Four changes for drivers in France in February 2025

Four changes in France are set to affect drivers next month, including an increase in motorway péage rates, changes in carte grise costs, and a fall in electricity tariffs.

Motorway péage increases

From February 1 it will cost more to use toll motorways in France, with an average increase of 0.92% nationally. The price rises will depend on the motorway management company.

Below are the toll increases for each major route operator in France, from lowest to highest:

• ASF (Vinci Autoroutes): 0.77%

• Cofiroute (Vinci Autoroutes): 0.77%

• Escota (Vinci Autoroutes): 0.77%

• Sanef: 0.85%

• APRR: 1.08%

• AREA: 1.10%

• SAPN: 1.14%

• ATMB (Mont Blanc tunnel operator): 1.15%

Péage prices had been forecast to increase due to the government levying a new tax on motorway companies. However the rise has been less than expected.

The companies had been angered by this and threatened to pass the cost onto users but this has not yet happened.

Tolls can be paid either with cash, bank card, or a télépéage toll badge. The increases also apply to barrier-free (flux libre) motorways, including the A13/A14.

French President Emmanuel Macron recently announced that he plans to legalise the use of smartphones to pay motorway tolls.

Read also: Barrier-free French motorway: driver complaints increase over extra fines
Read more: Money saver: Ways to reduce motorway toll fees in France 
Read also: Motorway tolls increase in France in February 

Vehicle registration increases

In some regions, the cost of registering a vehicle (obtaining a carte grise) is set to rise.

Normandy will see the highest increase per prix du cheval fiscal (per vehicle), with registration having risen from €46 to €60, a 30% increase year-on-year. It comes after Normandy increased its rates last year also, from €35 to €46.

• Corsica has also increased its rates: From €27 to €43

• Nouvelle-Aquitaine: From €45 to €53

• PACA: From €51.20 to €59 

• Centre-Val de Loire: From €55 to €60

• Grand Est: From €48 to €60 

• Brittany: From €55 to €60.

Read also: French driving documents can now be delivered via a simplified procedure 

Electricity tariff decrease

Good news for electric vehicle drivers; from Saturday February 1, 2025, regulated electricity prices will fall by an average of 15%.

This means that drivers who charge their vehicles at home will likely see a significant drop in the cost of charging (except for those who are on fixed tariffs and will not see an immediate price change).

Emmanuelle Wargon, president of the Commission de Régulation de l'Énergie (CRE), has said this is the first time that there has been such a drop in 10 years.

It comes after a decree on December 28, 2024 confirmed the end of the electricity tariff shield (bouclier tarifaire). The shield had been introduced in 2022 to protect consumers from soaring electricity prices. 

Despite the end of the shield the regulated electricity tariff (le tarif réglementé de l’électricité) is set to fall, after the CRE said that tariffs should be reinstated at €239 including VAT on February 1. This represents a drop of €42 on average since February 1 last year when they averaged €281.

The CRE said that the reason for the drop is due to “sharply declining market prices, linked to a gradual return to normality following the energy price crisis”.

Tougher road offence penalties in south of France

From February, drivers who commit road offences in south-east France are set to have their licence suspended for longer, as a prefect aims to increase deterrents against irresponsible driving behaviour.

The prefect of Alpes-Maritimes, Hugues Moutouh, announced on Wednesday, January 29, that penalties will be tightened in the department. He said that the number of road accidents was still too high.

Read also: Drivers face tougher penalties for road infractions in south of France 

From February, the type of offence that will lead to a licence suspension will increase, as will the duration of the licence suspension.

For example:

• Those found to be drink-driving will receive a suspension of eight months instead of six

• Those who are found to be driving when on drugs, or who refuse to submit to a breathalyser or alcohol test will receive 10 or 11 months instead of six

• Speeding in excess of 40 km/h will be punished with six months suspension regardless of the speed exceeded, compared with a minimum of four months

• The use of a mobile phone while driving will face three months suspension compared to one.

It comes after the prefecture said that 2024 was “another bad year”, with 334 serious injuries caused by accidents on the roads. There were 785 accidents, and 55 people died (one more than the 54 the year before).