rooster63 Posted November 6, 2017 Share Posted November 6, 2017 Hopefully off to France next year, provisionally Cherbourg, Loire Valley, Biarritz, Bordeaux, Ile De Re. Do I need to get a Crit-air as I'm going nowhere near Paris or any of the other cities listed although there is some speculation that Bordeaux may follow suit. I have a Euro 4 engine in my van. From other postings some folk have found it a bit of a hassle so do I need the agro? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin Posted November 6, 2017 Share Posted November 6, 2017 Sounds like you don't need one. Not sure why anyone would have hassle getting one, very straight forward. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
potus4388 Posted November 6, 2017 Share Posted November 6, 2017 My wife and I recently returned fron a five week trip to Europe that included France and Germany. The Crit Air was not needed this time, I simply thought might as well get it anyway as more towns will require it in the future and it is not expensive and lasts for the life of the vehicle(or the windscreen) so why not? I also got the sticker for Germany and did drive in a location that required it but was certainly not checked. I found the online application for both quite straightforward apart from resizing the V5 document to e mail, but succeed in the end! Both stickers came through quite quickly with no problems, I would just apply for the Crit Air, then you have it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve928 Posted November 7, 2017 Share Posted November 7, 2017 I got a Crit-Air sticker because I knew I would be driving through the zone at Grenoble. I didn't see any means of enforcement or control when in the zone and only a few of the local vehicles seemed to be displaying a sticker. I kept an eye out during our 4-5 weeks in France and didn't see a single French motorhome with a sticker, so I suspect it could just be a sneaky new tourist tax! :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted November 7, 2017 Share Posted November 7, 2017 They are going to include more cities every year. We are unlikely to go near any of they them but why take the risk for €4.50. Easy to apply for online ours arrived in 5 days quicker than the German one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tazdog6007 Posted November 7, 2017 Share Posted November 7, 2017 The french are not like us. If they don't like a law they ignore it. one of the things i admire them for. went through Lyon in summer no bother ,did not see any stickers on cars .unlike us oooooo! must get a sticker !they will get around to it one day.unless it interferes with lunch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starvin marvin Posted November 7, 2017 Share Posted November 7, 2017 tazdog6007 - 2017-11-07 4:03 PM The french are not like us. If they don't like a law they ignore it. one of the things i admire them for. went through Lyon in summer no bother ,did not see any stickers on cars .unlike us oooooo! must get a sticker !they will get around to it one day.unless it interferes with lunch Exactly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted November 7, 2017 Share Posted November 7, 2017 tazdog6007 - 2017-11-07 4:03 PM ...went through Lyon in summer no bother ,did not see any stickers on cars... As displaying a Crit’Air sticker on vehicles being driven in Lyon is not mandatory, it’s unsurprising that you did not spot any cars bearing stickers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whisturx Posted November 7, 2017 Share Posted November 7, 2017 Parked in the aire at Honfleur in September with the usual 100 vans of which 75% were French !! On walking round the only vans with Crit-Air stickers were some of the Brits ! I expect the Brits all had breathalysers as well !! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Solomongrundy Posted November 10, 2017 Share Posted November 10, 2017 You may mock the UK drivers who have bought the Crit'air stickers but I believe this crack down on polluting vehicles is not going to go away on the Continent. This is not like the Sarkozy debacle with the Breathalyser law but is going to be implemented whether you like it or not. The cost for a sticker of €4.80 for the lifetime of your vehicle is to be weighed against the potential fine of €68 (increased after 45 days if not paid) seems to be a bargain. Time after time over the past few years we have seen Municipal Police and the Gendarmerie stopping drivers and checking details of their vehicles. You'll only need to be stopped once in, or near, a Crit'air area and you'll soon regret not buying a Sticker – they don't send you a letter asking for the fine but they do extract cash from you at the roadside. It's your choice but I know what I'm doing about the Crit'air sticker – and I never bought a breathalizer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted November 10, 2017 Share Posted November 10, 2017 Is it essential? Essential for what? If you visit one of the emissions zones, you are liable to be fined if you don't have one. If you don't go into any of those towns, you are not at risk of a fine for lack of the Crit-air disc. You are at liberty to visit, and enter, these towns as you choose, and to carry the Crit-air disc, or not, as you choose. If you are happy to pay the fine if you get it wrong, the disc can hardly be considered essential. If you wish to avoid getting fined due to your error, the disc is presumably desirable for you - but still hardly essential. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted November 10, 2017 Share Posted November 10, 2017 Solomongrundy - 2017-11-10 11:36 AM ...You'll only need to be stopped once in, or near, a Crit'air area and you'll soon regret not buying a Sticker – they don't send you a letter asking for the fine but they do extract cash from you at the roadside... I have not applied for a Crit’Air sticker because a) I‘m confident I will not be driving now or in the future anywhere near any of the French cities where vehicle-emissions schemes are currently in force and b) if the schemes are extended to places where I believe I might drive, it’s easy enough to obtain the necessary sticker. (I would undoubtedly regret not having bought a sticker if I were stopped and fined by the French police within an area where a Crit’Air scheme was in operation, but why should I regret this if I were only “near” a Crit’Air area?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spospe Posted November 10, 2017 Share Posted November 10, 2017 Just back from 8 weeks in France and Germany. We saw few Crit-Air stickers in France and even noticed several Department 75 (Paris town) cars without them, which seems strange. I would like to know just how much effort the French are putting into enforcing the use of these stickers. Has anyone heard of a prosecution? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted November 11, 2017 Share Posted November 11, 2017 Regarding prosecutions, this GOOGLE-translated French article may be of interest http://tinyurl.com/y8s3n37v For non-francophones a "verbalisation” means a "booking” (eg. “He was booked for speeding”) while a "PV” (Procès Verbal) means much the same thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Solomongrundy Posted November 11, 2017 Share Posted November 11, 2017 With respect to the French Police in Paris I would expect them to have more on their minds with Terrorist threats than worrying about polluting vehicles. But when it suits them they'll probably have a few days crack down on non-vignettes vehicles - and then you'll see the sh*t fly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pagey Posted November 11, 2017 Share Posted November 11, 2017 +1 especially as they dont like us anyway Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted November 11, 2017 Share Posted November 11, 2017 Who is "they" and who is "us"? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pelmetman Posted November 11, 2017 Share Posted November 11, 2017 Heading to Bordeaux tomorrow 8-) ........ I'm a bugger for tempting the wrath of jobsworths >:-) ....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ianj8793 Posted November 11, 2017 Share Posted November 11, 2017 pagey - 2017-11-11 3:14 PM +1 especially as they dont like us anyway Really, never experience any dislike in my French travels and I spend four months a year in France. The opposite actually. I find the French generally friendly helpful and welcoming. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pagey Posted November 12, 2017 Share Posted November 12, 2017 Brian Kirby - 2017-11-11 4:47 PM Who is "they" and who is "us"? the french police and motorhomes Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted November 12, 2017 Share Posted November 12, 2017 Really? Have you any evidence to support that opinion? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted November 12, 2017 Share Posted November 12, 2017 pagey - 2017-11-12 10:00 AM Brian Kirby - 2017-11-11 4:47 PM Who is "they" and who is "us"? the french police and motorhomes Isn't this limited to a relatively few locations along the Cote d'Azur, roughly from Le Lavandou to Menton? Motorhomers made themselves unpopular by parking wherever they could along this stretch, often blocking residents' views of the sea from their rather expensive villas - and other annoying habits - in an area very popular with the rich and influential. So, various restrictions were placed on parking (some illegal under French law :-)) to discourage what is seen as nuisance parking, and the Police Municipal were despatched to enforce the restrictions. I don't see this as widespread, or as typifying the French police attitude to motorhomers. It is the behaviour of a particular group of people who are not that well regarded by the French in general (much as Parisiens aren't that popular outside Paris!). The rest of France and, so far as my experiences tell me, the French in general, is remarkably motorhome friendly. I think it a bit unfair to attribute this localised "hostility" to an entire nation who, elsewhere, are generally very welcoming. Apologies for the O/T. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pagey Posted November 12, 2017 Share Posted November 12, 2017 i have no problem with the french people its the police i am not keen on i have been stopped 3 times and asked for my papers for no apparent reason and then tld to move on and once fined for crossing a white line with 3 other english all of us fined the 4th was french and sent on his way no fine for him Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will86 Posted November 12, 2017 Share Posted November 12, 2017 Stopped for checks ... looking for criminals perhaps. Fined for crossing a line ... no problem there. The last one 'French' may have been of Diplomatic immunity as in the UK.. I was once with a group of French pedestrians when we were almost run down by the police with no intentions of stopping and a second time I've been cycling with a group who were protected by arm banded outriders and where they would aim at strangers who were in our path. The remedy is be aware say nothing and obey. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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