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Update requested on ADAC coverage of overseas bikes
Hello All:
I recall reading here some years ago that ADAC (the German auto association) sold liability coverage for motos for about 25 Euro a month. This provided "green card" liability coverage within the EC. I'm planning to go to Europe next week (my Canadian registered moto is already there, in storage), and I am considering getting this liability coverage from ADAC, if it is still offered. Is it sufficient to just go to an ADAC office, bringing the appropriate paperwork for the moto with you, and buy the coverage that way? Right now, the moto is not insured, so I can't ride it. But I do have a car at my disposal. Would appreciate a quick update from anyone who has gone through this process recently. Michael |
Disregard - I saw the "Knopf Motorradreisen" banner advertisment in the Europe forum, clicked on it, and bought my insurance from them.
It would be a good idea if you put that advertisement in this forum, since they offer motorcycle insurance and also shipping. Michael |
Not wanting to disregard you http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/ubb/wink.gif but the info is to the best of my knowledge still current. I believe they are the only co. offering GC in Germany and Knopf are merely reselling it, but with Knopf you don't have to front up in person.
Happy travels. ------------------ Salut from Southern France, the bikers' paradise, Peter. |
Michael,
just phoned the ADAC. They do not offer coverage for foreigners, so Knopf was probably the best bet. Hans |
I went through Knopf last month for my USA registered motorcycle and looking at the papers, the green card is issued by ARISA Assurances S.A. in Luxembourg and it says that the claims settlement contractor is ADAC in Germany. It only covers EU countries, so I rode illegaly in Romania, Bulgaria, and now Macedonia. Every border except the Romanian has asked for my green card, and I show them my Knopf issued one with the country list on the first page and the non-EU countries clearly crossed out, yet they don't seem to notice. This is probably not the best idea - I'm going to try to find some way to get some insurance for these countries.
I bought my insurance for 6 months and paid $360, but looking at the forms he paid 132 Euro for the policy ($172). I imagine that it takes him 2 hours to exchange emails with me, collect my payment, and drive over to the agency and fill out the forms and stuff. $188 is a LOT of $$$ for 2 hours of work. While I in no way want to put down a paying advertiser on this site, especially one who delivered what was promised, I think there must be a less expensive way. ------------------ Improvement makes strait roads, but the crooked roads without Improvement, are roads of Genius - William Blake [This message has been edited by CountPacMan (edited 21 April 2005).] |
Hans, I think the person you spoke to didn't know what s/he was talking about. Check out: http://www.arisa.lu/Grenzversicherung.htm
It says there that they provide insurance for foreign vehicles and that any ADAC office sells their policy. Cost for bikes: 22Eur/month. Incidentally, they state that they also provide insurance coverage for German export plates, also through ADAC. ------------------ Salut from Southern France, the bikers' paradise, Peter. |
Yep, Arisa's offer links directly to the ADAC site. I couldnt discover anything except the standard insurance stuff (calculation sheet etc). No hint re non German or non EU persons.
I'll give it another try on Monday. Basically this should be possible, as lots of people from Turkey or where ever must be able to get their vehicles insured. But naturaly they have a permanent address here. Hans |
Sorry, the german automobile association (ADAC) definitely does not offer insurances for any motor vehicles. They refer to ARISA.
I just phoned the ADAC. Hans |
I bought insurance for my UK registered Transalp in Germany at an ADAC office. No problem.
It is frequently the case that the place you buy your insurance from is not *really* the insurer: it is done on the broker system. So it is technically correct to say that the ADAC do not provide insurance *directly*, but, in practice, they do. Two things: 1. You have to have your vehicle with you. They sometimes want to inspect the VIN and engine numbers. 2. I am pretty sure this is only offered to EU citizens. I am not sure about this, but I think so. I know that Knopft tours do, however, offer insurance to non-EU citizens. I found the insurance very cheap, and there was no long series of questions like in UK about my age, occupation, eating habits etc. They were happpy to offer monthly coverage too, which is just great. Again, I have never found this flexibility in the UK, where a year is the obligatory term for all vehicle insurance. |
You (and the ADAC people) must not confuse "normal" insurance for German registered vehicles and the "border" insurance ONLY available to foreign vehicles. As you say, Hans, Arisa's web site points straight to the ADAC and the ADAC has offered this type of insurance for a long time. It's just that some employees know how to find information and some don't. Try another office or try contacting the ADAC head office and ask for "Grenzverkehr".
------------------ Salut from Southern France, the bikers' paradise, Peter. |
Hi All,
I've posted a green card question in another topic yesturday. But, I see that this discussion is deeply here. As far as I understood, it is possible to get a green card for non-EU countries from ADAC in Germany. I will pass through Croatia, Slovenia, Serbia and Montenegro and Macedonia which are non-EU contries. 1- I am a citizen of Turkish Republic and it is non-EU. 2- I have UK driving licance and UK registered bike 3- I have UK student visa and I'll have all the relevant visas for other countries. According to this information is it possible to get a Green Card in Germany from ADAC for €22 or €25 for a month? If not, any reliable advices and web sites are wellcome! Getting insurance at the borders are quite expensive compering to €22. A quota from Tony Carr who has ride to Turkey and back last month. He is also a HU member. See his posts on Travellers Seeking Travellers/UK To Cyprus ************************************************** ****** I changed my route from Romania to Serbia and the first thing I was asked for in Serbia was my Green Card, I didn't have it for Serbia so I had to pay 87 Euros for one months cover. ************************************************** ******* BTW, thanks for your help Peter for your reply in the other topic. Thanks in advance to all of you. Ozhan Unverdi [This message has been edited by ozhanu (edited 26 April 2005).] |
Well, the number I phoned was the call centre of the ADAC. I suppose you have to be insisting to get a positive answer.
I'll try to get a written reply ;-) Hans |
Just a follow-up here: As I mentioned above, I purchased the insurance through Knopf, and I was very happy with their service. I emailed them on a Thursday, and the following Monday, the green card was waiting for me at my hotel in Zurich. So, these folks get a 10 out of 10 for quality of service.
It is correct that the Knopf insurance is through ARISA, and it is only valid in the EU countries. For the riding I will be doing this month, that meets my needs. Although it might be possible to save a small amount by purchasing the insurance direct (meaning, not through Knopf), I think the value they add by doing all the paperwork, and doing it very quickly, fully justifies any markup they may add to the basic fee. As far as insurance for 'out of Europe' bikes in the non-EU countries, the only folks I know who underwrite that is Motorcycle Express in the United States. I have dealt with them before, and they also have excellent service. But, their insurance is quite expensive - about 4 or 5 times more than through Knopf. However - I think they are the 'only game in town' for insurance coverage outside of the EC. Michael |
Hi Folks,
Fresh update about ADAC green card. I have a friend in Germany. I've asked her to call the ADAC for me. They told her that, to have a Green Card from ADAC-Germany, you must eihter a German citizen or you must have a German reg. plate. However, I've found a insurance company who do insurance almost for all Europa (EU and non-EU) and Turkey and Israel. I don't know have you heard about it or not but the insurance company called Carol Nash and it is quite famous in UK. I think I'm gonna change my insurance company. Good luck u all! ------------------ ride safely ozhan u. www.ozhanu.com |
Im flying in to germany this Thursday, heading to Augsburg to pick up a bike I purchased on the German Ebay (a beautiful 84 R100RT)
Im going to register it in Germany for export, and attempt to get the insurance from ADAC direct. (I have both US and EU citizenship) I figure I'll try it myself first, if it doesnt work out i'll get help from Knopf. Ill give an update of how things went here. g |
Hi all,
Im in Augsburg, Germany, nice little town.... Heres a recap: Im a US citizen with a us drivers license, also a french citizen with French passport. From US I bought an old BMW boxer on the German Ebay sight unseen, and flew into Germany to pick it up and take off. Well, I just registered my new (1979 r100rt) bike here in germany. I registered it at the "BurgenBuro" which is basically their DMV. Didnt ever visit the ADAC, though i probably will in France. I don't speak German, and the fella who was hapling me had never done it before, but we regisitered it "for export" which meant that they gave me regular metal plates and insurance but they are only good for 5 days. Long enough to get me to France where I'll register it more permanently, without having to worry about the TUV, which expires on this bike next month. Soooooo the total cost for this temp registration was: 75 Euros. That includes plate, insurance, and papers. I tried to find out the best I could about getting more time on this temp registration, and found that it is possible to get 15 days on it, but first you have to visit the customs office before the Burgenburo. I just opted out on that, and will drive extra fast to France : ). BTW, if anyone in US is wondering about the relative cost of BMW parts in Germany, forget about it. I went to a BMW Motorcycle dealer and had them get on the computer and give me some prices and they averaged 50% more than US. Some parts were twice as much, honest. Got my Bing carbs synchronized for only 20 euros, however. gregory [This message has been edited by Universalcat (edited 20 June 2005).] |
I had the following email communication with the ADAC last week
ME TO ADAC I´m British. My Honda Transalp motorcycle is GB-registered. I intend to park the bike in Spain/France and use it to tour southern Europe and store it locally in-between trips. I will fly to the bike, ride it, and fly back to Britain. This would save long journeys by road from England to the south of France and ferry costs etc. Rather than insure it in Great Britain, I think it would be cheaper (the bike is of low value and is not worth insuring fully comprehensive) and easier for me to buy your ADAC Greencard/ Grenzversicherung insurance for times when the bike is being used and leave it parked/uninsured away from a public road for the majority of the time in southern Europe. Is this possible? I could buy your policy at one of your offices when visiting my family in Germany. ADAC TO ME, PRETTY MUCH BY RETURN it is possible to buy a green card insurance ( called Grenzversicherung ) for your motorcycle in Germany. The insurance is only a third party insurance. We don´t offer a fully comprehensive insurance for foreign cars or bikes. When you arrive Germany, you have to go to an ADAC-Center with your identity card and the motorcycle documents. Your motorcycle need a valid approval in the U.K. For a motorcycle the insurance cost 22,-- per month. The maximum time you can buy it is 12 month. Unfortunately it´s not possible to send an application in the post. Best regards ADAC-Schutzbrief Versicherungs-AG Kraftfahrt- und Reiseversicherungen Am Westpark 8 81373 München Tel.: (089) 7676-5186 Fax: (089) 7676-4014 ========================= So all seems ok, so far. But what about "Your motorcycle need a valid approval in the U.K." The closest German for "a valid approval" is "eine gueltige Zulassung". This could also mean "a valid registration". So when does a motor vehicle have "a valid approval" in the UK? For it to be "validly approved" does it need an MOT (FYI, if you're not British: yearly roadworthiness check) and does it need to have its road tax paid? As we Brits know, for you to be able to get a tax disk, you need to produce a proof of insurance AND an MOT certificate. I was hoping not to have to get the bike back to the UK just to spend 15 minutes in a MOT inspection centre. The whole point of me trying to get insurance via the ADAC, was to avoid the cost/time of return the bike to the UK. Any comments? The phrase "legal in country of origin" springs to mind. cheers ChrisB PS. The bike is already parked in southern Spain! ------------------ TheBrightStuffDotCom [This message has been edited by chris (edited 07 September 2005).] |
I have a bit of expertise in all this, living in France, running variously registered vehicles.
It is the law that any vehicle on the road in the EU must be totally legal in its home country - that is to say taxed, insured and inspected. This what "a valid approval" means I would say. In practice, is the young man in the ADAC office going to ask you for MOT and tax disk? Very unlikely. When I purchased insurance in Germany I was only asked for registration papers. Maybe if you get in an accident, absence of MOT and tax may be an issue. I don't know. But otherwise, no cop in continental Europe is going to know anything about UK requirements. Why would they? Just to illustrate my point: in France there is no MOT for motorcycles. Incredible I know. So no traffic cop is going to ask you to prouce it now, are they? Every country has different rules, and cops are completely uninterested in enforcing technical rules on foreigners - as long as you don't do anything stupid you are fine. The staff in the ADAC are similarly disinclined to bother. They haven't a clue about UK rules. As long as you own it, they are happy. If you do have problems, just go down the road to the next office. There is an office in every town, several in cities. In France there are loads of ex-pats running UK registered vehicles without MOT and tax. I am not saying it is a good thing, just noting the fact. Technically you have to register vehicles in your place of residence after six months. But few go to the hassle, and incur the disadvantages. This makes running a UK vehicle on the continent significantly cheaper. The only problem I could see with your plan, is if you park the bike for months on end with a UK plate in clear sight. The cops may wonder what is going on. Lastly, there are no restrictions on where you go with ADAC insurance inside the EU. So this is good for you, wanting to use the bike on the continent all the time. Some UK companies would not like the idea. It is also cheaper than UK. Hope this helps. Simon |
Oh, I forgot to mention, the ADAC wants to see both you and the bike in Germany. They are insistent on this.
This may be a stumbling block? You could try going office to office, until you find someone lazy enought to believe it is outside withot seeing it, but this is a gamble. |
simon
cheers for your quick and detailed reply. i'm not sure i'm "thinking/worrying" too much. i spent a year in south america in 2001/02 on a bike with absolutely no bike-insurance whatsoever... thanks chris ------------------ TheBrightStuffDotCom |
I did it a couple of months ago with an aussie registered bike. No bike inspection, just showed valid registration. check out-
http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/ubb...ML/000728.html Sean |
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hi beddhist
i have a euro/brit registered bike. i am a european/brit. in south america i didn't have any insurance because as a non-south-american, i couldn't get any (or at least i don't think i could get any: every canadian/us-american/european on a bike that i met didn't have any either). ChrisB ------------------ TheBrightStuffDotCom |
I emailed knopf tours about insuring a bike with french papers while living in spain on a US passport... they said they can do it for 60 euros a month. If anyone knows of a cheaper way please speak up.
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