Just finishing americas leg and onto uk in may for Europe section
Both kiwis on Canadian (bc) plates as that where we bought them
My question is where and how can I obtain insurance for both bikes whilst in uk

Motocamp Bulgaria or Tourinsure.de

You are almost certainly wasting your time with any UK company. They are risk averse in the extreme so just won't cover anyone without a UK address. Their service is **** anyway.

Go with the two above.

Andy

Agreed, the service from Motocamp in Bulgaria is great, and they offer the best price for European "green card" coverage.

I have used them many times and highly recommend them. They are trustworthy.

Keep in mind that it is necessary for you to possess the actual "green card" paper document - a scan or picture is not acceptable to the various authorities. This means that Motocamp will need to post the document to you, so figure out ahead of time where you want the letter sent. They send it by registered mail, it takes about 10 to 14 days to get from Bulgaria to Canada.

Michael

I am sure this is true for a set of authorities - customs most likely - but once inside the Schengen zone, I've never had the police ask to see my paper insurance, even outside of my own country.

Agree with the others - UK insurance seemed disproportionately expensive even before Brexit. But if you've arranged shipping into the UK already, it might be inevitable...

Not sure this is the case. It's common for UK insurers to email policy documents to their customers, including the part that certifies cover in other countries. It's not a physical "green card" any more, just a policy addendum.

Presenting a scanned or photographic copy of insurance documentation might be acceptable in highly developed western European countries, but the further you get out into the weeds in lesser developed countries where the various authorities (police, customs, etc.) are not so well educated, the more important it becomes to have all your documents "perfectly in order".

If I was planning to ride my North American plated motorcycle only in Switzerland, or the UK, I might take a chance on only having a photo or scanned copy of my insurance documentation. But, if I was planning a trip through most of the former Yugoslavian countries, I would make darn sure I had the original documentation with me.

There's also the matter of why one needs to present proof of insurance to consider. A photo or scanned document might be sufficient for a roadside spot-check or a customs officer. But if you actually get into an accident in a foreign country, and you don't have rock-solid documentation of being insured with you (especially if it appears that the accident was your fault), you might be looking at a few nights stay in the "Crowbar Hotel" until the authorities satisfy themselves that you are, in fact, adequately insured.

Michael

I'm certain it is the case. What UK insurers might or might not do or claim to be correct is utterly irrelevant in all other parts of the world.

The OP should aim to get insurance from a non-UK company like those mentioned, as they're non UK residents on non UK bikes.

I do know (from the man himself, who issues Motocamp insurance) that since Brexit, the Bulgarian **border** green card insurance (for non EU foreigners/vehicles) currently doesn't cover the UK!


I agree.



An aside: Bulgarian green card insurance *for Bulgarian residents* is valid in the EU/ EFTA/ former Yugoslavia, Turkey, Iran, Azerbaijan, Tunisia, Morocco, Russia (that goes from Belarus to the Pacific!) and the UK (woohoo ).

See the attached of my current Bulgarian green card for one of my bikes.

Attached Thumbnails

 

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Brighty's website: TheBrightStuffDotCom

CURRENT RR WITH REGULAR UPDATES: The Wife Takes on Chlamydia: A South American Retrospective

One significant omission on the Bulgarian insurance (and many other Western European issued "green cards") is that coverage is not provided in Andorra, that little gas station & discount cigarette shop located between Spain & France in the Pyrenees.

I didn't notice that omission until I had ridden through Andorra numerous times, all the while with a green card that had no coverage for Andorra.

I don't know if you can buy Andorra-specific insurance at the Andorra border - or what it costs, if it is available. I guess you would only need a policy that is valid for a couple of hours...

Michael

The screenshot does have AND though, and the box is not crossed out, so it should be covered?

Just looked at my Estonian-issued Green Card: the only crossed-out box there is Iran.

That's exactly what happened when a US friend bought his insurance for our Euro trip last summer from Lobagola; Andorra was crossed out. That was a little annoying as Andorra, for all its faults, was on our intended route, but no explanation (or option to add it to the policy) was forthcoming. Quite why it's excluded we never did find out and while it wasn't a big issue to skirt around it it did seem a bit of a pointless restriction.

The picture (not screenshot) of my BG insurance green card above is for Bulgarian vehicles, owned by Bulgarian residents.

I assume the apparent Andorra (and definite UK, since Brexit) omission is for "frontier" or "border" green cards issuable to non-EU bikes/ their non-EU owners by Bulgarian (and other?) insurance companies.

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Brighty's website: TheBrightStuffDotCom

CURRENT RR WITH REGULAR UPDATES: The Wife Takes on Chlamydia: A South American Retrospective

As far as I can determine, no Australian insurance company (I'm an Aussie citizen) will insure my bike on my proposed RTW trip. I'm heading first to Chile and hope to visit most Sth American countries on my way to Alaska, then to Europe and down through Africa, provided I don't do something untoward to my 67 year-old body doing my house renovation first! I note in earlier comments that a business in Bulgaria and another somewhere else covers bikes.
Would it be the case that they will possibly cover me as I travel around the various places I intend going, over the period of one or two years, assuming I fulfil the requirements other travellers meet? Information welcome!

Far as I know, no company based anywhere in the world will insure your bike in all those countries. It’s not an Australia thing; it’s just the nature of the way the world works (and always has). You’ll need a US/Canada company in the US/Canada, a southern tier company (Google MERCOSUR) in much of South America, an EU company in the EU, a Mexican company in Mexico…..you get the idea.

This will become obvious once you start reading trip reports and/or the countless forum posts on these topics. Do some site searches using terms like “insurance USA,” “insurance South America,” “insurance EU.”

Hope that’s helpful.

Mark

There is a simple (and easily understandable) reason why a person cannot get insurance coverage for multiple countries that are on different continents than the continent where an insurance company is based.

To be eligible to underwrite insurance coverage, an insurance company has to go through numerous rather complicated, expensive, and time-consuming processes to register and be approved and accepted as an insurance provider in any given country. If there is little customer demand for such services - as is the case for an Australian company to provide coverage in Europe or Asia, or for a Canadian company to provide coverage in Mexico or Europe - it just doesn't make sense for the insurance company to go to all that trouble.

In some markets, such as Canada/USA, the EC countries, Singapore/Malaysia, and similar locations with substantial cross-border vehicle traffic, treaties, protocols, and supra-national agreements enable underwriters approved in one country to provide coverage for vehicles when they are used in the neighboring country. But such agreements only exists where there is a substantial demand for such services.

There are underwriters who offer global or near-global coverage in specialized markets such as aviation or marine, where there is a demand for global coverage. But there is very little demand for global coverage in the automotive or motorcycle market.

You could, I suppose, go to an organization such as Lloyds of London and obtain global coverage for a vehicle if you were willing to pay enough money, but I suspect that even if you found an underwriter willing to take on that challenge, the cost would be prohibitive.