I have just bought a new Spanish registered car [can't believe it] and wondered if anyone knows the exact requirements regarding essential documents that have to be carried in the car at all times. I know I should not keep the originals in the car, use copies but should these copies be 'stamped' by the Noterio ?

You need the Insurance or bank statement showing you have paid it, the ITV if your car is over 4years old, Driving Licence, Papers to show the car is your i.e purchase receipt, you can take em to Trafico in Alicante to be stamped or notaried the law now says it is up to the policia to prove it is not your car but best to be safe !!

This is a sort of mixed bag from my own "beliefs" plus some stuff from other boards

For the car you need the ficha tecnica, permiso de circulacion, ITV (if appropriate for your vehicle) and any paperworks about additional homologated parts (tow bars, extra fog lights etc.) There seems to be some doubt about whether you still need to carry insurance documents as the police now have access to a computerised database from their cars. I carry my insurance documentation and proof that it has been paid for the current year. I've never seen anything that says you need to carry the documentation on road tax, impuestos sobre vehiculos, but it seems sensible to keep it with the rest. There seem to be conflicting views on whether the car should carry a receipt or not - again why not just keep it with the rest. I also think that carrying all the paper helps to show that you are an upright citizen so that the Guardia may tend towards leniency in a close call situation.

For yourself you need your driving licence and personal ID whether that is passport, ID card or "Green Residencia"/passport combination. I have a view on the need to have a current "medical" and how long you can drive in Spain on another EU driving licence but I think that as long as your licence is valid in any EU country then Spanish checks are unlikely to catch you out in any way.

In the vehicle you need the two warning triangles and the fluorescent jackets (one for everyone who steps outside the car apparently and accessible from inside the car) plus spare specs/contact lenses if that's what you use to see with. The light bulbs may or may not still be compulsory. The law was heralded as being changed, Guardia were told to stop issuing fines but I'm not sure if it has actually been repealed yet. If you have spare bulbs in your car I'd leave them there.

There are other bits of kit which people have been variously required to carry at some time in the past so that the folklore is that they are still required - first aid kits, spare wheels and tools to change them spring to mind. I don't think they are a legal requirement but obviously having any safety gear like First Aid stuff and fire extinguishers is a good idea even when they are not a legal requirement.

You are not required to carry snow chains but you can be prohibited from proceeding on a road without chains.

Regarding the paperwork notarized copies are acceptable in place of original documents. Photocopies are not. Bear in mind that if you get someone who wants to be stroppy that means that everything needs to be notarised - for instance with a UK photo driving licence you would need both sides of the licence plus both sides of the counterfoil.

It seems much easier to me to just carry the originals. After all if someone has just nicked your motor the fact that they have your original ITV certificate is hardly here nor there.