Soat insurance for Ecuador
 

Seems as if the system in Ecuador has changed a couple of months ago.

Liability Insurance has now become part of the annual registration procedure.

I'm told there are no longer any SOAT agencies selling the insurance separately.

Has anyone had any very recent experience with getting SOAT in Ecuador.

Obviously those with some form of international insurance will have no problems, but I don't have that, so would like to get it locally

Thanks

OK, a bit more research shows they changed the system to a publicly-funded compensation system to be paid for out of registration fees. Definitely not clear whether foreigners' vehicles are included, but separate SOAT insurance is no longer available.

Was for an interim period of 180 days from Jan 6th after which a permanent system was supposed to be in place, but nothing yet so no choice but to hope that we are covered and just drive (carefully)

IS SOAT something you get on the boarder?

Yes, mandatory insurance (by that and other names) most countries insist you have and generally available at points of entry.

We came in at Balsa and there is nothing at the border anyway except a couple of shops and houses and previously you would have to drive for several hours without insurance to get to the first town that had an agent. Now there is no insurance to be had so the problem has gone away.

Similar situation exists when you cross from Bolivia to Peru at Copocabana where the first chance to get insurance is at Puno a long way to the north. Nothing was said to us so we drove and took the chance on getting pulled over and milked by police who know there is easy pickings to be had. Recent post on PanAmericana forum, the aduana were going to hold the car until the owner went to Puno and returned on the bus. They relented in the end, but it is a problem that comes up whenever you cross a border at a town too small to have an insurance outlet..If insurance is mandatory, then obviously it is up to you to be insured as soon as you drive over the line, so you should check and if it isn't available at that crossing, then you must use a different crossing that has.

Luckily we get one policy that covers all of Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, Bolivia, Argentina and Chile and we can do it via email, so that makes life easier. There are also western companies that offer insurance for whole continents and many from Europe get those before they leave.

Hey Tony. Do you have any links for those companies that cover motorbike insurance in south America for Europeans, as a quick Google and HUBB search drew a blank?
Cheers fella.

Rob.

From my research these insurances were all over priced, and when I thought about it, would I really want a European insco handling any issues that arose in South America ?

When we travelled we picked up our insurance as we went along, Colombia and Peru were the only real issues. In Peru we rode 3 days before we could buy it, there is a lot of info on Peru insurance and where to get it in the forum. Yes the police will try it on, knowing the issues, go with the flow. They are usually OK and more reasonable than people think.

However, if you are in Chile, you can buy insurance that will cover Chile, Argentina, Bolivia and Peru. So if going north that is a good option (especially as you cannot get into Argentina without insurance)

Thanks for the info BruceP. I am going north to south starting in Colombia.

In which case, you may find this
http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...colombia-54667

And this

http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...nsurance-55179

Useful

On Panamericana forum SOAT insurance for Ecuador - Panamericana-Forum finca sommerwind (a campsite in northern Ecuador) gave a summary of the new system.

My contact for insurance in the south only deals with cars and trucks rather than motorbikes. Sorry Rob. Actually I think you are always going to have more difficulties getting insurance than those with 4 wheels.

Most countries that have mandatory insurance also have some border crossings or nearby that sell insurance so it generally isn't a major problem except that some agents in peru for instance claim that they can only sell 12-month policies while others are happy to sell it by the month. Perhaps trying in on with a foreigner in some cases. If you insist on coming in through isolated borders such as Paso Sico, Roballo between Chile and Argentina, or Balsa into Peru, or from Bolivia into San Pedro in Chile, you will either have to somehow get insurance beforehand, or take a chance until you can get to a major town

iOverlander has a few insurance outlets in the database with more coming. I'll ask them if insurance could have a dedicated icon rather than being lumped in to the 'others' list

Aseguradora Magallanes

I used them but not sure you can use them if you're vehicle isn't Chilean plated. You can get it for most of the Latin American countries. It's not that cheap but affordable. In a year I riding I was never asked for it, never needed it and felt like it was a waste of money but that's always the way with these things I suppose :)

Cost isn't really a major factor compared with the other costs involved in travel through all these countries, so if you can get a multicountry one for a year for a few hundred dollars, that would be a good deal.

True enough!

Nice one BruceP. Cheers.

Hi Tony,

Heading to Ecuador in a few days - crossing boarder at Balsa, any ideas what I can expect? Can you even get this online now?

Cheers
Ross

We just crossed from Columbia 2 weeks ago. There was no mention of insurance and we didn't ask. I guess we don't have any, but it won't be the first time. This was the first border with absolutely no cost on either side!

I haven't hear of any change in insurance and we still have our camper there. Coming over at La Balsa is pretty laid back - except that it can take a very long time to get through Ecuador customs because they have to first enter all your stuff on their computer, then bellow it over a very shaky phone to head office - repeating everything 6 times because of the bad quality of the line, then sit around making small talk for 30 minutes until head office enters it all in their computer and phones back with an authorisation number.

Border is down at the bridge. Nice bitumen road south and goat track north. Welcome to Ecuador.
https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-g...2/DSCF8750.JPG

Then it is two or three hours on a road ranging from reasonable to terrible - depending on the rain to Zumba where you can get fuel on the north end of town provided you have small US bills. We changed 100's in the local bank but they didn't like doing it.

Even when you get on the nice new concrete road, if there has been rain you will find landslips everywhere. In some places they are continuous. God knows how they move around in the rainy season. Oh, now IS the rainy season you say. AND an El Nino event too. Hmmmmm!!! Ah well, our turn will come when we head back down early January.

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-8...2/DSCF8771.JPG

and of course some of the hard bits are still a muddy mess

https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-c...2/DSCF8773.JPG

might take you two days from the border to gringo-infested Villacabamba, but Hosteria Izhcayluma a few km south is probably the best value $4 pp you will find in Ecuador, especially if you like free Yoga and swimming pool and ... Only motorhomes and vehicle - no tents. Electricity and water and showers

Get used to it because the rest southward are the same BUT several countries do have visas or reciprocity payments. USA citizens are hit hard which is fair because they are all rich, but the poor Australians and Canadians cop it too

I couldn't find any insurance.
I crossed border between Ipiales/Tulcan on 26/Oct/2015 from Colombia to Ecuador. Then, I moved to Peru later.

- There is no insurance office on border of Ecuador side on the border.
- I went to "Punto de Venta SOAT QBE" building in Tulcan(Ecurdor) where is the closest town to border and ask about the insurance. A staff in the building "You can't have insurance here". Another staff just answered "no". Another staff answered "go to Bank" but Bank staff answered "no". Another answer is "go to Ibarra"...
- Finally I searched Ibarra but I couldn't find any insurance. I regret to have insurance by that.
- I couldn't find third party insurance.
- I have general travel insurance in all over the world. So, my own body injury can be covered by that.
- I just drove carefully for about a few weeks in Ecuador.

Information posted in a newspaper article said that insurance was now fully funded by a levy on annual registration payments and overlanders entering on a valid TIP would be covered automatically

Good to know thanks all - that's good news then for overlanders- more beer money :)

Tony, do you have a link to that (assuming it was online) as would like the print it off, just in case!

Probably posted on panamerican facebook in response to my qustion.
Sorry, didnt keep the link as it clearly coincided with what i was seeing when i tried getting it.
Try this link sounds like the orivinal one
http://www.ecuadortimes.net/2015/01/...cost-180-days/

Thanks Tony