If you are planning on travelling to a European resort by car this year you could do worse than read our quick guide to European car trips. Below we run through the most important tips to remember both before you go and while you are driving on European roads...

• Speed limits – One of the most common mistakes you will make is to fall foul of the different and varying speed limits in Europe. In most European countries the speed limit is set at 30mph or 50kph but for motorways and smaller road, much like in the UK, they do vary and you can eaily be caught out by hand held radar Police. Generally speaking if you are in a built up area slow right down as in many places in Spain you can only do 12mph
• Speed limits on major roads such as motorways and highways can vary from 62mph (100kph) in the Netherlands to 80mph (130kph) in France. In some countries, such as France, limits are reduced in bad weather or on toll roads to 110kph (68mph).Fines - Unlike in the UK, where speeding and other motoring fines are fairly acceptable in European countries you are looking at a very different thing. In France, for instance, if you are just 25mph over the speed limit you will have your licence confiscated immediately and you can even be handed an on-the-spot fine for running out of petrol on the autobahns!
• European Breakdown Cover – forgetting this cover can be very easy to do and very costly, not just in terms of getting the car fixed and towed but also in potential fines,  if you happen break down in the wrong place. Get the right European breakdown cover and life becomes much more simple.

Sixty-four per cent of all breakdowns involving British drivers abroad happen in France. Check whether your current driving insurance includes European breakdown cover.

While you may have fully comprehensive insurance in the UK, your cover abroad is usually restricted to third party. This meets the legal requirement for travelling in the EU, but to raise the cover level you will have to pay extra.

To Get the very best European breakdown cover advice talk to one of Rescue My Car’s advisors now on 0800 0199519.