Buying a bike in the UK
 

Gidday all. I'm new to the forum so sorry if this has been asked before. I want to know if a non EU person can buy a motorbike in the UK, run around on it and then sell when finished.
Here in Aust backpackers buy cars and then sell them on when their finished.
Anybody know if I can do the same in the UK.
Thanks in advance.

Darryl

I can't think why not... i think all you'd need is a UK address, but things are pretty straightforward - buy a bike, get the Logbook filled in with the new owner stuff and sent off (about 10days to get returned) and get bike insurance from one of the multitude of Co's here. You'd ideally buy a bike with most of a year's MOT(annual mechanical test by a garage, if vehicle is older than 3yrs) and RoadFundLicence(annual road tax - bought at the Post Office). The Registration/Number Plate comes-with/stays-with the bike. I think thats all... Look on Biketrader.co.uk for bikes. :mchappy:

I bought a Triumph tiger in the UK

Glad to Help
 

Hi Darryl :mchappy:

Be glad to help and have a good option for you that I've arranged for a few Aussies and Kiwis over the years. Also good to hear Patrick's advice about London and agree with him, don't deal in London. I should know I'm a Londoner and now live in Oxfordshire!" I'm also a "real" motorcyclist.

Send me a PM and I can let you know more.

Cheers


Chris

Hey Chris, keep looking for those R80's mate were ready to start the ball rolling, Locky.

My 1985 R80 RT is for sale... ready to go anywhere. only thing not nice are the panniers are very battered.

Hey Lachlan
 

Hi Chaps

Nice to hear from you Locky and a friend has bought the R80RT and will be preparing it for a trip and we should get it for a good price, as he will ask me to sell it in a fw weeks. I will take pics this week and e mail them to you.

Hi OldBMW, let me know more and where abouts are you? PM me.

Cheers


Chris

Another Aussie wanting to buy in the UK
 

I am an Australian looking to buy a motorcycle in the UK to travel around Europe and Morocco for 12 months or more. I used to think I was a reasonably intelligent person until I started to deal with this. This website is about the only useful place I have found for info, but I’m still unclear on some things.
I think I can purchase and register a bike using the address of a friend in London who can vouch for me staying there. Or maybe, as someone suggested, get the dealer to use their address.
Except for registration I need insurance (third party minimum). I would like something a little more comprehensive to incl. theft, breakdown etc.
Gail Goodman from Motorcycle Express/Motorcycle Services has indicated they can cover the compulsory liability (green card) for AU resident riding in Europe. There seems to be a few other options for this including this Knopf guy or Arista.
Comprehensive insurance for the bike seems impossible to get.
Carole Nash would cover everything…if only I had a UK licence…which requires UK residency.
The same problem exists with other UK insurance companies contacted thus far. So I can’t get even the minimum compulsory insurance in the UK where the bike will be, but I could get it from Germany or anywhere in the EU where i can't register it, because i don't have the friendly address??? Which all means i can't register the bike in the UK either for want of insurance.

I have been told no-one will cover the bike outside Europe/UK but “green card” insurance can be purchased at the borders. Does everyone traveling in Morocco (which is hardly the end of the earth) do so without bike/theft/breakdown cover?
Is there a more straight forward way of doing this?
Does anyone know of an insurer that will cover AU licensed rider to register a bike in the UK.

Is this whole thing retarded or is it just me?

I know some of this is canvassed elsewhere on the forum but there is nothing quite definitive.
Any help would be…helpful.
Sorry for the essay.

Jim

A lot of UK insurers include cover for Morocco in the "green Card" scheme.

Sorry, can't help with any other info :-(

Hi Guys,

I'm looking to do this too? I was hoping the whole process was only going to take a couple of days max.

I don't like the sound of spending 10 days waiting around for bike registration.

I'm heading to the UK later this month.

I have somebody that would be willing to give me an address however does there need to be a real proof of address such as utilities bill etc?

Dagsadoo and co were you succesful in doing this?

Thanks,
Travis.

You are best to buy a second hand bike privately. You can pay the seller before you buy it and they can send the document to the DVLA (the organization dealing with vehicle registrations) for it to be registered to you and have the paperwork waiting for you on your arrival. It usually takes 7-14 days for the new document to arrive. They would have to fake your signature though.

The DVLA don't care if you live here or not.... but you WILL need a UK address to register the bike too. They do not check your residency and you DO NOT need any proof for a second hand bike.

One thing to remember.. Being the registered KEEPER of the bike does not make you the owner, although this is assumed unless there is documentation saying otherwise (eg. Finance agreement).

Your problem will be obtaining insurance without a UK address and UK license, although i'm sure someone will cover you.

Some time ago I looked at shipping a bike to Europe as an alternative to renting one over there, and was unable to find anyone willing to provide comprehensive insurance to a non-EU national, however Dave Milligan at Get Routed, who ships bikes to/from Europe, can provide comprehensive insurance for Aussies who use his shipping service. He would not tell me who he is using, as he reckons it took him forever to source anyone willing to provide said insurance. You could contact him ; I wish you luck,

www.getrouted.com.au

Phil

I will be landing in the UK in June and have two bikes already there, insurance is a no-go for a nor resident in the UK now, i have made so many phone calls in the past week, guess is all i could wish for now was for someone that has used a getrouted trip to PM me and give me a heads up on the insurance. Locky.

Here is two responses i have had regarding Registration and Insurance.
Some other insurer (not just green card) would be handy if anyone knows.



Response from DVLA:

Re: the definition of a care-of address:-
I appreciate the difficulties involved for travellers and the like in providing a contact or mailing address. However, when registering a vehicle, the law requires the keeper of the vehicle to provide an address at which s/he can be reached. This enables the police and other enforcement agencies to contact the keeper or his/her dependants in the event of a road traffic accident or in conjunction with a criminal offence. It also enables DVLA to ensure that vehicle tax is paid.
In recognition of the difficulties involved for travellers in providing an address, DVLA will accept a care of address. This address may be a friend, doctor, hotel, hostel or similar providing the resident gives permission for the keeper of the vehicle to use the address.

Insurance Response:
We can provide you with the necessary temporary insurance while riding in Europe. If you go to our website listed below, you can download the application with rates. It will provide coverage for an AU resident riding in Europe (Green Card). The program offers coverage for Liability only or Full Coverage (fire, theft collision and vandalism)

If you have any additional questions, please do not hesitate to contact our office. Thank you

Gail
International Services Manager
Motorcycle Express/Motorcycle Services
Phone (800) 245-8726 (within US/Canada)
Phone (516) 682-9220
Fax (516) 393-5996
www.motorcycleexpress.com
Hours of Operation Monday to Friday 9:00 am to 4:30 pm EST
Our office is closed 12:30 to 1:30 pm during lunch.
Closed Saturday and Sunday

Cheers.

Surely thats good news !! :thumbup1:

I see an HU Money-Spinner.
 

Perhaps there should be a special paid-up membership category on the HUBB, whereby you'd get a UK care-off address as part of the deal for registration and insurance and Grant & Susan get a bit of money to pay for Horizons Unlimited?

PM from someone called Chris
 

I just got a Private Message from a Chris in regards to this thread.
Sorry Chris but i can't reply to PMs because i don't have enough posts. Hopefully you will find this post.

To clarify, the first email response in the previous post was from the DVLA just from a general "email team" guy. It was a response to a specific question about being a non-resident using a friends address. I had a similar reply previously and asked the specific question again to be sure of the response. These places have a particular knack of giving completely different answers to the same question. (It's just like dealing with VicRoads!)

The other email reponse was from Gail Goodman from an insurance co. Her name has come up in a few other threads i have read on this website too. I included all the contact info for her on the previous post above.

Hope this helps. I would forward you the emails, but like i said, i don't know how to.

Cheers.
Jim