nawc driving

North American Women's Club of Eindhoven, The Netherlands

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Driving Issues

Driver's Licenses

If you are an employee or a spouse of an employee with non-EU citizenship/nationality (e.g. U.S., Canada), and qualify under the 35% tax ruling, you can exchange your foreign driver's license into a Dutch driver's license. You can do this at the city hall (gemeente). More information is available at your local gemeente. You'll need to prove the 35% ruling.

If you do not qualify for the 35% ruling, you may have to take a driving exam. Again, please speak with the gemeente for the latest rules.

Right-of-Way

is the first rule you must learn for driving in the Netherlands. Traffic on the right generally has priority unless otherwise indicated by orange diamond shaped signs along the road. Also, look for the shark teeth, a string of white triangles painted on the road at intersections. When the teeth are pointed at you (shark bite) you must stop for traffic. Most intersections are unmarked. Always slow down and look for cars. Give way to cars coming from your right. At stoplight intersections, you must always give way to cyclists, moped and pedestrians when turning left or right.

Insurance:

You must have third-party liability insurance on your vehicles. You'll get a green card which you should have at all times when you are driving. You'll need it in case of an accident. You can also buy all-risk or collision insurance to protect you from other drivers.

Other Items of Interest

There are laws against leaving your car unlocked, and parking against the direction of the traffic, amongst other things. If you have fog lamps fitted, then you may only use them outside of built-up areas where visibility is less than 50 meters. Misuse of fog lamps can lead to a Dfl 110 fine.
Seat belts must be worn at all times by drivers and front seat passengers. Back seat belts became compulsory in 1990 and must be worn where fitted (except for children under three years). Children under 12 are banned from the front seat.
Drink-Driving The Dutch drink-driving limit is currently 54 milligrams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood; or less than one pint of beer. The Dutch police carry out spot checks and by law drivers are required to take a breath test if asked. The penalties for drink driving are tough; they increase according to the alcohol level and the number of offenses.

Web Sites

www.dhp.nl/traffic - a short but useful explanation of Dutch traffic signs in English.

For information about club activities/membership contact dn.belt.@chello.nl

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