Chile on a UK Licence — The Side Switch & a 0.03 Limit (Down From 0.08)

A UK photocard licence is enough to drive in Chile for 3 months, according to GOV.UK, and the side of the road is the first thing that will go wrong. Chile drives on the right. The second change is alcohol, where the limit is 0.03, against 0.08 in England and Wales.

Licence, passport and tourist card

If you still hold a paper licence, GOV.UK says you may need to update it to a photocard or get the correct version of the international driving permit as well. Photocard holders have nothing extra to buy. What the government adds is a document rule: keep your passport and proof of your tourist status, such as the tourist card (“tarjeta de turismo”) or the entry stamp in your passport, with you in the vehicle. Put them in the glovebox pouch with the hire papers. The Driving Permit Checker shows your position for onward countries.

Right-hand traffic after a lifetime on the left

Pulling out of a petrol station, joining a roundabout that now flows the other way, glancing the wrong way at a junction: those are the moments. Spend your first hour on quiet roads, not in Santiago traffic, and name the lane out loud at each turn.

A limit nearly three times stricter

England and Wales sit at 0.08; Chile is 0.03. That is below a single pint for most people. The only safe number for a driver is zero.

Limits in miles per hour

Rural roads are 100 km/h, 4 mph above the 60 mph single-carriageway limit you know, and motorways run 5 mph above the British 70.

Fines against British ones

Chile’s penalties, in pesos:

• Phone or no seatbelt: CLP 38,000-70,000 (about EUR 35-65)
• Red light: CLP 70,000-140,000 (about EUR 65-130)
• Speeding about 20 over: CLP 70,000-140,000 plus a 5 to 45 day licence suspension
• Speeding about 30 over: CLP 140,000-280,000 (about EUR 130-260) plus a 45 to 90 day suspension

The small overspeed band is measured in a unit called UTM, with a 5 km/h tolerance. For comparison, the British flat fine for a minor speeding offence is GBP 100 plus 3 points. In Chile, licence suspension arrives sooner. Price your own case in the Speeding Fine Calculator.

Hire cars, insurance and special cases

GOV.UK says to get appropriate insurance when you hire a car. Windscreen repair can be expensive, so consider windscreen cover. On Rapa Nui (Easter Island) you cannot get car insurance, and any accident or damage to your vehicle there has to be paid for yourself.

Conditions on the road

Main roads are surfaced, but GOV.UK says you may need a 4-wheel drive in the countryside and should be prepared for conditions from snow and ice to hot sandy deserts. Between June and September, winter weather sometimes closes the Chile-Argentina border crossing high in the Andes, including Los Libertadores between Santiago and Mendoza. Toll roads are increasingly common, so ask the hire firm how tolls are paid.

Equipment: Chile is stricter

Chile’s record lists a fire extinguisher, reflective vest and warning triangle as required. In the UK they are only recommended. Check them in the hire car before you leave.

Your first day

Collect the car in daylight and not after a long flight if you can avoid it. Walk around it with the desk, photograph any marks, and ask how the tolls are charged before you drive off. Keep the passport, tourist card or entry stamp, licence and rental papers in one folder. Then take a short, quiet loop near the hotel to get used to the right-hand side, the mirrors and the junction layout. Plan the first long drive for the second day, when the reflexes have had a night to settle, and check weather and border news before any trip towards the Andes.

Emergency numbers

Police 133, ambulance 131, fire 132. Save all three; 999 goes nowhere. The Chile driving guide covers the rest.

Sources

• GOV.UK, Foreign travel advice Chile, Safety and security (UK photocard for 3 months; paper licence or correct IDP; passport and tourist card in the vehicle; hire insurance; Rapa Nui; driving conditions; Andes border): gov.uk
• Chile and United Kingdom road records on this site (limits, alcohol, penalties, equipment, emergency numbers).