How to import car from Austria? Check it out
Second-hand cars are popular among people who look for an inexpensive vehicle in good repair. However, buying such vehicles requires checking several issues and completing certain formalities. How to import car from Austria to country? What documents do you need to remember?
Import car from Austria – what to look at when choosing?
On advertising portals, you can find various offers for cars from Austria. Before choosing one of them, however, you need to check a few parameters. The vehicle should be in good technical condition while maintaining a low price. Many dealers hide the detailed history of a given car, so it is worth checking it using the vehicle-specific numbers.
When buying a car from Austria, pay attention to:
- mileage,
- technical condition,
- legal status,
- number of owners,
- manufacture year,
- TPL Insurance,
- possible de-registration,
Mileage of a vehicle from Austria
Many sellers conceal the full vehicle history of a particular car, therefore it is worth to check it via the VIN number of a particular vehicle.
At autoDNA.com, the market-leading VIN decoding tool, you can free VIN lookup on a given vehicle. All you need for this is the VIN number. In the reports, on used cars, you can find information that will allow you to check whether the seller is telling the truth or not. In the report, you can find data on various topics. One of them is the vehicle history or stolen vehicle bases. You can do a VIN check for free 24/7 throughout the year.
TPL Insurance
A third party liability insurance policy is necessary when you plan to drive the car home on your own. Each registered vehicle must have this form of protection. For this reason, you should receive the relevant documents when concluding the transaction with the seller. After returning to country, you need to purchase a standard policy.
Without it, in case of any accident, it is the driver of the uninsured car that the police will find guilty. What is more, you would have to pay out of your own pocket for all the damage, including the treatment of the injured. Therefore, it’s better not to risk.
The condition of a car from Austria
The odometer reading is one thing, but you also need to pay attention to the technical condition of the car from Austria. Even when it has undergone inspections, it is helpful to check the accident history and possible faults. Otherwise, their repair can significantly increase the cost of restoring the vehicle to the appropriate condition.
How to bring a car from Austria to country?
In order to import a car from Austria, certain documents must be obtained and a few formalities arranged. You can do it yourself or use the help of intermediaries. Choosing the right option depends on whether the driver wants to get the car themselves or prefers to hire a company.
Importing a car from Austria by yourself
Austria belongs to the European Union, so importing a car is relatively easy. However, you should get certain documents from the other party during the transaction. These include:
- registration certificate,
- certificate of technical inspection,
- vehicle card,
- TPL insurance policy.
In Austria, the registration certificate consists of two parts. Both are necessary to register the car in country. Optionally, you can also receive a service log and a COC certificate. However, it is your responsibility to organise export plates. They cost several hundred Euros, and you have to buy them in Austria by visiting the appropriate authority.
Also, in Austria, you must have a special vignette. Failure to do so may be fined a maximum of EUR 3,000. For this reason, many people decide to transport a car on a flatbed. It is a more convenient solution, although it is also not the cheapest. Yet, this option prevents you from driving even several hundred kilometres.
Bringing the car through an intermediary
There is also an option to use the offer of dealers who import cars and sell them directly in our country. However, if you want to become the owner of a specific vehicle straight from Austria, you can choose the help of intermediaries. Specialised companies provide services that involve completing the necessary formalities and bringing the car to the new owner.
It is a convenient solution that allows you to import your car without going to Austria. However, it includes a fee, therefore the final cost of the entire project increases.
Driving by car from Austria to country
Before leaving Austria, the vehicle must be de-registered with the local authority. Then, if you want to drive back, you will need to buy temporary plates that cost several hundred Euros. They will allow you to drive to country on your own. However, within 30 days from that moment, formalities must be fulfilled, and the car from Austria registered.
The cost of such plates is 300 Euro. You mustn’t drive a car without legal license plates in any country, especially in Austria, where there are very strict traffic laws.
Export plates are essential and allow for legal border crossing. Their absence involves severe penalties, so it is worth paying several hundred Euros and obtaining a document that will enable you to bring the car to country safely. That should be done in a special office. For this reason, it is usually impossible to return to the country on the vehicle purchasing day.
When deciding to return with the car back on your own, you also need to remember to abide by the traffic laws. In Austria, for exceeding the speed limit by 30 km/h you have to pay 150 Euro. The way less severe instances of speeding by a few kilometers are also punishable there.
Where to look for a car in Austria?
It’s best to do so on European auction portals.
The following websites are definitely worth a try: autoscout24.pl, mobile.de/pl or perhaps ooyyo.com.
What’s important is that on each of these websites you can select your as the language. Thanks to that, you don’t need to know the Austrian dialect of German. Similarly as in Switzerland, in Austria you can also buy a car put up on sale in somebody’s front yard. However, you need to know where to look for such cars and have plenty of time for this.
Purchasing a car directly in Austria
It is a different story when you use services of a person who imports cars from Austria. Then, such person can help you find an appropriate place with well-maintained cars. Similarly to any other country, in Austria you can find used car lots and private sellers offering cars in good condition, as well as badly-maintained items.
You need to remember about one more thing. Dealers who regularly stock up cars from used car lots are always able to buy them for a much better price. A lay customer will not negotiate the price drop, but it’s always worth a try.
Used cars from used car lots at car dealerships
Used cars are always a reliable choice, only those purchased from car dealerships which sell cars purchased previously from customers who replace their old cars for new ones. Of course, such cars are substantially more expensive, but in most cases the cars are in a very good condition. Unfortunately, you might also come across cars very exploited, as well as the ones which concern issues with documents. It’s better to avoid such cars.
It is also a good idea to sacrifice a few hundred Euro for checking the car in a service or even in an authorised service centre. In the case of more expensive cars, you should not save money on them. If during the car inspection certain faults about which the seller has not informed you are discovered, you can try lowering the price or the car or ask the seller to repair the found faults themself. What’s interesting, it works in many cases. Especially, if the faults found during an inspection, were not mentioned in the sale offer.
Documents needed to register a vehicle from Austria
Registration of a car from Austria requires obtaining the appropriate letters. Many of them can be obtained when concluding the transaction; others you have to organise yourself after returning to country. These include:
- the registration certificate,
- the sales contract,
- a technical inspection certificate,
- an excise duty payment receipt,
- a registration fee payment receipt.
You also need to translate specific documents with a sworn translator. Without this step, the transport department will probably refuse to accept them. For this reason, it is so vital to start completing the critical issues as soon as you come to country. Unfortunately, translating documents often takes at least a few days. That is why some people decide to sign the contract in two versions, but sometimes it is necessary to certify that both copies are identical in terms of exact content.
Translation of documents
Austria belongs to the European Union, so the documents do not need to be translated. Yet, it is necessary to use a sworn translator for the sale and purchase agreement. In addition, any annotations added to the documents when arranging matters in Austria should also be translated.
How to check the car?
Checking imported cars is crucial before deciding on a specific model. It can be done based on the VIN and the autoDNA vehicle history report. The reports contain information on the history of vehicles, repairs, damages, inspections and mileage. With autoDNA, you to check your car online, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Then, based on the report, you can decide whether a given vehicle is worth your interest.
Is a car from Austria worth buying?
Every year, more than 20,000 cars are imported from Austria. Models such as Toyota, Volkswagen and Opel are popular. Trading with vehicles from this country is very common as they are easy to import, and at the same time, you can count on excellent condition at an attractive price. For this reason, so many people decide to go to Austria to bring a car. The services of intermediaries are also popular.
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