After riding down to St Tropez on a GSXR400 I thought that the next stupid thing to do would be to ride across America. A couple of problems have arisen though, firstly I am looking at buying an XR650L but can’t find one for love nor money, secondly the insurance companies for USA and Canada mentioned on this site do not seem to want to offer insurance to someone who is only 21..
Has anybody got any experience in trying to get motorcycle insurance in the US or Canada who are not 25 or older?
Alternatively would it be easier to just catch a flight to America and organise buying a bike out there in combination with insurance, rather than the hassle of shipping and all this paperwork chasing.
As far as finding an XR650L, I live in London and have so far only found a number of overpriced xr650r’s. Where is the best place to look?
Any help that anybody could offer me would be extremely gratefully received, as I need to get out of London as soon as possible…

Your best bet might be to establish whether any of the Desert Riders machines are still available (though Chris Scott?).

Other than that, there was a company (?? the name) selling imported XRLs brand new through the back of TBM - Trail Bike Magazine. If memory serves, they were about 4300GBP.

If you're not sure about the bike, you're welcome to have a look at mine. I commute on it every day from Greenwich to Bloomsbury, and would be delighted to meet up.

HTH

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My XR650L Pan-Med Expedition Site!

I recommend that you purchase your bike and outfit it in the US. It will be less expensive and less hassle, and when you are done with your trip you can sell it here. Try www.cycletrader.com and find the XR650L you need. For panniers and other bits, try www.happy-trail.com and for a large gas tank try www.clarkemfg.com

You should also consider the US version of the Kawasaki KLR650. Its different than the Euro version as it comes with a large tank stock. Its also inexpensive and very common here, so you won't have any problems finding one and you might find one that is already outfitted and ready to go. If you need to outfit that, try www.dual-star.com and www.happy-trail.com

For insurance, try Country Companies Insurance. I know for a fact that they insure riders under 21. I'm not 100% sure on this, but I think all you need is a physical address in the US where they can mail your insurance card (No PO BOX). Specify that you need a "Yellow Card" for Canada coverage as well if you plan to cross the border. The price for coverage varies depending on where that physical address that you gave is. If you pick a small town, far from any large city, then your rates will be very low. For an XR650L, I can't imagine it to be more than $350 for 6 months of Full coverage and if you don't use your whole 6 months, they will only charge you for the time you used it.

http://www.countryfinancial.com



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Improvement makes strait roads, but the crooked roads without Improvement, are roads of Genius - William Blake

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Improvement makes strait roads, but the crooked roads without Improvement, are roads of Genius - William Blake

Thanks for the posts.
I have tried the insurance suggestions and found them unfortuantly to be no good. If anybody has any further ideas about how I can insure myself in America on a motorbike being only 21 then please post a reply!
The way things are going I am going to have to forge a passport and I don't want to do that again..
Thanks

[This message has been edited by andyr (edited 28 May 2003).]

You can definitely insure yourself at the age of 21. After all it is legal to ride bikes from 16 in most states.

When i first arrived in the US, at 21 also, I got insurance through a guy who was happy to accept a UK drivers license. He told me to sort out a US one 'soon', but that didn't invalidate the policy.

You won't have much luck with the big companies, but if you're over there, pop down to a dealer, or flick through the yellow pages and you will be sure to find an independent insurance agent who will sell you a policy.

FWIW Washington state, for example, doesn't even require motorcycle insurance, so you can buy a bike there, register it, and off you go.

good luck

I live in Washington State and yes, t0by is correct that you don't need insurance to ride here, but I would caution that once you cross state lines (into Oregon for example) you are warned with nice large signs that insurance is required by showing a picture of some guy on a bike and the words underneath "Insurance Required". Having a UK license, you might be given some grace should a police officer pull you over, but I wouldn't count on it. Good luck with everything and sorry my insurance recommendation didn't work out for you.

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Improvement makes strait roads, but the crooked roads without Improvement, are roads of Genius - William Blake

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Improvement makes strait roads, but the crooked roads without Improvement, are roads of Genius - William Blake

Looks like I am off to america then! I can't say how grateful I am to the people who have been arsed to reply.. The problem has been trying to get information as I have been told so many conflicting stories regarding insurance in America, admittedly on reflection by people who haven’t ridden abroad let alone across the states..
The day of departure has yet to be finalised, but the fact that the rent on my house runs out in four weeks and the bank keeps on sending letters offering me a university leavers loan it should be pretty soon..

With the temptation of a loan and the fact that I can buy an R1 quite easily on eBay the next couple of weeks should be interesting..
Thanks again to you all for replying