If you’re driving in Serbia your checklist requirements are:

  • A valid, full driving licence
  • Your motor insurance certificate and V5 registration document or hire car paperwork
  • A warning triangle inside the car in case you break down
  • A first aid kit
  • Winter tyres and snow chains if you’re driving from 1st November to 1st April

You must also:

  • Drive on the right
  • Be 18 or over
  • Make sure everyone in the car wears a seat belt at all times

It’s a good idea to have:

  • Spare bulbs for your car’s external lights
  • A fire extinguisher
  • A Green Card – it’s a useful back-up to your motor insurance documents and shows you’ve got the minimum legal level of cover.
  • An International Driving Permit

Other things you should know:

  • Not all insurers cover driving in Serbia so check before you go – if yours doesn’t, you can buy temporary cover at the main border crossings
  • You might have to pay motorway tolls – these are payable in cash or with Mastercard, Maestro, Visa or American Express cards
  • Petrol (leaded and unleaded) and diesel are readily available.
  • Some parts of the motorway between Novi Sad and Belgrade have two lanes with a hard shoulder on one side only. Some drivers will use the ‘middle’ lane for overtaking, forcing other drivers onto the hard shoulder
  • Speed limits vary across Serbia, so check the signposts for maximum speeds
  • If you’re caught committing a driving offence, whilst driving through Serbia, you’ll be given an on-the-spot fine
  • Children under age 12 can’t travel in the front seat and must use an appropriate seat restraint in the back
  • A person will be considered to be under the influence of alcohol if the percentage of alcohol present in the blood is 0.03% or higher
  • Never go off-road in rural areas without an experienced guide – you run the risk of coming across landmines and unexploded devices
  • Some hire car companies won’t let you take the car to Kosovo, Albania or Bulgaria because of safety concerns – there have been a few incidents of Serbian-registered cars being targeted in Kosovo
  • Trams have priority over all other vehicles. Priority must also be given to cyclists using cycle tracks
  • Horns must not be used in built-up areas, or at night except in cases of imminent danger or if the vehicle is transporting a person who is in need of urgent medical attention.
  • At intersections, drivers must give way to traffic from the right, unless a priority road is indicated
  • Priority at roundabouts is normally indicated with a “Give way” or a Stop sign. In the absence of signs, the approaching driver must give priority to vehicles coming from the right