Do I have to carry snow chains in Europe?
- By
- Aparna Patel
- |
- 6 Aug, 2023
- |
You can often rent snow chains from automobile clubs (e.g. ADAC in Germany, or ÖAMTC in Austria). So if you know that you will not need them again it might be cheaper to rent than to buy. This assumes of course that you will return in order to give them back.
Winter-Equipped Cars in EU
This page provided by Europcar is one of the few centralised information sources I could find on the topic. I also found this tool from Continental, allowing you to mouse-hover over different countries to check for regulation.
Bulgaria
Quoting from Europcar:
There is no legal requirement for the use of snow tires.
You should carry snow chains when travelling in Bulgaria during 1 November and 31 March as road signs across Bulgaria indicate when a snow chain is compulsory.
Hungary
Quoting from Europcar:
There is no legal requirement for the use of snow tires.
There is a legal requirement to carry snow chains when travelling in Hungary. If you fail to do so your vehicle will not be permitted to travel in Hungary.
Serbia
Quoting from Europcar:
Whilst travelling in Serbia it is compulsory to use snow tires.
You should carry snow chains when travelling in Serbia.
Austria Requires Winter Tyres
Austria requires your vehicle to be fitted with winter tyres, between the 1st November and the 15th April, if the road is in wintry conditions. This means that snow chains in the trunk are not enough to be compliant with the regulation. Quoting from the Austrian Ministry for Transport, Innovation and Technology webpage:
When there is snow, slush or ice on the roads, private cars and goods vehicles up to 3.5 tonnes must be equipped for winter driving conditions with winter tyres fitted on all four wheels. Please remember that as the temperature falls, a road surface that is simply wet can turn into black ice, in which case the winter tyres requirement applies.
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There is no common legal standard and in most countries also no common obligation to have them with you – provided that you do not drive on a road that explicitly requires them. Those however are normally only mountain passes, not highways.
There is generally a rule that you are only allowed to drive with chains on 100% snow-covered roads so you do not damage the road. So as long as you stay off those, you are prohibited from using chains, rather than forced to use them.
Here is a complete list and more details (sorry, in German), but the gist of it is:
If you drive through Bulgaria between 1 November and 31 March, you will have to carry them with you. Regarding the other countries: If you drive on ice/snow covered roads, Austria forces you to use chains. All the other countries you’ll drive through do allow them on ice-covered roads and mandate them where signs so indicate. Otherwise they are allowed, mostly subject to speed limits, and in Germany you then need to cover all four wheels unless you have a 4WD. Hungary can require you to carry snow chains on entry to the country if the conditions are known to be bad. This is however not a permanent requirement but rather changes according to road conditions.
Please note that for trucks the rules are different – there is often an obligation at least to have them with you – but I assume you drive a normal car.
Credit:stackoverflow.com‘
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