If you’re driving in Bosnia-Herzegovina your checklist requirements are:
- A valid, full driving licence
- An International Driving Permit –
- A Green Card – it backs up your motor insurance documents and shows you’ve got the minimum legal level of cover, you will get one from your car hire supplier
- Your motor insurance certificate and hire car paperwork
- A warning triangle inside the car in case you break down – two triangles if you’re towing a trailer
- Spare bulbs for your car’s external lights
- A first aid kit
- Winter tyres if you’re travelling between 15 November – 15 April
You must also:
- Be 18 or over
- Make sure everyone in the car wears a seatbelt at all times
- Wear a crash helmet if you’re riding a motorcycle
It’s a good idea to have:
- A fire extinguisher
Other things you should know:
- Not all insurers cover driving in Bosnia-Herzegovina so check before you go – if yours doesn’t, you can buy temporary cover at all border posts except Neum
- Petrol (leaded and unleaded), diesel and LPG are readily available
- Children under the age of 5 must use an appropriate child seat
- Children under age 12 can’t sit in the front seat
- If you’re caught committing a driving offence, whilst driving through Bosnia-Herzegovina, you’ll be given an on-the-spot fine
- The speed limit is 60kph in built-up areas, 80kph on open roads and 120kph on motorways, unless the signs say otherwise
- The drink-driving limit is 50mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood – lower than the UK limit of 80mg per 100ml
- Never go off-road in rural areas without an experienced guide – you run the risk of coming across landmines and unexploded devices
- Anyone under the influence of alcohol can’t sit in the front seat, even as a passenger
- You must use dipped headlights at all times
- It’s a good idea to avoid driving at night, if you can, as many roads have no lighting
- If you’re involved in an accident, you must wait until the police arrive
- On mountain roads, you have right of way going uphill
- Trams on the left have priority
- You must stop at pedestrian crossings, as soon as someone shows they want to cross
Useful numbers:
112 – Here’s a really important bit of knowledge; you can dial 112 from anywhere in Europe and an operator will connect you to an emergency service in the country you’re visiting. Operators can answer your call in their native language, English, and French.