Drivers License and Being Pulled Over

I'm all set for my ED next month and plan to do a couple days driving within Bavaria. After reading some of the comments in this forum as well as other articles, I was wondering:
1)How many of you doing ED have been pulled over in Germany by the police?
2)Do you think an international drivers license is necessary or just something nice to have? (aka have the authorities given you any problems for not having an international drivers license).

I have spent approximately 10 total weeks in Europe with approximately 8 total weeks in Germany on 5 BMW Euro Delivery vacations. I have never been pulled over. My suggestion is to get the international drivers license.

1) Never
2) Nice to have

The police probably pull over tourists all the time. Think about the people who go to Germany and rent cars. I'd be surprised if they all had IDPs.

Having said that, if you are going to a country that requires one, as opposed to recommends one, I would definitely carry it. But then again, I usually stay within the law or drive similarly to locals.

The greater concern in Europe is surely speed cameras. But this raises the question - if a yank driving an ED BMW gets snapped can they trace your US address and require you pay the ticket? (Do they ban you from Germany if you don't pay up ?)

Anyone been snapped by a speed camera? Did you get a ticket or do yanks "get out of jail free?"

I'm always paranoid of driving in the UK where speed cameras have bred like rabbits and the police adamantly deny its nothing to do with them making millions in reveneus.

Originally Posted by ixsomerset

The greater concern in Europe is surely speed cameras. But this raises the question - if a yank driving an ED BMW gets snapped can they trace your US address and require you pay the ticket? (Do they ban you from Germany if you don't pay up ?)

Anyone been snapped by a speed camera? Did you get a ticket or do yanks "get out of jail free?"

I'm always paranoid of driving in the UK where speed cameras have bred like rabbits and the police adamantly deny its nothing to do with them making millions in reveneus.

There have been posts here of people getting mailed photo radar tickets from Switzerland, and probably Germany. The big pain is paying by wire transfer since US banks like to charge $15-$25 for the privilege, on top of the fine.

Get get the drivers license on your passport.

1.) Yes, they were very friendly. They didn't give me a ticket. Half of me is convinced they wanted a closer look at the car.
2.) In Germany, I wouldn't bother with it. In Austria it a requirement (though I haven't been pulled over there so I'm not sure if they'd actually care).

Like others have said, you are far more likely to get tickets mailed to you. I think (haven't been in Germany as often as others here) you've got to do something stupid to get a live cop's attention or get in an accident. Don't think I've ever seen one radar'ing.

1) Not really pulled over, but was put aside after a gas fill up. I didn't get a ticket, and all the documents they asked was my US driver's license, all occupants' passports, and the car's registration which you'll get at the Welt. It was just weird getting asked about the car, but they seemed nice.
2) Only in Austria.

only in Austria.

1) pulled over 2X on 12 trips. No citation.. just "Kontrol"
2) Nice to have.. you should have one.. but would not lose any sleep if you didn't get to it. Of course you'd kick your self on the moment where you witness blue lights and being pulled over.

I'll mail you my old international driver's permit. It's just a generic booklet that does little except translate the lines on your US licence. Anybody with the brains to become a police officer can readily figure out your name, birthdate, and home address from a licence without needing it translated. Besides, they all learn English in grade school. Even in Austria.

I got pulled over in Garmisch two weeks ago! It was a routine stop. They requested my passport and vehicle registration. I handed them the entire packet that BMW welt had given me and my passport. He took a thin green carbon sheet out of the packet and my passport and went back to his car. The officers were fairly friendly but somewhat serious at the same time. They looked under the hood at the VIN and then sent us on our way once everything checked out.

We actually asked for a restaurant suggestion after we were through and they sent us to an Italian restaurant a couple of blocks up that was located in central Garmisch. I have a picture of the encounter but once we shot a quick picture we were asked to put the camera away.

Never pulled over in Germany... but twice in France getting off the "autoroute". They just asked for "les papiers", but ended up asking a lot of questions about the ED program out of curiosity.

According to the US State Department, you don't need an International Driving Permit for Germany, but you need one for Austria, Spain, Slovakia, Slovenia, among others. According to Czech Tourism site, you need one for the Czech Republic.

Originally Posted by ixsomerset

Anyone been snapped by a speed camera? Did you get a ticket or do yanks "get out of jail free?"

In 2004, we received a ticket in the mail with a photo. They wanted a deposit of 20 Euros to their bank account. We just sent the form back with a 20 Euro note with a little explanation about not being able to do a direct deposit from the US. Never heard about again.

1)How many of you doing ED have been pulled over in Germany by the police?

I was on June 10 this year, two days after taking delivery. I was pulled over by German Poliezi near Mittenwald on our way to Innsbruck. Black, sinister looking and very fast 5 series (no vehicle badge). Classic move, sped past us, quickly pulled in front of us, rear window lit up with red POLIEZI sign, passenger held out a Follow Me sign.

As they informed us, when they see new cars driving through the Bavarian Alps, they will stop the cars to verify ownership. They said that is one of the chosen routes for car thieves taking the vehicles from northern Italy/France to Eastern Europe. Just remember to keep all those papers you got at delivery handy, even though you probably can’t read anything they say.

2)Do you think an international drivers license is necessary or just something nice to have?

They only cost $15, so we considered them more of a souvenir. On a related note, we did a fair amount of driving in Austria and our car was checked twice to ensure we had a valid vignette. The second check was on the A1 near Salzburg. For those without a valid vignette, the line was very, very long, the rest of us were waved through once approved.

Sounds like a great trip. Stay longer if you can. We wished we did even though we were there almost four weeks.

Got stopped in January of this year at a border crossing by Austrian authorties right as I exited the toll plaza.

Wanted to see all papers involved, took a good 10-15 minutes or so. The whole time I assumed I was going to be getting a speeding ticket (was most definitely speeding in the few kilometers leading up to the toll plaza and the posted limits on that exact stretch were quite low), but it was in the end quite clearly aimed at cars being imported/moved without proper papers or even stolen.

Cop was very polite and calm, at the very end asking inquisitively and in a very friendly way "do you save money doing it this way?"

Originally Posted by ixsomerset

The greater concern in Europe is surely speed cameras. But this raises the question - if a yank driving an ED BMW gets snapped can they trace your US address and require you pay the ticket? (Do they ban you from Germany if you don't pay up ?)

Anyone been snapped by a speed camera? Did you get a ticket or do yanks "get out of jail free?"

I'm always paranoid of driving in the UK where speed cameras have bred like rabbits and the police adamantly deny its nothing to do with them making millions in reveneus.

On a non-ED trip in 2009, I was snapped by a speed cam ... Since I was in a rental car, the rental company charged me 17 euros to process the ticket, but I never received a ticket to pay. (BTW, the speed limit dropped from 100kph to 80 has you entered the tunnel .... Guess what I didn't do).

On the positive side, I did an ED in 2011 and they didn't haul me away at the Munich airport when I entered the country.

You don't need an International Driver's license even for Austria. If you are going to get stopped they will ask for your passport.

I have been stopped twice, in 2010 and 2011. Both times in Germany. Last year I was stopped with my wife and taken to the closest police station because they were looking for a couple who have robbed a bank. We were taken to the station because they wanted to ID us. I couldn't believe the unprofessionalism of the officers. The first thing the officers did when they got out of an old BMW 325 station wagon was to show their guns. After being taken to the police station they came out with a security camera picture print out showing a tall man and a woman. Nothing to do with our physical appearance. They told us that we could go, not even an apology. I was not impressed.

Three ED trips - stopped twice in Germany, once in Italy. Both times in Germany, it was between Munich and Garmisch, for papers check. Officers courteous but not very communicative. Met a retired police officer in a little town near Garmisch who explained that there's a brisk black market trade in ED plates to avoid hefty German registration fees. And that's what the "follow me" checks are for.

The Italian cops salute when they walk up to the car - a nice touch. They were flummoxed that I had no International Driver's License, but I managed to talk my way out of any actual trouble - luckily, I speak Italian, which I'm sure helped. So now, I have an IDL, which of course means no one will ever ask for it again.

On the speed camera issue, I've definitely had my picture taken: in France in a rental, and in Italy in my own car. Never gotten a ticket in the mail. Probably just dumb luck.

I have never been stopped in over 50 weeks of driving in Germany. Of course now that I said that I will get stopped on the next trip. ;-)
I have an expired IDL from our ED. I imagine that a current license and the expired IDL is all that would be needed for translation.

Maybe it's just me but I've been stopped plenty, but only one fine.

When I lived in Germany (years ago now...) I was stopped several times. Once because the undercovers were looking for drugs; once for speeding (told off at the scene) and once for not wearing a seatbelt (I was, but they didn't see it immediately against my black clothing). My car window was forced down once while parked in town and when I reported the damage the police told me it was probably the undercovers again since it was parked outside a club known for drugs and my car was registered in Frankfurt. At the time I had a German driving license so I didn't need an IDP, but every time the authorities heard my english accent and tortured Germlish they began by asking for one.

I have been stopped in Austria for speeding twice. Once I collected a fine (1997, it was a fair cop) and once I was just told off (ED, 2009). I have seen and had plenty of friends pulled over for not having a vignette near the Austrian border. Sometimes it is difficult to avoid being steered onto the autobahn and you'll be spotted before you have a chance to get off again. In my experience (plenty) the Austrian police do want to see the IDP because in Austria it is a legal requirement for holders of foreign licenses.

I was also pulled over by the police in the Czech Republic during my ED. Very efficiently done and they just wanted to check papers and tell me that the daylight running settings on a BMW didn't satisfy the needs of the Czech requirements. I was told to drive with low beam on. Very polite, and some nice saluting going on but they very definitely did want to see an IDP as well as every other piece of paper in the car.

You should also note that it is an International Driving Permit, not a License. It is only a translation of the license you have issued by your own country and has no validity as a license anywhere. It should be carried with and presented with your own license. Yes, it is a hokey thing and nowadays every police officer should be able to comprehend a US license. However, the law (in Austria) says you must have one.

When you get one (from your AAA office) take your own photographs to avoid the expense of them taking passport photos. You can use your own digital photograph which has been formatted using the tool (here)at the State Department's website as if for a passport and printed on your own printer. That obviously also applies for when you need photos for your passport.

Frank

Originally Posted by trucheli

You don't need an International Driver's license even for Austria. If you are going to get stopped they will ask for your passport.

This is not true. By Austrian law you are required to have an International Driving Permit. Whether you get asked for it or not it not the point, it is illegal to drive without one in Austria.

1. Never pulled over in Germany in 5 trips
Austria a couple times, both times had IDP. Both times they wanted to check out my car. Once they even asked if i could pop the hood.

.

Originally Posted by chriswg75

I'm all set for my ED next month and plan to do a couple days driving within Bavaria. After reading some of the comments in this forum as well as other articles, I was wondering:
1)How many of you doing ED have been pulled over in Germany by the police?
2)Do you think an international drivers license is necessary or just something nice to have? (aka have the authorities given you any problems for not having an international drivers license).

I somehow feel obligated, in b-y's memory, to point out that what we are discussing is not an International Driver's License but a an International Driving Permit. He probably would also point out that the permit is not a license by itself but merely a translation that must be accompanied by an actual valid license.

I would also like to point out that an official translation from an entity such as the ÖAMTC into German is also acceptable in Austria. Since I currently have a DL from the States, but am still an ÖAMTC member, one was provided for me at no charge.