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How do I insure a used car I bought to drive it home?

In short

How you insure a used car you bought to drive it home depends on whether it is still registered. If it is, re-register it with an eVB from your own insurer, also online, and you may drive for up to 10 days on the provisional proof. If it was deregistered, you need short-term plates (Kurzzeitkennzeichen), usually EUR 60 to 180 in total. Damage to the car itself is only covered with comprehensive cover.

How do I insure a used car I bought to drive it home?

What it costs

Published costs for short-term and export plates in Germany.

ExampleTypical range
Short-term plates, liability cover for the validity periodabout EUR 30 to 150
Registration office fee for short-term platesabout EUR 10 to 13
Making the platesabout EUR 10 to 40
Short-term plates in totalusually EUR 60 to 180
Registration office fee for export platesabout EUR 31 to 45, plus insurance and tax

As of November 2026, from an automobile club guide and the vehicle registration regulation (FZV).

Comprehensive cover or longer validity costs more.

Whether the insurer credits the amount to a later policy depends on the tariff.

We obtain the exact quote for your later policy.

Worked example

Deregistered used car, 300 kilometres away

A buyer collects an older, deregistered car with a valid HU. She takes liability cover only, because comprehensive cover is not worth it for this car.

eVB for short-term plates, liabilityabout EUR 30 to 150
Registration office feeabout EUR 10 to 13
Platesabout EUR 10 to 40
If the car were still registered: transfer with your own eVBno short-term plates needed

The drive home usually costs EUR 60 to 180. Accident damage to the car on the way would be hers to pay. Had the car still been registered, she would have saved the plates. Calculation with guide values.

First question: is the car still registered?

Everything depends on one point: has the seller already deregistered the car (abgemeldet) or not? If it is still registered, you simply transfer it to your name. If not, you need short-term plates for the drive.

You may hear the word Überführungskennzeichen. It is not an official term. People mean either short-term plates with a yellow edge for trips inside Germany or export plates with a red edge for cars that leave the country for good.

SituationWhat you needInsurance
Car registered, plates staytransfer to your name, also onlineyour own eVB, normal annual policy
Car deregistered, drive within Germanyshort-term plateseVB for short-term plates, liability only
Car leaves Germany for goodexport plates (Ausfuhrkennzeichen)separate insurance confirmation for export
No valid roadworthiness test (HU), long distancetrailer or transport serviceno plate insurance needed

Option 1: re-register and drive on your own policy

If the car is still registered, ask your insurer for an eVB, the electronic insurance confirmation, for a normal policy and transfer the car to your name. Online you need both registration certificates, Part I and Part II, with the hidden security code uncovered, proof of a valid HU and an identity document with an activated online function. An electronic residence permit can also work for this.

If you keep the existing number plate, you may drive at once for up to 10 days with the provisional proof clearly visible in the car, until the papers arrive. The notice has to be downloaded within 30 minutes. This is usually the cheapest route, and comprehensive cover can start from the first kilometre.

What happens to the seller's insurance

When an insured car is sold, the buyer steps into the seller's policy (section 95 VVG, applied to compulsory insurance by section 122 VVG). Under section 96 VVG you can cancel that policy within one month of buying, with immediate effect or at the end of the insurance period.

Do not rely on it for the drive home. You rarely know whether the seller has already cancelled or reported the sale. Get your own eVB before you set off. Under section 15 (5) FZV you must also apply for the transfer without undue delay.

Option 2: short-term plates for a deregistered car

For a deregistered car you apply for short-term plates under section 42 FZV, at the registration office for the car's location or another one you choose. You need an eVB for short-term plates, ID, the car papers and proof of a valid HU. The plates are valid until the end of the fifth day after issue and only for test drives and transfer drives.

The insurance is liability only, charged as a fixed amount for those days. It pays for damage you cause to others, not for damage to the car you just bought. Without a valid HU, section 42 FZV only allows trips to a test centre in the same or a neighbouring district and back, plus a trip for immediate repairs.

Limits abroad

Short-term plates are meant for Germany. Some neighbouring countries recognise them, but there is no right to that, and elsewhere you risk fines up to the car being seized. If the car leaves Germany for good, export plates are the right tool.

If you buy a car abroad to bring to Germany, clarify the trip with the registration office before you travel, because German short-term plates may not be accepted in the country where you pick it up.

When you do not need short-term plates

If the car is still registered, you almost never need them: re-registering is cheaper and you get the cover you want straight away. Ask the seller not to deregister the car before handover and write that into the purchase contract.

If you buy from a dealer, ask whether they handle registration or deliver the car on their own plates. Then all you need is an eVB for your normal policy.

Step by step

  1. Before buying, ask whether the car is still registered and ask the seller not to deregister it.
  2. Check that the HU is valid.
  3. If the car is registered, get an eVB for a normal policy and transfer it, online if you like.
  4. If it is deregistered, get an eVB for short-term plates and ask whether the amount is credited later.
  5. For an expensive car, arrange comprehensive cover for the drive.
  6. Drive straight home and arrive before the date on the plates.

Checklist

  • Registration status of the car known
  • Your own eVB ready before you set off
  • Part I and Part II of the registration certificate handed over
  • HU valid or transport arranged
  • Comprehensive cover decided for a valuable car
  • Export plates instead of short-term plates if the car leaves Germany

Common mistakes

  • Relying on the seller's old policy without your own eVB
  • Assuming liability cover pays for damage to the car you bought
  • Letting the seller deregister the car and then paying for short-term plates
  • Driving a long distance without a valid HU
  • Driving abroad on short-term plates

Questions and answers

Frequently asked

Can I drive home on the seller's plates?

As long as the car is registered and insured, yes.

But you often do not know whether the seller has cancelled.

Get your own eVB first and transfer the car.

What is an eVB?

The electronic insurance confirmation (elektronische Versicherungsbestätigung),

a code from your insurer that the registration office needs.

There are separate eVBs for a normal policy and for short-term plates, so say which one you need.

How long are short-term plates valid?

Until the end of the fifth day after issue.

The date is on the plate.

After that you may not drive.

Does insurance pay if I damage the car on the way home?

Only with comprehensive cover.

The liability cover for short-term plates pays only for damage to others.

Can I keep the seller's policy?

It passes to you with the car.

You can cancel it within one month of buying.

Your own policy with your no-claims class is usually cheaper.

Can I register online with a residence permit instead of a German ID card?

An electronic residence permit with an activated online function can be used for online

registration.

If yours is not activated, go to the registration office in person.

Sources

NAMMERT insurance broker

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