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Moto Insurance for Yank going to Europe using a British relatives Bike

Hi Overlanders and Travelers,

I need to insure a motorcycle that is owned by a British relative. I am a US citizen who lives in the USA and I'll take that bike around UK and some parts of Europe.

My motorcycle insurance does not cover me for out of country trips. :stormy:
I want good insurance: Liability, comp and collision. I don't want anyone being sued by anyone if the insurance can help it.

Also,
I am going to see if my Kaiser USA medical covers me on this summer trip. If you have experience with Kaiser coverage, please share.

Thank you very much.

Hi Super Suz and welcome :welcome:

It does seem to be a problem for non-EU citizens to get insurance but I did notice a while ago that Carole Nash, who are the UK's biggest insurer would do it, no guarantee though. I would phone them as the on-line quote system will reject you straight away, if you do find a company could you post it here for others, this question come up occasionally.

Mark

Great Value Motorbike Insurance from Carole Nash, the UK’s Favourite Bike Insurance Broker*. Get a Quote for Your Motorbike Now!

Depending on the company and type of coverage that your "relative" has, you may be covered while riding his bike. If not, see if he can UP Grade his policy to allow "friends" to ride the bike, or loan his bike to friends.

Also, make sure his policy is the Green Card type, which covers you in most of the EU. (EU member countries, IIRC)

Kaiser
Former Kaiser member here. Far as I remember most Kaiser policies cover you when out of the country. But you will most likely have to PAY UP FRONT for services, then apply to Kaiser for re-inbursment once you return. So save receipts!! (this may have changed since I was a member)

Collecting what's owed you could end up being a major PITA. (knowing Kaiser as I do!)

But call Kaiser to confirm. Lots has changed lately and that's why I'm no longer a member. (The ACA rocks!)
My current coverage is costing half of Kaiser, with better coverage ... including international.

I'm sure things have changed since I was in the UK, but in '02 I was able to ensure a bike I bought in UK (US Citizen). Full Cover from Bennett's. I did it all over the phone and used a friends house as "my residence". They never said a word or asked if I was a UK citizen. Now? dunno. And get this ... Brits Driver license's have NO NUMBER on them! (or did not when I was there!)
:rofl:

I called Bennett's and had a policy in 10 minutes. Paid with US Visa card.
A week later policy arrived and I was off for 6 weeks tour all over Europe. Cost about $300 USD / year for 3 year old Triumph Tiger, full cover.

The following year I got some discounts as I discovered the bike had an alarm system and was "Data Tagged". Sold bike after three years and two major tours. All good. Bennett's were EXCELLENT to deal with. YMMV.
bier

I'm fairly sure that your US insurance would not be legal in the UK. (Sorry, I've just noticed that may be medical insurance you are talking about, in which case, ignore me.)

However, re motorcycle insurance, the situation mollydog describes for a US citizen buying a bike in the UK and insuring it is very different from insuring a British relative's bike as an additional rider. As he says, there would normally be no issue with a US rider with a valid licence getting insurance with any insurance company for a bike he/she owned. However, insuring someone else's bike for you to ride is a whole different kettle of fish. The reason I know? I tried to get insurance for an American friend to ride my bike back in 2005. (OK, that was a long time ago, but generally insurance conditions in the UK are tighter now than they were then - but, as always, I look forward to being corrected.)

I had comprehensive cover on my bike and had my husband insured as additional ('named') rider - so there were, theoretically, no restrictions on my nominating a different 'named rider'. Even so, I found it absolutely impossible to get a quote, with the insurers coming back with the most stupid questions/conditions. "Does your friend have a UK licence?" "Could he take a test and get a UK licence?" "Could you sell your bike to your friend?" And so forth ... So I took the matter up with Simon Weir, a motorcycle journalist formally at Bike Magazine, and he called the Press Office at Norwich Union.

I checked my emails for his reply, but they didn't go back that far. Luckily, this question comes up quite often and I had posted it on another forum. This is from 31/05/2005. It's written in British English insurance jargon, so if there is anything you need to clarify, ask away.

Quote:

Just had Norwich Union on the phone, and to be honest, they were a bit
perplexed. In as much as the press officer poked the underwriters, who
all shrugged. Adding another rider to your policy? Makes no difference
where they come from as long as their licence is valid for the category
of vehicle driven/ridden. Massive extra cost? Shouldn't be a problem.

It's worth checking with DVLA that the same rules apply to bikes as to
cars, but the (American) NU press officer was adamant that US licences
can be used for a limited number of months in the UK, to allow tourists
to hire cars and drive over here. Retests for full UK licences are
required only if the US citizen intends to live and drive in Britain.

As to the additional cost of adding another rider to the policy, I'm
told that as far as NU are concerned, it should be an administrative
charge rather than a review of the policy price (assuming that the
rider concerned has no licence endorsements and no history of huge
insurance claims). The reason is that you're still the main rider,
you're still setting the risk and the named rider is taken to be
qualified by your recommendation (subject to the clean licence/clean
claims history caveat). They did stress that some policies don't allow
for any named riders and those would obviously be different - but
clearly your policy can't fall into that category, as you already have
a named rider!

Their advice is to find out the specific reasons for either the refusal
or price hike. If the insurer wants an international driving licence
(not necessary, but they may want to cover themselves) that would mean
your friend needs to spend $30-odd to get the bit of paper. If they're
concerned to see his claims history, maybe he could supply a letter
from his insurers. If they're just trying to use this as a reason to
gouge you for more money... they'll have to admit it. The point to
press is that while it's fair to pay an administration fee (say, £30)
it's not fair to double the price of the policy. I'm not sure whether
I'd wave the insurance ombudsman at them, but it's a last resort if you
get no sense.

I hope this helps.

Thanks. I'l look into all of these tips.

You guys are great! Any more, let me know.
Suz

This might be useful:

Green Card

It obviously talks about insuring your own bike, no idea how or if it would work with a borrowed bike.

Please post back with what you end up doing.

Hi,

Try and talk to http://www.clements.com/ . They do a car insurance (possibly also bike), that is called Professionals Abroad. It's an insurance that was designed for people, that went overseas to work. Often temporarily.

I've used them in the past and found them uncomplicated to deal with. They will insure you locally wherever your vehicle is based for the 3rd party bit, so all the right documents get issued. You also get world wide recovery, the international insurance card etc. And the comprehensive part of the insurance is done with an insurance in the states.

I've only had cars insured with them, but might be worth talking to them and see, if they also do bikes.

/M

I noticed 5 years ago, when I took off for a mc-trip into the US, that there seems to be a fundamental difference with vehicle insurance on different sides of the pond: in the US, the person gets insured to ride/drive vehicle A, B or C, and then there can be additional persons added to that insurance, so that your family members can also use the vehicle(s) for example.......... while over here in the EU, every vehicle has to be insured with at least compulsory 3rd party traffic insurance required by law, and it does not really matter, who rides/drives it, long as he/she holds a valid license for that vehicle.

...BUT: I´m really no expert on this, and not 100% sure of anything I said, and if there are other possibilities available for a tourist, and so on.. so DO take all of the above with a grain of salt – and if I´m wrong, then I´ll be happy to get corrected.

Quote:

Originally Posted by pecha72 (Post 454039)

while over here in the EU, every vehicle has to be insured with at least compulsory 3rd party traffic insurance required by law, and it does not really matter, who rides/drives it, long as he/she holds a valid license for that vehicle.

It's not as easy as that, I'm afraid. It varies from country to country in Europe.

If you take Ireland, the insurance follows the person, not the vehicle. I believe it's the same in the UK. Take Denmark or Germany, the insurance follows the vehicle, not the person.

You then also have to take into consideration, that if Super Suz gets named on the owners insurance and has an accident, this will affect the owners no claims bonus.

So going out and insuring the bike independantly is a very valid task.

/M

Ok, Thought it would be the same for all of EU, but now I learned new things already. Thanks!

Supe Suz

Quick question please:

I see that you plan to ride a relative's bike through other countries in Europe. How do you plan to deal with proving ownership at the borders? In the bike's title will be your relative's name not yours. Will you have a permit from him or something?

I ask because I plan on doing the same thing and haven't figured this out yet.

thx.

If Super Suz is riding within the EU, she will probably never be asked to provide any documentation for the motorcycle and the fact that she has (assuming she manages to organise it) a valid insurance certificate showing her as being insured to ride the motorcycle, all will be well. "Borders", as such, no longer exist between EU countries. You generally drive through or around an abandoned customs post and past an EU sign telling you that you are entering another country, followed by another telling you the applicable speed limits for town, country and motorway.

To dot all the i's and cross the t's, Suz could ask her relative to write a brief letter of authorisation, but it likely won't be needed. She will probably not, however, be able to take the bike out of the EU without major hassle. To enter Russia, for instance, it is essential that the owner of the vehicle travels with it.