Does taking a test to obtain a French licence make you a ‘new driver’ for insurers?
It is not possible to request a simple exchange of some US driving licences
If you do not have three years of insurance history in France, you may need to provide evidence of previous insurance in the US
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Reader question: Since arriving in France we have had a car insured in France, with a clean record. We have just been issued French driving licences after taking a test because our American licences were not accepted for an exchange. Now, despite long driving experience abroad, our insurer is treating us as new drivers because of the new licence date and says our premium will increase significantly. Is there any way around this?
As you have found, depending on the state the original licence was issued in, it may be necessary to take a French driving test to obtain a French licence, as opposed to simply applying for an exchange.
In French motor insurance, the term ‘young driver’ (jeune conducteur) is used and it is not about age, but about experience as defined by the system.
A driver is generally treated as such if they have held a licence for less than three years, or if they have not been insured as a main driver in the last three years.
When a new French licence is issued after retaking a test, the system may therefore treat it as the start of a new driving history, even where the driver has years of experience abroad and has already been insured in France without claims.
This can lead to situations that feel inconsistent.
It is in general linked to how insurance systems are structured, which are often automated and based on standard criteria and may not account for all individual cases.
The purpose of the jeune conducteur surcharge is to reflect lack of driving and insurance experience.
In cases like this, however, insurers can sometimes take previous insurance history into account and adjust the premium manually.
It may, therefore, be worth asking for a manual review of the file.
However, if you do not have three years of insurance history in France, you may need to provide evidence of previous insurance in the US. Reportedly, some insurers are more willing than others with regard to taking into account foreign insurance history.
If no adjustment is possible, you may want to approach alternative insurers to find one which is more flexible.
Another issue for people who previously drove abroad is whether or not insurers will take account of a foreign no-claims period, which, if this is not done, can also push the premium up.
