No UK home yet? Registering, storing and insuring the car

Very few families land in the UK with a permanent home waiting. More often it’s a short-term let, a serviced flat or the spare room at a relative’s, while you look at schools and areas and find somewhere to rent or buy.

That raises a fair question about the car. If it’s registered in the UK, where does the paperwork go, and what happens if you move again a month later? The good news is that it’s simple to handle, and the car doesn’t have to wait for you to settle. This guide explains how.

The car arrives on its own timetable

A car from Hong Kong is typically 3 to 6 weeks at sea, and the whole job takes about 12 to 14 weeks from the first paperwork to UK plates. For most families, that means the car is ready a couple of months after they land.

Sometimes that lines up nicely with finding a home. Sometimes it doesn’t. Either way, nothing about the import needs to change. We unload, clear customs, test and register the car at our own site in Castle Donington, and you can follow every stage in the customer portal.

Registration and the V5C

When we register the car with the DVLA, it’s registered to you at a UK address, and the V5C log book is posted there. That’s the address the DVLA will use for anything to do with the car, so it needs to be somewhere you’ll actually receive post.

If you’re in temporary accommodation, use that address. When you move, change it. GOV.UK has an online service for changing the address on a V5C, and it’s free. You need to be the registered keeper, and you’ll need the car’s registration number, the reference number from the V5C and your new UK address. A new log book usually arrives within about five working days.

One thing to watch. If the car’s tax is due within the next four weeks, GOV.UK asks you to tax it first, using your current V5C, and change the address afterwards.

It’s worth keeping the DVLA up to date. Fines, tax reminders and anything else about the car go to the address on the V5C, and the law expects you to tell them when you move.

Number plates and proof of address

Number plates have to be made by a registered number plate supplier, and they’ll want to see proof of your name and address as well as your entitlement to the number. If you’re newly arrived, a recent bank statement or a tenancy agreement is often the easiest proof to find. Our guide to number plates, tax and MOT covers the plates in more detail.

Insurance at a temporary address

Insurers will ask where the car is kept overnight, and a temporary address is a normal answer. Tell them it’s temporary, and tell them again when you move, because the address affects the price and a wrong one can affect a claim.

Arrange cover before the car is collected or delivered, so there’s no gap. Our guide to driving licence and insurance after the move has a short list of questions worth asking, including how insurers treat driving history from Hong Kong.

Storage while you find somewhere

If there’s nowhere to put the car yet, or you’d rather not have it outside a short let, we can keep it for you. We have indoor and outdoor storage at our site, and we keep the car charged and on the key, so it’s ready the moment you are.

It means the car can be imported, tested and registered on schedule, then simply wait somewhere safe until you’ve got a driveway. That’s particularly useful for electric cars, which don’t like sitting flat, and for high-value cars you’d rather not leave on a street you don’t know yet.

Delivery to your new address

When you’re ready, collect the car from us or we’ll deliver it in an open or enclosed transporter to any UK address. If you’ve moved since we registered it, just tell us where it’s going.

Next steps

Get a quote and mention that you’re not sure of your UK address yet. It doesn’t hold anything up, and we can add storage to the plan from the start. We’d be more than happy to help should you need it.