An increasing number of van drivers are finding their jobs take them abroad, especially onto the continent trading with our EU partners. Any newcomers to this business need to be aware that it is not a simple case of getting a European driving licence and making sure that their commercial vehicle insurance covers them for travelling abroad.

It is now a common sight to see lorries and vans from far flung corners of the world pulled onto the hard shoulder of our motorways being interviewed by our traffic police, as they check to make sure the vehicle conforms to the standards required on UK roads. The same applies in Europe, and drivers from the UK are well advised to check on the rules of the road in foreign countries because some are far from straightforward!

Portugal is a good place to start because one unusual law there may well favour the driver from the UK. If two vehicles are equidistant from a narrow passing place then the biggest vehicle has right of way, note this states vehicle and not driver!  Staying in Portugal, traffic police have a nifty addition to their tools for the trade which is not carried by the traffic police in the UK, a card reader. Yes in Portugal one can pay an on the spot fine with a MasterCard or Visa and also be charged a 2.75% levy by the card company as well. The wonders of modern technology!

Staying in Europe but nipping over the border to Spain, any UK van driver hoping to drop off a delivery should be aware that one way streets in some cities require vehicles to be parked on the side of the road where houses bear uneven numbers on uneven days of the month, and on the side of even numbers on even days; what could be more simple…

Estonia is a country enjoying increasing trade with the UK, the capital Tallinn being one of the places to be at the moment, a real tourist hotspot. It is not the place to leave your van illegally parked however, the average fee to reclaim a towed-away vehicle is 6,000 Estonian Kroon about £320.

Wherever van drivers take their vehicle, it will pay to spend a little time researching the highway code of the nation concerned, if possible speak to colleagues who have experience of driving in the country and above all at the very least carry a language phrase book.