Buying american plated bike in Colombia
 

I'm currently in Medellin about to embark on a moto trip down through South America. I've been looking at a Suzuki DR 650. It's on American plates. Will this be a problem for me or maybe an advantage? Anybody knows what papers I need to have everything in order? Any knowledge on the area is greatly appreciated:)

Not the same one as in this topic is it

http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...buy-bike-84710

I think you will get through all of SA with homemade papers. As long as you dont take the bike back to the states and you buy insurance along the way you will be fine.

So just redo the papers and put your name on them. Laminate them for a more official look ;)

Best regards Peter

Except the insurance won't be valid if he needs to claim.
And if the hooky papers are rumbled he could end up in jail somewhere 'orrible accused of theft.
And he won't easily be able to sell the bike after his trip, or export it anywhere.
What could possibly go wrong??

Go for it ...and just ride like you stole it...it is your chance...don't ask for advice..play by your ear.Photo shop is a great tool..as I went from Europe to Japan on a borrowed licence plate from a neighbour and registration made by photo shop ...hey..got carnet for it too........who's rules are you following..???

Safe ride my friend................................kawazoki

To your own self be true
 

keepcalm

If you can live with the possibility of running over a small child who
just happened to run out in front of you as you were avoiding a
barking dog and you can just speed away without stopping to assist that
child who may be bleeding to death, then by all means photoshop
your title!

A photoshopped title invalidates any insurance you may have purchased, and makes the importation of the bike you are riding into a foreign country illegal... if you can live with all this, then you have no conscience nor concern for your fellow man..... just photoshop away and keep running away so you don't get caught , never mind what might happen to the dying child or whatever other damage you do.

Think about it!

"Kawazoki" - The only way you could possibly give the advice you give here is if you sincerely believe everyone else does the same as you suggest by being so irresponsible as to photoshop titles and ride with fake plates..... Let me assure you - most people are responsible, most people abide by the regulations and most people do not endanger others by not having valid insurance.... Who are your friends, would they offer the same advice as you offer here? If so, get new friends, get a life and join humanity!

xfiltrate

See xfiltrate's very good post above.
And you wonder why many riders from first world countries are despised and ripped off in some countries? doh

Please don't give me that sad story about child bleeding to death...and yeas continue to advise as about how is life to be lived...looks like I can learn from you...
Just drive normally and obey traffic lows and no child is going to bleed to death
And my advice to you ..Please watch less TV

Ride safe.

I think you got this wrong ...it is going this way..

And you wonder why many riders from USA and Canada are despised and ripped off in some countries?

Haw a good night my friend

Mate,

Anyone from HICs (as opposed to LMICs) is seen as fair game in LMICs to many people.

Do the sort of stuff you are advocating and it makes it worse for everyone.

TV - haven't owned one for years, don't watch it.

But I have spent a big part of my career living and working in LMICs....

You don't really understand the concept of 'risk', do you?

The real risk of riding in LMICs is to yourself, not others. In general, travellers from HICs ride/drive in LMICs in a much more risk averse fashion than the locals.

However, having the correct paperwork and insurance is not going to magically repair the missing limb you lost when a local driver/rider drove towards you on the wrong side of the road, nor is it going to save the life of the child you ran over when swerving to avoid an animal. Having correct vehicle insurance will not assist you with medical expenses either - that is something which is covered by your travel insurance

Many locals will attempt to flee the scene after having killed or injured a 3rd party and the local police know how to deal with these situations - typically by negotiating a (relatively small by HIC standards) payment to the victim's family, combined with a contribution to the local constabulary benevolent society.


As for Xfiltrate's statement '....... and most people do not endanger others by not having valid insurance ..........', I fail to see the logic. Exactly how does not having valid vehicle insurance endanger others, given that travellers from HICs, especially motorcycle riders, are much less likely to cause serious injury to others than their local equivalents, and that the cost of health care is much less in LMICs and not a significant expense for a traveller in the highly unlikely event of such an accident scenario occuring?

Oh, and for a precise definition, risk = probability of an event occuring * severity of outcome.

Nope, that is not the definition of risk. :rolleyes2:

Nice try, though.

Er, actually it is.

How about you show me yours, I've shown you mine.

What you have quoted is the wikipedia definition of risk, which demonstrates that you actually don't understand risk in this context, either, much like kawazoki.

Read down the page a bit and you will see the wiki definition of risk that is related to this context, although even then they talk about cumulative incidence, rather than incidence rate which would be the preferred measure. There could be several acceptable denominators, depending on what risk one wanted to estimate.

No, risk is any negative outcome. You e trying to put a figure on it, which is going beyond the dictionary definition.
What seems to be ignored by the clowns who drive around without insurance is the consequences of their actions on the locals. Not outlandish to come up with a scenario where one biker puts 50 locals in hospital or the grave

Totally agree Tony, but risk in this instance can actually be formally quantified as per my post above e.g. odds of injury per 100,000 km ridden. The odds will increase for various factors - and can also be quantified - e.g. foreign rider, no insurance (YES - why else to insurance companies put up their premium for those previously convicted of riding with no insurance?), speeding, drunk riding, no helmet, no streetlights to name but a few. So, as you can see from this list, which is by no means exhaustive, kawazoki and farquhar either do not understand the concept of risk or don't care. Not good either way.

No, I have not quoted Wikipeda (never even bothered to look up what it says), what I have stated is the risk definition I learnt many, many years ago when I was trained in project management. This is the legal definition of risk and is used by businesses to determine contingency planning and risk mitigation.


As for Tony L's statement, I am sorry but it IS totally outlandish to come up with a scenario where a rider puts 50 locals in hospital. However, even that is catered for by the ' very low probabilility * very severe outcome' side of the risk equation, and I would suggest it falls well outside the scope of any insurance (i.e. would not be covered) you can purchase.

Now this sounds like getting lessons about life and definition off insurance policy and risk ...risk is what I proposed.....is any ting possible to be done in your life without insurance ? Do you ewer take any risk or first you consult you`r insurance agent ,...? Probably yes.

Rade safe

Obviously a severe lack of imagination then. However, whether it is one of fifty is irrelevant, because if you have mandatory liability insurance, all those injured or killed will be covered to the extent mandated, but of course if you have no insurance then i guess it is up to you to make it good.
This hiding behind probability to justify antisocial behaviour and refusal to apply duty of care is naive to say the least. If you choose to drive a car without being covered for its loss then that is quite OK and in fact most overlanders have to do that, but if you choose to not insure for damage you do to others, and there is no absolute certainty you can fully compensate then that becomes criminal

Threads about whether or not insurance should be carried in countries which do not strictly require it tend to devolve into insults and straw-man arguments. In the past, this has resulted in lots of moderator interference, which no one--including moderators--appreciates.

This thread is veering perilously close. Let's keep it civil, respectful, and on-topic. If you find yourself unable to do that, please consider not posting at all.

Thanks.

Mark