The requirement arises out of the Loi Montagne II 2016, which came into effect in 2021.
All the main mountain areas in France are affected by the law - the Alpes, Massif Central, Jura, Pyrénées, and Vosges.
That means nearly 50 department are covered by it: Ain, Allier, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, Hautes-Alpes, Alpes-Maritimes, Ardèche, Ariège, Aude, Aveyron, Cantal, Corrèze, Côte-d'Or, Creuse, Doubs, Drôme, Gard, Haute-Garonne, Hérault, l'Isère, Jura, Loire, Haute-Loire, Lot, Lozère, Meurthe-et-Moselle, Moselle, la Nièvre, Puy-de-Dôme, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Hautes-Pyrénées, Pyrénées-Orientales, Bas-Rhin, Haut-Rhin, Rhône, Haute-Saône, Saône-et-Loire, la Savoie, Haute-Savoie, Tarn, Tarn-et-Garonne, Var, Vaucluse, Haute-Vienne, Vosges, l'Yonne, and the Territoire de Belfort.
Nevertheless, it does not necessarily apply throughout every department or on every road; it is down to the local prefet alongside the councils to determine the communes and roads concerned, although in most departments it means 100% coverage. You need to check to website of the local prefecture to to see the plan for the department.
The areas are signposted to indicate to drivers if they are entering and leaving a designated area, as shown on the image above.
It applies for the whole of the winter period, from 1st Nov to 31st March.
The requirement concerns not only local residents, but any vehicle entering one of the designated areas.
All light and commercial vehicles, motor homes, etc must comply, and there are tougher requirements for heavy goods vehicles and coaches
Vehicles must be equipped either with four winter tyres or at least two snow chains or socks carried in the vehicle. Vehicles equipped with studded tyres (pneus à clous) are exempt and all-weather (4 seasons) tyres are accepted.
In concrete terms, winter tyres are defined in the law as those with the universal standard 'M + S' (Mud and Snow) marking. From 1st Nov 2024, the tyres must also carry the marking '3PMSF' (3 Peak Mountain Snow Flake) or 'alpin'. Most tyres of M+S standard will normally carry both markings. 'Four-season' tyres must have the markings above.
Tyre industry specialists in France state that winter tyres do not wear out more quickly than summer tyres, but only provided the temperature does not exceed 7°C.
Insurance accident claims in future will no doubt require that the vehicle was suitably booted.
The penalty for non-compliance is a fine of €135 and the possible immobilisation of your vehicle.
In many departments it is not an entirely new requirement, for under a previous legislation the traffic authorities were entitled to put in place during snowy conditions the sign «B26 équipements spéciaux obligatoires» when studded tyres or chains became obligatory.
You can see more on the government website at Nouveaux équipements hivernaux.
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