Driving in France kit: what you need and what’s worth buying

French law requires you to carry two things: a hi-vis vest for each person in the car and an approved warning triangle. Your car also needs the UK identifier, headlights adjusted so they don’t dazzle oncoming drivers, and working lights. A ready-made driving in France kit covers all of that in one box, but most kits also include items you don’t need, and many don’t have enough vests for everyone in the car.

Check your kit

Tell the kit checker how many people are travelling and what you already have. It lists what you still need, what’s only for your trip, and what you can leave at home.

What French law requires

Not wearing a vest, or not warning other drivers when you’ve stopped on the road, can cost up to €750, usually a €135 fixed fine. Not being able to show the vests and triangle at a police check costs up to €38. Our guide to what you need to drive in France covers the documents as well.

Ready-made kit or buy separately?

A ready-made kit is the easy option: one purchase, one box in the car, and nothing forgotten. Buying separately makes sense if you already have some items, such as a warning triangle from a previous trip, or a car whose number plate already shows UK with the Union flag.

Whichever you choose, check three things before you buy:

1. Enough vests. Count the vests against the number of people in the car, including children. Most 1-adult and 2-adult kits are short for a family.
2. Deflectors that suit your headlights. Check your handbook first: some cars have a setting for driving on the right, and then you don’t need deflectors at all.
3. What you’re paying for that you don’t need. Breathalysers and fire extinguishers aren’t compulsory in France. A first aid kit and spare bulbs are useful, but not required.

Driving in France kits compared

These are the kits sold by two of the UK’s breakdown companies, as listed on their websites on 9 October 2026. Prices and contents change, so check before you buy.

Two things stand out. First, only the family and 4-person kits have enough vests for a family of four, so a smaller kit means buying extra vests. Second, the RAC’s own pages are inconsistent about breathalysers: some listings include them and a note on the same site says the kits don’t. You don’t need one in France either way, so don’t pay extra for it.

Each item explained

Hi-vis vests

You need one for each person in the car, and they must be CE-marked. Keep them in the cabin, in the door pockets or under the seats, so everyone can put theirs on before getting out. In the boot they’re no use if you’ve stopped on a hard shoulder with traffic going past. Children need child-size vests, which few kits include.

Warning triangle

It must be an approved type. Use it when you’ve stopped somewhere other drivers might not see you in time, such as on a bend or over the brow of a hill, and place it at least 30 metres behind the car. Don’t put yourself in danger to set it up. On an autoroute, the safest place to be is behind the barrier.

Headlamp beam deflectors

UK headlights are angled to the left, towards the kerb. In France that throws the beam into the eyes of oncoming drivers. Before you buy deflectors, look in your car’s handbook or settings menu: many newer cars can switch the beam pattern for driving on the right, in which case you don’t need stickers at all. Otherwise, deflectors are stickers placed on the headlight glass. Kits come with a template showing where they go on each make and model, and you need to fit them exactly as shown. Take them off when you get home.

UK sticker

You need a UK sticker on the back of the car unless your number plate shows UK with the Union flag. Plates with GB, a Euro symbol, the flag of England, Scotland or Wales, or no identifier all need a sticker. Old GB stickers aren’t valid any more, so remove or cover them. Don’t put the sticker on the number plate itself. If you’re driving on to Spain, you need a UK sticker there whatever your number plate shows. See UK sticker for France.

Spare bulbs and fuses

Not compulsory, but all your lights must work. A faulty light can cost up to €450, usually a €68 fixed fine, and at night the police can stop you driving on if your main lights, brake lights or indicators have failed. A spare bulb kit lets you fix it on the spot, if your car’s lights can be changed by hand. Many modern LED lights can’t, so check before you rely on one.

First aid kit, breathalyser and fire extinguisher

None of them is compulsory in France. A first aid kit is worth carrying anyway. A breathalyser was once required but no longer is, and there’s no fine for not having one. If you’re driving on to other countries, check their rules too, because some have different requirements.

Kit for your trip

• Crit’Air sticker for low-emission zones such as Paris, Lyon and Grenoble. No kit includes one: it’s issued for your car, from certificat-air.gouv.fr only, for €3.11 plus postage. Order it at least three weeks before you travel.
• Snow chains or snow socks, or winter tyres with the alpine (3PMSF) symbol, in signed mountain areas from 1 November to 31 March.
• Child seats for children under 10, suited to their size.

What we’d take

For a family of four in a UK car, this is the kit that covers the law and the most likely problems, without paying for things you don’t need:

• 4 hi-vis vests (2 adult, 2 child), kept in the cabin
• 1 approved warning triangle
• UK sticker, if your plate doesn’t show UK with the Union flag
• Beam deflectors, or your car’s own headlight setting
• Spare bulbs and fuses, if you can change them yourself
• A first aid kit and a torch
• Crit’Air sticker, if you’ll enter a low-emission zone
• Chains or snow socks for mountain trips in winter