and if you saw him on the street you'd make the same mistake ;)

Wroclaw BoyThreads: 57 Posts: 5,467 Joined: Jul 3, 09 MEMBER	Jul 23, 09, 14:43 / #
Theres another memeber by the same name without the G at the end and shes a she, very confusing. Having to carry your vehicle documents with you in Poland is a pain in the ass. Who leaves them in the car? ever? A thief has everything he needs once he rides off in your motor. I remember trying to park my car at Warsaw airport (before i knew about the requirement) and absolutely losing it as i couldnt park for long stay without the documents. In any case MagdelenaG good luck with that. Best bust out the office face, ohh and bring a book.

dnzThreads: 25 Posts: 804 Joined: Dec 2, 07	Jul 23, 09, 15:55 / #
Carrying documents around does seem rather archaic really, if the uk of all countries can introduce a central database surely all other countries should be able to. I got stopped once here and told the police to do a PNC check and they just llokd at me confused, I hardly ever carry any other documents apart from my drivers licence.

Wroclaw BoyThreads: 57 Posts: 5,467 Joined: Jul 3, 09 MEMBER	Jul 23, 09, 17:19 / #
magdalenaG: Panic over , found them . Fcuk sake M. You drama queen. Youre just like my wife, problem , problem duze, duze probelm ony two minutes later ahh its OK. The boy who cried wolf.......

benszymanskiThreads: 9 Posts: 510 Joined: Feb 29, 08	Jul 23, 09, 14:53 / #
I just leave the documents in my wallet so I always have them. Before I knew about this I got stopped on the A4 by customs and didn't have my documents. They confiscated my licence until the police arrived (a couple of hours later) and they just wrote me out a ticket and left.

Wroclaw BoyThreads: 57 Posts: 5,467 Joined: Jul 3, 09 MEMBER	Edited by: Wroclaw Boy Jul 23, 09, 15:05 / #
benszymanski: I just leave the documents in my wallet so I always have them. Are they small enough? and after a while they must look like some archived peace of paper history, i photo scan copied mine and still got fined in Germany. Bastards. Its in the same ball park as carrying your birth certificate with you 24/7/365. I know they have the same policy in America too, WTF.

benszymanskiThreads: 9 Posts: 510 Joined: Feb 29, 08	Jul 23, 09, 15:10 / #
Wroclaw Boy: Are they small enough? Yes - they are very small - I think they are paper size A6. They come in a little plastic holder so they don't get damaged. The insurance certificate is the same size so just tucks in with the ownership document. The MOT is just a stamp on the ownership doc if I remember correctly (too lazy to go and check).

delphiandomineThreads: 42 Posts: 9,954 Joined: Nov 25, 08 [Suspended]	Jul 23, 09, 15:17 / #
benszymanski: Yes - they are very small - I think they are paper size A6. They come in a little plastic holder so they don't get damaged. The insurance certificate is the same size so just tucks in with the ownership document. The MOT is just a stamp on the ownership doc if I remember correctly (too lazy to go and check). It really doesn't seem to be too much of a hardship to carry around the Polish documents for that reason - but carrying around UK documents could be a complete pain. But the Polish driving licence mystifies me - how on earth can you have a penalty points system without a paper counterpart to the licence?

magdalenaGThreads: 7 Posts: 89 Joined: Apr 10, 09	Jul 23, 09, 17:14 / #
Panic over , found them . But at least I'll know what to do next time I lose them .