Insurance (again)
 

Hi Have done a search but no luck. Have contacted companies mentioned in the post but can't help. Carol Nash, my insurance just say no! Anyone know of or can recommend anyone. I am after third party (green card) insurance. It's for Hungary, Croatia, Slovinia, Serb, Bulgaria, Turkey this summer.
Used a German company in the past for trips to Baltic states, Russia etc but no longer about, well website down, not found. Oh its for motorbikes as well.
Thanks

Thanks for the link mxracer95. But opened form and only for non European reg vehicles, mine is reg in UK.doh
But have emailed them any way. See what happens

Just want to add my two cents worth......I just walked into the Genova office of the Italian Automobile Club today and purchased Green Card insurance for my KLR650. Paid Euro95 for 45 days. They sell 30 days for Euro75. Once they found a guy who could speak English, it only took 15 minutes and I was out the door.:taz:

Ted,

EU insurance (i.e. UK) covers you anywhere in the EU for third-party liability.

For the other countries: buy it at the border.

New prices from Mototouring for Green Card Ins
 

Am going to have a ride in Spain France and Germany starting April 16. Just got a requote from Mariaelana at Mototouring.

□ 15 days at 90,00 Euro
□ 30 days at 113,00 Euro
□ 45 days at 143,00 Euro
□ 90 days at 218,00 Euro
□ 180 days at 360,00 Euro

Cars are higher


Is this still the best deal? I think I will check out Knopf for their latest prices.

UCI - Italian Company
 

Hi, has anyone actually contacted (via email) someone from UCI or purchased green card insurance from them recently? I searched their website, which is all in Italian (which I don't speak) and tried to look for an email address or info in English, but failed.

Please provide either their email address or your experience buying insurance from them, including whether they accept credit cards.

Thanks,
Taz

No personal experience with UCI direct.
Don't speak Italian either, but you can run any website through Google Translator or similar online translator.
The UCI website shown (above)
Ufficio Centrale Italiano/Polizze temporanee di frontiera
is (in translation) apparently only a UCI general administrative office/ website, listing only Italy office locations in major cities with address, tel, fax, but no email addresses. Website says to contact any of these local offices; displays no function to purchase Green Card thru this website.

Although Green Card prices may be more expensive through
Mototouring How does the European Green Card Insurance work?,
(or any of the other Euro Green Card specialty brokers in this thread),
the advantage is that you can apply/authorize purchase of the Green Card directly on their website(s), and even have the Green Card document mail delivered to you in advance of leaving for Europe.

If you're air or seafreighting a bike into Europe, you'll need the Green Card document in advance to present for Customs clearance. If your bike is already in Europe, you'll still likely save a hassle/ separate trip to buy the Green Card from a local broker office, if you obtain the Green Card in advance of travel.

It appears (to me) that, to take advantage of the lower prices quoted on the UCI website, you would have to physically present yourself to one of the Italy city office locations shown on the website--or speak Italian and call one of those offices. Even if you're willing/ able to do that, many local broker offices still require that you physically present your vehicle registration & personal ID to complete a Green Card purchase transaction onsite.

CourtFisher. Thank you. We had run the website through a translator, but that was not particularly enlightening. You are probably right that to take advantage of this price, one would need to physically be there. Thanks for the information.

Another option worth looking into..
 

I used to have the insurance through a German company, arranged by Stephan from Knopftours. However, as the previous posts mention their (insurance companies) rates went way up! I used to pay 66 Euros for 3 months, now the fees are around 70 Euro for a month.

I am currently a US citizen but I was born in Poland. Poland is now part of EU. I researched recently some alternatives to insuring my US registered bike in Germany and was able to find the following: I can buy a so called "border-insurance" in Poland for 170 Polish Zloty, which is about 42 Euros per month. This isurance is only a 3rd party liability (w/o option to add anything else). It covers me in all the EU countries. It can be purchased for multiples of the 30day period, but it has to be for minimum 30 days. I don't think one has to be Polish in order to obtain it.

That might be a useful option for some folks in some circumstances.
But...can you share more detail/ info on exactly where and how one might obtain this Polish-originating "border-insurance" (that means the same thing as Euro Green Card) coverage?
E.g., is there a website of an agency or broker in Poland where anyone can request/ order this coverage in advance of going to Europe for/ with a US-registered bike?
Or, must someone go physically to a particular agency location/ address in Poland to obtain this coverage?
If not a website, do you have name of agency, address, tel, fax in Poland; name of English-speaking staff person at this agency?
Thanks

I have just used Mototouring Italy [who use UTI as the underwriter] and have been super surprised at how easy and fast it was. I saw that someone on HUBB had emailed with "mariaelena" using rental@mototouring.com, so did the same. Almost immediately, back came the application form I had to complete and send it back by email with a copy of my registration papers attached.

I was on a very tight timeframe, leaving Oz and arriving in UK to ride the bike, which I explained to Mariaelena in the original email. No problem - she then responded that everything had already been initiated. Two days later, as I arrived in the UK, her email arrived with a copy of the Green card attached!! :D I printed it out in colour - DONE! How good is that, for service?? Wonderful! The original GreenCard then arrived a couple of days later at the UK address to which it was to be sent.

The application form has all the prices on it. I paid 218euro for 90 days, roughly 100euros less than ADAC. And the best part is that it can all be done by email! :clap::clap:Thoroughly recommended.

Too easy!

I second everything that Margaret said in her post (directly above).

I purchased my Summer 2011 insurance through MotoTouring, and I was very pleased with the service that they provided.

I had asked them to send the document (by post) to a friend of mine in Germany - for some reason, the letter was returned to MotoTouring by the post office. The staff at MotoTouring contacted me immediately by email to let me know about this. By coincidence, I was planning to drive through Milan (in a rental car) a few days after they emailed me, so, I dropped into their office to pick the document up in person.

Below is a picture of the entry to their premises, which is in a suburb of Milan. They also have a complete motorcycle workshop and facilities for storing motorcycles at this location.

If anyone needs to go there in person in the future, the GPS co-ordinates (WGS 84 datum, expressed in Garmin format) are as follows: N45 30.560 E9 14.458

Michael

MotoTouring Office, Milan
http://i979.photobucket.com/albums/a...otoTouring.jpg

Green Card with no excluded countries - universally recognized?
 

I used MotoTouring as well in 2010 and was very pleased with their service, but the insurance had many exclusions at the time: Albania, Andorra, Bosnia Herzegovina, Israel, Iran, Morocco, Moldavia, Macedonia (FYROM), Russia, Serbia, Tunisia, Turkey and the Ukraine. I think that these exclusions are fairly common.

Motorcycle Express Motorcycle Express - Ship Your Bike, however, offers Green Card insurance for non-Europeans that says "is valid all over Europe including Russia, Turkey, Morocco and Tunisia". They don't list any excluded European countries. It's not cheap (e.g., $550 for 3 months, $1050 for 6 months for liability alone), but there is limited theft and collision available (at even higher rates).

Two questions:

1) Is this universal Green Card for Europe actually recognized at the borders of all the included countries? I remember reading a thread not all that long ago about the fact that although Russia had been officially included into the Green Card program, the border officials and particularly the road police were unaware of it and were looking for an older form of insurance documentation. Has that situation changed?

2) If one plans on visiting many of the normally excluded countries listed above, is it smarter (though maybe more expensive) to buy a comprehensive package from MotorcycleExpress or better to get less expensive but less-inclusive coverage from MotoTouring and buy additional coverage at the borders? I know that when I was in Turkey in 2010, three months of "insurance" cost about $10 at the border. Made me seriously wonder just how much insurance I really had. :rolleyes2: None.

Andorra shouldn't be excluded. While not an EU member it has always been included and is often visited by other Europeans.

I wouldn't dismiss the cheap Turkish insurance, just because it seems too cheap. In any case, you will have the official paper in your hand if stopped or, like me, unlucky enough to be involved in a collision. It's the first paper the cops want to see.

As to your question of what is smarter: I think there are many answers to this one, not least depending on what countries you specifically intend to visit and how long you wish to travel.

OK... that's a good test case. So what did your Turkish insurance company do for you... or was it just the paper to show? Hopefully, your situation didn't really require them to do anything.

They did nothing, as it wasn't my fault. But, as I said, the cops wanted to see my insurance and I don't want to know what would have happened if I didn't have any. As it was, it took about 18 months to get my money out of the car driver's insurance.

Sam,

Russia "joined" Euro Greencard insurance consortium eff. 01 Jan 2009:
http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...ow-valid-40443

BUT
1) No one has reported here on HUBB actual experience of
a. first obtaining Euro Greencard that is endorsed for/ includes RUssia;
b. presenting that document at RU border crossing;
c. having that document accepted by RU border crossing authorities;
d. (much less) recognized by RU traffic police/ authorities on the road;
e. (to say nothing of) submitting claim successfully after accident in RU.

A general Google search in English displays no actual experience reports
from non-HUBB sources since the 2009 RU official announcement.
General interest RU travel sites like
Traveling to & from Russia by car, motorcycle or hitchhiking | waytorussia.net page
still reference obtaining RU insurance separately at the border.

The MotorcycleExpress policy is actually underwritten by a large Euro insurance company AXA, through a general managing agent, tourinsure.de. in Germany. Presumably AXA would not claim that its Euro Greencard covers RU without having made all the required legal/ commercial agreements with the RU authorities. (It's one thing for RU to "join"; its another for Euro (& UK)
insurance underwriters to actually include/ extend that cover. it's a third for the "policy" to work its way down to on-the-ground reality.)

RU bottom-line: it's still an unknown crapshoot :D

2) Beddhist is right. And both the Greencard--or separate border insurance-- are first/ foremost "just the paper to show," because there is so little actual accident/ claim experience reported. "What did your [Turkey] company do for you?" is an unknowable (anywhere in the world) until there's an actual covered accident, and then it all depends on the specific circumstances.

Think of TP insurance as a 'get-out-of-jail-card'. :smartass:

Thanks for all the research and your views. Interesting. Maybe I should fall on the sword, try the all-European Green Card and report back. I am planning on traveling to several of the normally excluded countries, including Morocco, some of the Balkan states and Russia. I can see if it is accepted at the borders and if not, I'll just buy some local insurance too. Maybe first I should try to get a sense of how much money I might waste with duplicate coverage though.

I can just see it being accepted at some border but later, me being hauled off in the paddy wagon by a road cop because he's never seen a Green Card certificate before.

If you never hear from me again... well... it didn't work. :helpsmilie:

Regarding the practicalities of relying on greencard insurance in Russia.

This summer (2011) whilst importing my bike through Vladivostok I teamed up with two Croations who had European Greencards with Russian coverage. This was their experience:
- Customs at Vladivostok took a lot of convincing by a Russian speaking friend before they would believe that the Croations had any coverage. The basic problem was because the document was (a) not in Russian and (b) the officers had not seen a "green card" before and did not understand this multi-country insurance. Without valid insurance Customs will not release the bikes. After about two hours, and mainly I think to get rid of them, customs accepted the "green card" and agreed to release their bikes.
- The locals (customs officers, local bikers and our shipping agent) pointed out to the Croations that they would need to repeat this arguing everytime they were stopped by the traffic police for a document check.

The net result was the Croations after a lot of persuading by locals ended up buying local Russian insurance to avoid possible future problems (which is cheap at $20 for 1 month or $50 for three months).

I thinkthey did the right thing; document checks by the highway police are common, in the three months I was in Russia I was stopped 6 - 8 times for these. These were all friendly but in each case they wanted to check:
- Insurance (no problem mine was in Russian)
- Driving licence (no problem - International licence was in Russian)
- Bike papers (sometimes a bit of pantomine explaining it because it was only in English - but because the Plate number and date were clear it was always quickly accepted.

With a non-Russian language greencard I'm certain at least some of these stops would have taken many hours instead of the minutes they did and might well have involved a trip to the station. So bottom line yes Russia is now part of the green card system but coming from the east there appears to be no knowledge of it and if you want to rely on it plan to spend a lot of time explaining yourself (and your Russian better be good).

Hope this helps.

Uh... yeah... That's what I'm thinking. My Russian is pretty basic and not up to the task of arguing with a cop for sure. In fact in those situations, I'm expecting my Russian will suddenly become non-existent.

I would suspect that the Russian police and those in other countries not accustomed to being shown Green Cards would (rightfully) be suspicious of a new form of documentation... especially one not written in their language and one with which they have had no experience. It may take a while longer for changes to filter down.

Thanks very much for the information.

I started a new thread on this, to make it easier for people to find, but thought I'd post it here also


Poly & I have FINALLY found a Bulgarian insurance company that will sell green card insurance to us for people with bikes not EU registered!

cost is
60 euros 1 month
100 euros 2 months
140 euros 3 months

3 months at a time is the limit. but it can be renewed.
this is valid for all the EU countries, doesnt include non EU like Ukraine, Serbia, etc. (this is the same insurance as mototouring offers)
I've used it the last few years, & had no problems.
we will need a scanned copy of the bike document with tag number & VIN
and a copy of your passport or drivers license
(or if you have an expired green card, the info needed is on there)
we will scan & email you a copy of the green card, and snail mail the hard copy to you, anywhere in the world.
(the last 2 years I've passed German customs at the airport with just the scanned copy)

email me at motocampbg@yahoo.com if interested.

Doug

Non EU bike insurance
 

Hi all,

1st post !

I am travelling through non EU countries in the summer (Croatia, Bosnia, Serbia, Hungary) and am not getting much help from my current insurers that are strictly EU only.

Can one get a hold of suitable cover for the short term crossing through the above countries

Paul.

Assuming your bike is UK-reg, and your current insurer is "strictly EU only."

Croatia & Bosnia in theory require & offer short term TP insurance at any border crossing, BUT the "required" insurance is in fact not offered/ available at all their border crossings (perhaps at the larger motorway crossings only).
If you cross into either at a border where insurance is not offered,
simply consider yourself "lucky" for not having to pay and "unlucky" for not
being covered. Simply ride on and take your chances.
Serbia is more strict. They will not allow your vehicle to enter the country
without paying for Serbian-only coverage, minimum 60 Euros for 30 days TP cover (as of 2010).
Hungary is part of the EU

Sam:

Over the past 10 years, I've bought insurance from both Motorcycle Express and MotoTouring. I used to buy it from ADAC in Germany before their rates went up - then I shifted to MotoTouring. I'll probably buy from the Bulgarian company next year. I have a Canadian (Ontario) plated ST1100 that I ship back and forth to Europe.

You raised a question about the difference between the coverage from Motorcycle Express and the others. Basically, it's like this: Motorcycle Express covers just about every country between Iceland and Iran. There might be one or two exceptions in former Yugoslavia - you will need to check with them to be sure. What countries get excluded varies from year to year, depending on who is having a war, who is under sanctions, etc.

The other companies - Knopf, ADAC, MotoTouring, the Bulgarian company, et al, write policies that are primarily marketed to non-EC residents who live around the periphery of the EC (for example, residents of Ukraine, Turkey, North Africa, etc.) who want to drive their vehicles into the EC. Hence, the area covered by these policies is limited to the EC (plus Switzerland). Commercially, this is easy to do because there are common liability insurance requirements throughout the EC, similar to how there are common liability insurance requirements between all the Canadian provinces and all the American states (your 'pink insurance slip' covers you for all of the USA and Canada).

What you need to do is decide what coverage you need - just the EC (plus Switzerland), or all of Eastern Europe and North Africa. If you only need the former, then get the cheapest policy you can get. A 'EC Green Card' the same, no matter who you get it from, you get exactly the same coverage on exactly the same paper form. If you plan to travel in countries outside of the EC, you have a choice of either buying the more expensive Motorcycle Express policy, which covers far more countries; or, buying a EC only 'green card' policy and then buying supplemental coverage (typically at the border) for whatever non-EC countries you are planning to enter.

If you plan to do more than just one non-EC country, it is probably most trouble-free to buy the Motorcycle Express policy. If you only plan to do one non-EC country, it may or may not be cheaper to buy specific-country coverage for that country at their border. For example, I went from Switzerland to Turkey and back this past fall - during the same period that the policy shown below was valid - and bought coverage for Turkey (a non-EC country, notice the X through 'TR' in the policy below) for about CAD $30 at the Turkish border.

ALL of these insurance policies (Motorcycle Express, all the 'EC only ones', and even the single-country ones you buy at the border) are usually issued on identical looking forms. Typically, all the forms are green. The forms will usually have country codes for just about everywhere you could possibly drive to from Western Europe, and the countries that are not covered by any one policy will have a big X through them.

The trick is to buy only the coverage you need. Because everyone's coverage (for basic liability) is identical - inside or outside of the EC - consider it to be a fungible commodity, like gasoline or flour or rice - buy your liability insurance only on the basis of price and reputation of the vendor for service, because the commodity being sold by everyone - the insurance policy itself - is identical in every respect (except, of course, for the number of countries covered). You won't ever need to worry about making a claim, because it is bare-bones liability coverage only, which means that it's the guy or girl you hit who has to worry about getting paid.

You could, if you wish, buy both liability and theft/collision coverage from Motorcycle Express. That is quite expensive, but it protects your motorcycle. I used to do that when my moto was new - I don't bother any more. I once made a claim on the collision coverage, and it was handled promptly, fairly, and with excellent service all around.

Below is an image of a policy paper (the famous 'green card'). Note that some of the country codes are crossed out. That is because this policy (from MotoTouring) only covers the EC + Switzerland. If you bought from Motorcycle Express, it would look identical except fewer countries would be crossed out.

Michael

http://i979.photobucket.com/albums/a...CInsurance.jpg

Thanks

Thus with a UK bike and usual insurance giving 90 days cover to EU countries I can just turn up at Croatia / Bosnia border and then Bosnia / Serbia border and take pot luck at that point. If I don't get in it is not too bad to re route and go back to Croatia (trip is from Dubrovnick to Budapest)

Paul.

Paul:

Croatia is well on the way to joining the EU in the summer of 2013, so, I think it is probable that you should be able to get insurance cover for Croatia without too much trouble - either at the border, or perhaps just before the border (i.e. on the Slovenian side, if you are entering through Slovenia).

Don't know anything about Serbia, sorry.

Michael

Serbia's expensive. Bosnia less so, and enforcement varies at different crossings. I paid a total of about 120 euros for the two a couple of years ago, so do your comparison shopping on that basis. Both are interesting countries for moto travel, but there are limits to how many places you can go on a single journey.

Also worth thinking about in that area: Macedonia, Albania.

enjoy,

Mark

That's true..."in general" you could re-route back from Bosnia-Serbia border crossing, to head north thru Bosnia across Croatia into Hungary/ Budapest.

From Dubrovnik, I assume you will want to ride via Mostar & Sarajevo.
In that case, if you still want to "try" Serbia border crossing, I suggest you use Bosnia Rte #M19 north from Sarajevo in direction of Serbia border at Mali Zvornik, rather than Bosnia Rte E762 east from Sarajevo in direction of Serbia border at Dobrun.

If you're then denied/ turned away at Serbia/ Mali Zvornik, it's relatively easy to get back on main Bosnia Rte #18 north toward Croatia border. Although the Rte E762 Serbia border is a "major" crossing, in 2010 that crossing did not even sell the required Serbia insurance, and I had to re-route South to get into Serbia at what was then the only crossing selling the required insurance. Further, at any Serbia border other than major motorway, you may have to wait/ delay for a local insurance agent to be called to come sell you Serbia insurance, before Serbia will allow you to enter. Not a problem if you're just ambling along, but a hassle if you're on any kind of "schedule".

Of course, that was 2010, and conditions change all the time. :D

Michael,

Thanks for all your great information above. I decided again for this trip to go with Mototouring (didn't see Doug's offer in time :() and will pick up additional insurance at specific borders as needed along the way. The main reason for doing it this way is that I am not totally convinced that familiarity with the Green Card as an insurance document is universal (by road police especially) ... even if in fact the coverage is valid.

You mentioned that most countries issue a similar-looking green form, even for country-specific coverage. Hopefully that practice will continue to become more widespread. In 2010, the supplemental insurance I bought at the border going into Turkey was issued on something quite different. If the Green Card becomes universally issued, then it will make matters much simpler... just buy the coverage you need for the countries you need.

We can dream at least.

I had already put Mali Zvornik in as crossing point heading towards Novi Sad after Mostar / Sarajevo so will go with your route advice.

Have almost booked a ferry from Bari to Dubrovnik - no reefs on that route.

This is a great site by the way !

Paul.

last time I was in Macedonia, it was 50 euros for 2 weeks.
albania was about 25 a month.
serbia is always a gamble, sometimes going in the smaller checkpoints, they either dont ask to see insurance, or if they do, when I hand em my green card. sometimes they dont notice that SRB is X'd out, sometimes they do.
At the big main crossings, they always check, & hold your passport until you come back & show them you bought it. I think they get a kickback.
Oh, and you will save money by first going to the bank & exchanging for Serb Dinars, and paying for the insurance with them, as the insurance guy will give you a crappy exchange rate.

Sam, you gonna come visit us in Bulgaria again this year? We'll be having another travellers meeting, hope you can make it!

Doug

Hi Doug...

Probably won't make it that far south this year, but if the timing is right, well distances are not all that great... Would love to attend. Of my 6 or so HU meetings, the Bulgarian meeting was my favorite by far! Highly recommended to all who can make it.

I'm sorry I didn't see your post before I bought my Green Card insurance, but I will keep you guys in mind for the next time.

Hi to Poly.

Hi Samuel:

The insurance I bought at the Turkish border in September 2011 was documented on a form that was EXACTLY identical to the 'green card' form that I posted a picture of above - the only difference was that there was only one 'country' listed in the coverage area, and that was Turkey (TR).

I visited Ukraine and Romania about 4 years ago, long before Romania joined the EC, and both the Ukrainian and Romanian border officials were familiar with the 'green card' format of insurance. On that particular trip, I had purchased my coverage from Motorcycle Express, because they provided coverage for both RO and UA.

Michael

Hello everyone

I've been trying to catch up with the information on this thread.

Can anyone confirm if this is the current situation for a UK-registered bike currently in Spain and needing a green card, sharp-ish, as i've just realised my UK insurer will only cover me for up to 90 days per trip:

• MotoTouring don't offer policies to EU-registered bikes

• To use UCI you really have to apply in person, in Italy

• Stefan Knopf's prices have rocketed but he still offers green cards

• ..... errrr, that's it.

Thanks in advance and hope you're all smiling.

Mike:

I strongly suspect that the insurance that Knopf sells is exactly the same cover as what MotoTouring and others are selling - in other words, it is insurance cover for motorcycles registered (plated) outside of Europe that are being temporarily operated in Europe.

This whole discussion - all two pages of it - is about obtaining European insurance coverage for motorcycles registered outside of Europe, for example, motorcycles registered in Canada, the USA, Australia, etc. that will be used in Europe for a short period of time. This type of tourist coverage is NOT OFFERED for vehicles that are registered in EC member countries such as the UK.

Your inquiry sounds like a much more straightforward 'domestic insurance inquiry'. It doesn't really fit the context of what is being discussed here. I suggest you contact your existing UK insurance underwriter. It is probable that they will extend your coverage outside of the UK (but within the EC) beyond 90 days if you pay them more money. In the unlikely event that they will not, I am sure that there are many UK based underwriters who routinely offer insurance cover valid for more than 90 days touring in the EC for UK registered motorcycles.

Michael

Mike:
+1 to Michael's comment above. (Not to restate the obvious; just to verify
that Michael's comment is more than just his opinion.)

If your bike is registered in the UK, you need to contact/ discuss your insurance cover options outside the UK with your current UK broker/ underwriter, or with other UK brokers.
Knopf (ADAC/ Arisa), MotoTouring (UTI), and similar sources discussed in this thread, are available only to non-EU, non-UK rego'd vehicles.
Good luck.

Insurance
 

well I might be BUMPing this post from Obilion, But can any one give a Email contact or website address contact to get this Grren card insurance.
I have tryed Knop tours and i am getting nowhere with them, as it still dosn't cover me for Driving in the UK.

PanEuropean, CourtFisher,

Thanks for your replies.

This issue came up because my UK insurance company won't cover me for a trip outside the UK lasting more than 90 days. I'm in Spain and no insurance company here will offer me full or green card cover either.

Having used Knopf in the past (2 1/2 years' worth of green card cover) I went back and checked. Stefan confirmed that the green card issued by ADAC/ Arisa via Knopf does provide cover for a UK-plated and registered bike.

I might not like the attitude of my UK insurer. I might not like the 150% price hike at Knopf in the last three years. But it appears to offer me the necessary cover that I can't get anywhere else.

I hope this clears matters up for anyone else in the same position. (Or, if you have a UK insurer offering a better deal, please let us all know.)

@warrigal 1
Not sure I can help. Without looking back through the thread: where is you bike registered? Are you in the UK at the moment?

Mike,
Thanks for that clarification from Knopf/ Stefan.
Just shows how "curious"/ strange all the fine print can be.
I guess the reason this info--that ADAD/ Arisa will cover UK-rego bikes--does not appear on Knopf's website, Green Card, is that 90% of ADAC Green Card business originates
from vehicles registered outside Europe; so the question of UK-rego cover simply does not come up that often.
Glad you found a solution, and shared this option for other UK-rego riders.:thumbup1:

Cheers, CourtFisher. I just want to add that Polly from MotoCamp has just got back to me also to confirm that

"this is regular EU green card and it is available for British bikes too"

which puts my mind further at ease! Worth comparing prices but good to know they both offer this service.

Now to get to work on dragging my UK insurers into the 21st century....

There are some insurance brokers who specialise in cover for UK registered vehicles in Spain, Portugal etc, and i used one a few years ago whilst i was working on a contract in Southern Spain when my UK insurer came up with the same 90 day nonsense. Third party was of course included for 12 months within the EU, but comprehensive not.
I was covered for a van, but the company i used (www.abbeygateinsurance.com ) will cover cars, bikes, boats, etc, so it might be worth contacting them or similar companies to enquire. The cover that i had included an annual Green Card, so covered me for travel much further afield in Europe had i needed it.
J

As I understand the situation across Europe, insurance companies based in countries that are members of the EU have to comply with an EU requirement (law?) to provide a minimum of "green card" cover that is valid in any country in the EU, therefore including the UK.
That does not mean that they cannot charge a premium for providing a service, but that is where the customer has to shop around.

There are some other countries that are not yet members of the EU, but want to join, that are signatories to an international agreement (I don't know the name of that) which brings them inside this requirement - this is all part of the politics of trying to join the EU and there are many other examples of how individual countries need to align their national laws etc to comply with the minimum standards of the EU.
For example, the latest country to fall into line with this insurance aspect is Serbia.

The problem with the UK, it seems to me, is that it is an island (obviously) and the majority of vehicle insurance taken out here will never be used abroad, except for the annual two/three week holiday to the continent by families. In addition, it is "comprehensive insurance" a rather strange concept when you think about it which equates to a "I am never in the wrong mentality" by which I mean when I do make mistakes then there is no come-back on me.

That is the market which, logically, the insurance companies and brokers are used to dealing with and that is where they make their money - probably a case of 90% of the profits coming from 97% of the clientel, so providing a service to the minority is basically a PITA.
Nevertheless, this EU requirement applies to all insurance for the green card cover which is 3rd party indemnity basically; that is written on the insurance cover note/certificate and this has been adopted as a means of not having to issue a specific green card. Where the UK insurers let us down is in trying to charge extra for, in their terms, extending this cover beyond the two/three week holiday.
Discussion??

Dave,
Your comments above are interesting and maybe helpful.
As a non-Brit, with no experience of UK underwriters or brokers, I can't tell
how much of what you say is "fact"/ "data", and how much speculation.

It seems you're saying that all UK vehicle cover underwriters must--by law or EU regulation--include minimally required third party liability only European Green Card cover as part of any policy written on a vehicle that is UK-rego. Is that what you're saying ?

This may--or not--be true. But it seems contrary to what some UK riders on HUBB are reporting as their actual experience with some UK underwriters when they ask for cover going "abroad,"/ crossing the Channel to the Continent, etc.

Maybe you could clarify what you know to be true, and what is speculation.
Thanks.

Thanks for asking Courtfisher; there is no speculation on my part except I don't have figures such as the 90/97% bit; if you like, that is speculation.
The trouble is though that the evidence is not available, except to the central databases of the insurance companies who are not going to divulge commercially sensitive figures.

My statements are based on over 40 years of insuring vehicles here in the UK and when living in Europe.
Right now I have 4 vehicle insurances in this household and they all contain the kind of statement on the cover notes that I have explained about the green card aspect. That has been the case for some years.

"It seems you're saying that all UK vehicle cover underwriters must--by law or EU regulation--include minimally required third party liability only European Green Card cover as part of any policy written on a vehicle that is UK-rego. Is that what you're saying ?"-- Yes. The UK is in the EU.

There is another thread here which is ongoing about this subject:-
http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...-vehicle-61877
and there is another sticky thread in this forum which deals with UK insurance.

I hope this helps - it is not really complicated, just complex!!! :thumbup1:

EDIT: what the UK insurers appear to practice is to insure a vehicle for no more than, say, 90 or 180 days use overseas per annum; I have cover for 365 days per year (oops, this is a leap year, but you get the idea); I have no doubt that I am paying an increased premium for this, but a lot of insurers don't provide this level of cover unless the insuree asks.

EDIT 2: Just got my insurance docs, and they confirm that I pay an additional £19 per annum for the unlimited use overseas.

EDIT 3: On the face of it, my new cover (I changed the whole insurance policy this time around but staying with the same company) appears to extend comprehensive cover to the other countries outside of the UK - I am not sure because I can't be bothered to read the really small print (because I don't really believe in the comprehensive insurance concept, but my wife does ;-)

Dave,
Thank You. The EU regs + UK insurer practice are now mostly clear--to me.
(A bit of digression from this thread...I reviewed (your) other linked HUBB thread.
That has to be among the funniest I've read on HUBB in several years.:rofl:
I hope the OZzie bloke solves his problem; he should at least take St.Rory, you and a number of others to dinner if he ever makes it over.)

another user who thinks its OK to Demean a another HUBB user online.

YOU have NO right to do that.

Not demeaning at all, or certainly not meant to be demeaning.
The humor was in the extended misunderstanding of something that--as you said--"is not really complicated, just complex!!! " It's not always easy for any "complex" local procedures to be communicated and understood. In the case of that thread, it was funny because it went on for so long.
The dinner suggestion was simply to honor the amount of time/ work that some
HUBB users, including you, put in to help another solve a problem.

Thanks for your help.

Your welcome: the other thread is now closed down - I hope it survives i.e. doesn't get completely deleted, because it does contain some interesting insights into human mis-understandings and ................ well, things like that.
There is always the other sticky thread in Trip Paperwork about insurance issues.

I think you have the two Ws mixed up here!
Warrigal 1 has now posted in here; I wonder how that happened? (Oh yea, I posted a link in there to this thread).

"Oh dear," very confusing (tracking multi-thread posts).doh
I hope that warrigal 1 understands that my ROFL comment was not directed at him personally--if that's what he thought--and that he gets the UK vehicle sorted.
Back to this thread's regularly scheduled content.

huh very funny people, I am am still at the UK address stage
still 4 more steps to go. before the vehicle is on road. EU Brick walls

Anyway I am reading at the start of this post back in 2008

If says compulsory Liability insurance for Europe, can any one add to what that is and entails.

Oh my good god. You mean to say, with all the heated discussions re this on THAT famous thread, you still haven't worked out that this is simply another term for European Green Card cover?!

as I said its a 5 or is that 6 step process

UK address (suplied By Rory ?) thank you very much

Insurance (3rd party), well I have quote 250 to 270 GBP, But I can't pay it. the Tranaction is being Blocked.

Road Tax UK (step 3)

MOT Inspection UK (step 4)

other insurance on the vehcile (step 5) (I might have to skip this one.) too expensive.

Green card Insurance for the European continent (step 6)

ilesmark I thought I was paying for that in 3rd party (UK)

really confusing system you European have.


pesonally I have asked the admin here to cut the other topic right Back to before Tony P , Walkerbout and Ilesmark started abusing me.

That is Demeaning me Online.

No confusion at all if you read all the advice on the thread your abuse got closed down.

Your Step 3 cannot happen until you have completed Step 4 and, if you are doing it in your name, Step 5.

And I have lost count of how many people have told you Step 6 is completely unnecessary if you have UK insurance (Step 5) as EU insurance is automatically included as a legal necessity.
In fact UK insurers do not issue Green Cards for EU at all, to anyone be they citizens of AUS, UK or the Moon.

And while here, what about my suggestion of taking legal action for your losses having paid the Visa Agency who handled your application who should have known there were rules arising because of your age?

Unless, of course, there was some other unsavoury reason from your past that the UK visa officials know about, but the agency did not.

(and don't bother wasting effort sending me PMs as twice before - although HU tell me there was an a PM sent, it never reaches my Inbox to read as I purposely keep it full to stop just that sort of thing!) :)

Even though we have been Demeaning You Online, we do on some level try to help (out of charity / pity, if nothing else)

Steps in the process

1) UK address (St Rory?)

2) Insurance (3rd party) - if the Tranaction is being Blocked, do it from the UK once you arrive - you can do it to start instantly and to be honest you'd be wasting your money if you started it any sooner. This will give you 3rd party cover not only in the UK but also in the Green Card area (EU plus other Green card states) for a max of 60 days.

I can see that this insurance thingie is proving difficult for you to comprehend - the best analogy I can think of is the 3rd party insurance you get as part of your 'rego' in Oz. THAT covers you not only in the state of registration, but also across the rest of Oz. At least, that was the case when I drove around Oz in a WA-registered Kingswood bought in Sydney at the start of the trip in 1993 and sold in Sydney at the end of the trip in 1994.

3) MOT Inspection UK

4) Once 3 completed, goto Road Tax UK

5) other insurance on the vehcile - I think you mean comprehensive - depends whether you think worth it. Not mandatory like 3rd party.

6) Ferry bier

Which is a tad ironic in view of the title of this thread!!

Perhaps those insurers based on the mainland of Europe continue to issue green cards or maybe they do the UK practice of making a statement within either the insurance cover note or the policy document.

Yes, a tad ironic, but perhaps not, given the original poster back in 2008, was--in titling this thread--referring specifically to non-EU reg/ plated bikes.

Like many threads, this one has grown or morphed somewhat to include "Green Card" cover for UK-reg vehicles. OK, but sometimes difficult to understand & keep separate the different rules and practices of EU-mainland insurers covering non-EU vehicles vs. UK insurers covering UK vehicles.

Mainland Europe insurers must issue a separate Green Card document--when they issue stand-alone Green Card insurance for non-EU vehicles--because there is no other insurance policy document or cover note, at least for the end-user driver.

The topic is now closed because you mouthed off, and the admin blamed me

Well here is another story $800 Australian, (400 GBP) thats all I have got to get this Sorted and the vehicle need to be back on the road from SORN UK.

I'm not aware my posts were offensive in any way.
As the thread still shows, it was you coming out with words like "****ing" and "bastards".
Admin never contacted me either directly or by reference on the thread, over my conduct.

In fact the very top man afterwards added a "Like" to my post - a very, very rare accolade.




And my post referred to above ended "Then next time research things more thoroughly before you commit to spending money."

That was before your above declaration of the parlous state of your funds before embarking on a road trip all over Europe.

I earnestly urge you to reread the advice in post 87 -
http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...ehicle-61877-6

Otherwise you could find yourself in extreme difficulties in countries which are not sympathetic - with the added complication of different languages, unless you have good knowledge of the dozen or so EU languages.

Maybe you are sufficiently in favour in your own country that your Embassy will provide instant cash if the slightest thing goes wrong, but the EU will not look after stranded travellers, other than in jail or escorting them to deportation points.

Actually, 800 Australian dollars is 536 British pounds. That's all I've got to contribute to this MOST important thread at the moment.

Mark

PS: No, wait a minute. I also wanted to point out that no one's convincing anyone of anything new here. There's no fresh ground to be covered, no brand new insights to offer. Continuing to draw someone's attention to what they've refused to learn previously doesn't accomplish anything except make it more likely that this thread, too, will be locked. That won't serve any purpose that I can see.

(Edit to eliminate gratuitous verbal assaults)

I very much agree with the first half of the above sentence. However, this thread won't be locked. All that will happen is that abusive/unhelpful/pointless posts (by you know who) will be deleted and the poster moderated further. From a purely personal point of view, I suggest that all useful contributors refrain from undertaking any more dialogue with you know who. To borrow the name of an album by a famous 1970s punk band: You're "Flogging a Dead Horse". Just let Darwinism take its course.

There is a feature on the software to put chosen users on your "ignore list". That way you never read their stuff. Sadly I'm unable to do this. I have to read all the bs.

Or you could carry on: It does provide humorous reading doh, but hides the useful facts in this thread/on this forum.

cheers
C

Dear oh dear. I had my inklings that something like that was lurking in the background, but kept quiet. After all, we've all had times in our lives when we've been less well-off than others - but if you're in that position, maybe Tony's suggestion of selling the vehicle - and mine of backpacking instead - is the way to go.

Help needed
 

Short and sweet, I'm working in Morocco, resident, shipped my UK reg bike from the UK about 5 months ago and received a 6 month temp import from Casa customs. Time is running out and the bike will go back through Spain and France.

It didn't get its first MOT as it was already in Morocco when the 3 years ran out 08 model, so now I have no MOT, no road tax and now EU insurance, sounds dumb, but there is surely a way around it.

Can I get MOT/ITV, tax and insurance as soon as I enter Spain from Morocco, say in Algeciras?

It seems unlikely, given your UK licence plate, that you can get the Spanish ITV to be recognised to apply to your vehicle.
You probably know that for the MOT testing to be valid the testing station has to log on to some website or other (VOSA/DVLA??) for a minimum length of time that is related to the complexity of the vehicle test process; some test stations have lost their testing status on this account alone.

On another thread you have discounted using a van to get the bike back to the UK, so that appears to leave the alternative of riding the bike back here very carefully indeed i.e. as you say, you may not be covered by your insurance if involved in a claim from any party (because of the lack of a valid MOT certificate, but this may not be the case - it depends on the insurance company, their insurance assessor and your full circumstances). It is very unlikely that you will be asked to show UK specific documents (MOT, tax disc) unless you are involved in an accident or when near the channel ports, at which point the French authorities are reputed to be much more aware of the UK legal requirements for motor vehicles.
Ferry, Santander >> UK worth considering?
On arrival in UK, go straight to a pre-booked MOT test which happens to be near to where you are heading in any case (or get a mate to pick you up with his van, or get a transport outfit to take the bike to your address).

Cheers again, it seems like I'll have to take the chance, did you send me a link on a route, as I'm unable to click on it?

Santander it'll have to be I guess.

I'm currently trying to make a ITV appointment in Ceuta or Algeciras, at least I have tried my best to be as legal as humanly possible.

read this Any way of getting a MOT in spain, or equivalent. it seems a MOT/ITV in Algeciras is possible on a UK plate. Can anyone confirm any truth in this?

In the above link, only an opinion but might be true:

I have friends who have had their UK plated car ITV'd.

Not all ITV stations can issue to UK plates, but some can. It is meant to cover you for your journey back to UK, although not to drive around on for months on end. Ask around at your local ITV stations. The one's I know that do it are based in Marbella and Algeciras so I don't think they will be any use to you.

Just a bit of information here, not necessarily for the benefit of Mike (the original poster), but certainly for the benefit of anyone from outside Europe who comes along reading this discussion to learn about how to get 'Green Card' insurance coverage within Europe...

'Green Card' insurance issued within Europe for motorcycles from outside Europe - in other words, tourist coverage - is pretty much a fungible commodity, much like 98 octane gasoline. The price is, for the most part, fixed within a very narrow band, because there are only a few underwriters at the very bottom of it all who write this cover.

There are, however, many different resellers who offer this insurance - along with a variety of value-added services, such as going to the local office and fetching it for you, posting it to you in advance, accepting credit cards as payment, and so forth. These value added resellers mark up the price of the basic insurance policy to cover the cost of the services that they add.

For many years, I bought my Green Card coverage in person at an ADAC (German Automobile Association) office. That's the same place that Knopf buys it. Because I was willing and able to buy it in person at the ADAC office, I didn't have to pay the mark-up that Knopf adds in exchange for going and getting the insurance for you and posting it to you.

Several years ago, ADAC increased their prices substantially - perhaps as a result of a run of losses selling this insurance due to claims payouts, etc. Around that time, we all discovered Mototouring in Italy, who were selling the same product for less than ADAC (and, obviously, less than Knopf), and most of us regulars switched to buying from Mototouring.

Remember, what you are buying is, like gasoline, fungible: It's the same thing, no matter where you get it and no matter what you pay for it. It is basic minimum liability insurance for the EU countries plus Switzerland. Unless you need something unique, such as theft coverage or collision coverage (offered by Motorcycle Express), extended country coverage for countries outside of the EC (also offered by Motorcycle Express), or personalized service available by email from overseas (offered by Knopf), just shop for your Green Card based on price. Because, like gasoline, you get the same product regardless of what the name of the vendor (Shell, Esso, Total, Mobil) on the company sign is.

Michael

Nice summary Michael that is often not known to those who take out insurance just once a year, or thereabouts, and forget about it thereafter.


Good luck with that; it sounds interesting and there could be a lot of people interested in the answer.
No, I didn't have a specific route in mind; I was just playing with the underline button to emphasise that you have to ride very carefully if you happen to not have insurance cover that is valid at that time.
Funnily enough, I have just been reading this thread:- http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...nsurance-59644
which talks about riding in Europe without minimum insurance cover; as often happens with threads, there is no outcome, no end state, no closing the loop of "what happened".

Hello All;

I just wanted to say that I used Doug Wothke's services to get my insurance for the UK.

Great!!

Cheap, reliable, passed the checkpoints, borders and was in the mailbox when he said it would be.

I highly recommend getting the insurance through Doug and Polly. You can reach them here :motocampbg@yahoo.com

Thanks!

Miles and Tracey
www.smilesandmiles.com

Hey Miles
I'm glad it all went good for you, & everything worked with the customs, altho as I have used the same insurance the past 2 summers, I never had a problem (or I would not recommend it to others)

I hope your trip went well!

as an addition, as I have had several questions about this, if you are coming overland from turkey into bulgaria, you can buy the green card at the border.
Buy it on the BG side, as its much cheaper than the TR side. once you pass thru the customs, the office is in a building to the left. If you dont see it, just ask the guard.

Doug

I guess that was inevitable given those people who bring a bike into the UK thereby becoming involved with the UK insurance business.
There have been some useful posts in this thread about the same subject:-
http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...nsurance-59644
In there, two UK insurers have been named as recently providing insurance cover for those who don't have a UK driving licence viz esure.com (an online ins company, and only online = they won't give you a telephone number) and "Footman James".

It's confirmed, as a new spanish connection of mine made the call today, Ceuta ITV had no clue about doing uk reg bikes but algeciras ITV and malaga said yes they have done it before, but, it's not official and that it does help in most cases when showed to the spanish police.

booking made

anyone that might need to make the call in future:

algeciras ITV +34 956673850
malaga ITV +34 902575757
ceuta ITV +34 956507374

12 pages!!!

Can somebody kindly start a new thread (with no comments) with the current contact details of what this thread was originally about, getting green card insurance from the cheapest source - it would save us all wading through 12 pages trying to make sure we have the latest contact details...

Thanks ;-)

Better than that, it should be a sticky. Mods, please stand up :dots:

This current thread is a sticky. If you want to create a new thread, please do. I'll sticky it for you.

For a topic like this, Wiki software would be a better way to keep everything together. Why don't you ask Grant for it?

A mod's job, IMHO, is not to generate content in the format others would like. :cool4: The users generate the content, the mods "police" it.

Since the known plonkers have left the building, life is easy as a member of the thin blue line (for me at least): The only thing to do is delete spammers and focus on researching my own trips, give tips to others (aka generate content) and read for pleasure (admittedly, I don't usally read this particular thread "for pleasure"....).

C

Hey folks, just wondering....
My bike is not from outside the EU, I have an Irish bike, but my Irish insurance is running out in a few weeks (they only cover for 93 days outside of the country, then you have to return or cancel). All this talk of a European Green Card for non-EU bikes, but do I get the same insurance for an EU bike?
Need insurance to get me through another few months around Europe, and Morocco too if anyone covers both, anyone have any recommendations??
Beers for the winner with the best answer...... beer

Insurance for UK registered bikes outside the UK
 

IronArse - Morocco insurance can be bought after going through the border, EBike wouldn't cover us outside of Spain. We crossed Algeciras - Ceueta (2009), can't remember details right now but the cops gave us directions to the insurers office. Think we paid about 30 Euros for a months cover.

I've got Hants police onto this :-) through an ex traffic cop mate of mine -

"Can I buy motor insurance for the bike from another EU country that will cover me in the UK and Europe? Scouring the internet is getting conflicting results.



This from the DVLA website -


Any vehicle used in this country for more than six months in any 12 has to be registered and licensed here in the normal way with the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA). In addition, where the keeper of the vehicle becomes resident in this country, the vehicle must immediately be registered and licensed here. Once a vehicle has been registered in this country its use must be covered by a motor insurance policy issued by a motor insurer authorised in the UK. - Motor insurance for visiting and imported vehicles : Directgov - Motoring



This from the European Commission website -


Vehicles should be registered in the country of residence of the policy holder and/or vehicle owner. Provided their registration is in order, they may be insured by an insurer established in the country of registration or in any other EU country. Insurers providing cross-border insurance services must fulfil certain formalities under the EU insurance rules. They must also be willing to offer a contract. - Motor insurance - European Commission



This from the Motor Insurers Bureau, Information for Police website -



http://www.mib.org.uk/NR/rdonlyres/9...rPolicev81.pdf

I'll post back up when/if I get a suitable answer.

non EU countries
 

Headed off recently with 2 UK reg bikes to cross Bosnia and Serbia - did not bother with green card and no real issues. Leaving Croatia to Bosnia was asked for a green card but guy on border happy to issue insurance for 40 euros / bike. Going from Bosnia to Serbia nobody asked for anything so no problems.

Trip was June 2012 and all pretty good except for heatwave of 35-40 degrees all the time. Bosnia was a great country to bike in !

Paul.

Reply from the EC

So, even though it is possible to get cheaper insurance within the EU the reality is there are so many hurdles in the way it isn't worth it. Trying to find a list of Insurers operating outside of the UK via the FSA Register is nigh on impossible ... I gave up in the end and bought from the UK.

Morocco Greencard
 

Do'es anyone know where i can get insurance cover for Morocco on a UK registed vehicle?

Europe Insurance cost (Trip is From Muscat to London)
 

Hi there.

We are three Bikres planning to start our trip on the beginning of June 2013. From Muscat - UAE - Iran - Turkey - Greece - Italy - France and finaly to UK. (Up and down).

We need some advices of the foolowing:
1 - What type of papres required to cross boarders.
2 - Route prefared.
3 - Is is a good time and weather during this time (June).
4 - Interesting area and places to visit.

and anu other advices.

Regards
Hamood
Muscat - Oman

Hello Hamood,

1. UAE: you probably know more about that than I do. Insurance at the border.
Iran: better check with the embassy. You probably need a Carnet de Passages from your auto club. Try to get insurance on arrival, but I doubt you will be successful in Bandar Abbas.
Turkey: insurance at the border, unless you arrange Green Card in advance, which will cover you for EU. Use your CdP, if you have one, otherwise pay a fee. I don't know whether you need a visa.
EU: you must have GC, probably available at the border with TR. Check visa requirements. No border crossings until UK, for which you will need a separate visa.
Original bike registration. If it's in Arabic script only you need an official translation. Your auto club should be able to help you.

2. Ferry Sharjah - Bandar Abbas, but check that it's running.
Cross Iran-TR at Orumyieh/Sero. This crossing is easy and quick. In Italy motorways are very expensive for bikes. I would stick to the small roads in the centre, if you have time. France: the SE corner, but stay away from the coast.

3. Starting in June is probably ideal. But: how long have you got? To really enjoy this trip you will need at least 10 weeks.

4. Depends very much on what you are interested in and how much time you have. You will need to do a little thinking and research, then post questions in the trip planning forum. This will be an awesome trip if you have 3 months, it will be hard to do in 2 months and trying to do this in one month will be a record-breaking attempt that may well fail.

Hi Hamood:

You have asked a number of questions that address different topics. Only for the sake of housekeeping here in the forum (by that I mean trying to keep discussion threads confined to a single topic within each thread), I think it would be best if we only deal with the "insurance" portion of your questions here in this discussion.

Concerning your question 1, "What type of papers are required to cross borders", there is an entire sub-forum here on HUBB dedicated to that topic, it is the Trip Paperwork forum. If you take a careful look through the various questions that have been posed in that forum over the past 2 or 3 years, I think you will probably find the answer to that question. If you don't, I suggest you create a new discussion thread (new topic) with a more specific question, for example, "What kind of papers are required to get from UAE to the Eastern border of Iran" or similar.

Concerning your question 2, "What route to take from the UAE to Europe", there is a forum dedicated to exactly those type of questions, it is the Route Planning forum - perhaps post that question as a new topic in that forum. That might also be a place to gather info about your question 3, weather, and question 4, interesting things to see.

With respect to insurance coverage that you will need for the trip, I don't have a lot to add to what Beddhist wrote above, but I can confirm the accuracy of the advice he has given you:

1) For Turkey, you just buy it at the border. Read through earlier posts in this discussion and you will find more detail about how to do that.

2) For the EC countries, buy it in advance from either Arisa (see post #48 in this discussion) or MotoTouring (see post #98 in this thread). You can deal with either of these two companies by email or postal mail, and do the transaction ahead of time, so you will have the documents before you leave the UAE.

3) For the UAE to the Turkish border, God only knows. This discussion (all 184 posts so far) deals with insurance for EUROPE (check the title of the discussion). I suggest you create a new discussion in this forum with the question "How to I get insurance for a trip from the UAE to Turkey?" But, before you do that, perhaps check with an insurance company in Muscat, they might have the answer you seek.

Finally - you indicate that you plan to begin your trip in June 2013 - isn't it awfully fuggin' hot in the Middle East during June and July? Do you think that it is wise to attempt to traverse the (very thinly populated) Arabian peninsula from south to north on motorcycles when the average daily temperature constantly exceeds 40°C? I mean, Jaysus, not even the Bedoun would try to do such a trip on camels at that time of year.

Michael

To add another 2c: if you do get your GC in advance it may include Turkey. It's worth asking about it before handing over $$.

ARISA Insurance most recent contacts?????
 

I have below the contacts from previous posts from this thread for ARISA contacts:

E-Mail: w.plunien@arisa.lu
He did however ask to contact the following email rather for correspondence.
kraftfahrt@arisa.lu
Or
Jessica Ries

Tel : 00352 262940-56
Fax : 00352 262940-40
E-Mail : j.ries@arisa.lu


Does any one have any more recent up to date contacts at ARISA?

ARISA Insurance most recent contacts updated.
 

I have below the contacts from previous posts from this thread for ARISA contacts:

E-Mail: w.plunien@arisa.lu
He did however ask to contact the following email rather for correspondence.
kraftfahrt@arisa.lu

Jessica Ries does not work at ARISA anymore

ARISA Insurance most recent emails sent and received
 

I sent this email to ARISA ASSURANCE in Luxembourg since they actually write the policy for ADAC:

I am a Canadian citizen and am currently visiting Morzine, France. Last year in May 2012 I got Green Card Insurance at ADAC in Frankfurt for 2 months when my Goldwing motorcycle was shipped from Canada. I have stored the motorcycle in Evora, Portugal since last Summer and I will be returning to Portugal at the end of March. I need Green Card Insurance as of March 27 for 3 months. I understand through the Horizons Unlimited Motorcycle website forum that I can get the Frontier Insurance (Green Card) directly from ARISA. I have my ownership for the bike and the Green Card from last year.


The first reply from Sylvie at ARISA was this below which I do not understand:

In fact you don't shipped your Goldwing to Canada last year, so now you must look for an insurance in Portugal.


Then a little later I received this from Sylvie at ARISA

We are sorry, but we cannot give you an insurance product.
Your motorbike still stay in Portugal, so you must look for an insurance in this country.


Best regards
Cordialement
Mit freundlichen Grüßen

Sylvie Koch

ARISA Assurances S.A.
5, rue Eugène Ruppert
L-2453 Luxembourg
Tel 00352/ 262940-53


I sent this response:

Hi Sylvie
I drove my bike around Europe last summer and ended up in Portugal. I will pick up my motorcycle in Portugal in March and continue riding around Europe for the next three months. I do not understand why you cannot offer me insurance for my bike? I understand that I may be able to get Grenzversicherung from ADAC but may have to go to Germany to get it and that is very inconvenient and expensive.

Her email address is : sylvie.koch@arisa-assur.com

Any suggestions or help appreciated.

gopdebeek,

I think you do NOT have to go--physically--to Germany, to get an ADAC/ Arisa Grenzversicherung 'Green Card' policy for your Canadian registered bike in Portugal.
Try
Green Card
who can usually arrange ADAC Green Card from the ADAC Heidelberg office, and send it to you in advance of returning to EU/ Portugal.
(or)
How does the European Green Card Insurance work?
who can usually do the same thing with a (different) Italian underwriter
(or)
http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...een-card-61241

It might seem 'logical' to try to go directly to underwriter Arisa, but underwriting bureaucracies sometimes have their own interpretation of situation/ rules, or just prefer not to deal directly with particular circumstances like yours.

+1 for the last post: the insurance business has certainly swung toward the use of "middle men" who come between us, the customers, and those who actually underwrite the risk.

Also, tell them as little as possible; stick to the facts associated with the insurance of the bike and not it's "history" of how long it has been kept in Europe - for the latter there are national restrictions which for most countries are 6 months, maybe one year; that may be why the underwriters initial reaction ( it's always easier to say no than yes) was "we can't do that".

Maybe, if all else fails, take the bike to, say, Maroc, for a short time and then re-import it into Europe (for another 6 month stay :innocent:)

"and am currently visiting Morzine, France." -- Me too! Nice over night fall of snow.

You can get Insurance from ARISA
 

Thanks Walkabout, maybe we should meet for coffee sometime in Morzine, I am here until March 26. Nice snow but too cold for me to ski.

This is what I received from ARISA today:

To issue an insurance we need the following documents (scan) and information for checking from you:

1. Identity card and driver’s license of the vehicle owner
2. Registration document of your vehicle (Title, V5, etc) with registration-number, vehicle identification number
3. The starting day of the insurance (beginning date of the insurance).
4. The term of insurance (for how long the insurance should run)
5. Your complete postal address (the address where the vehicle is registered)
(6. The shipping address (if different from the registration address))

Best regards
Cordialement
Mit freundlichen Grüßen

Sylvie Koch

ARISA Assurances S.A.
5, rue Eugène Ruppert
L-2453 Luxembourg
Tel 00352/ 262940-53

I have known a few Canadians who don't like the cold; but, come on, around -6 cent, or thereabouts, + a bit of wind chill. :innocent:
Unfortunately, I move on, soon.

That's a good, positive, business-like reply and deals with the facts. Excellent, and I trust you will get a good deal; interesting that they don't ask for a complete "life history" of motoring convictions such as speeding offences and suchlike. :thumbup1:

+1 that Arisa now appears willing to consider issuing insurance directly.

It will be interesting to know:
1. why the same Arisa rep changed (her) tune from the first denial;
2. if Arisa actually issues the policy, based on the info requested/ submitted;
3. whether Arisa charges less-same-more than its broker/agents like ADAC.

gopdebeek, please let us know Arisa's followup if you can.
Thanks.

Do I need valid Canadian Insurance.... ARISA says yes??
 

Here are a series of email between ARISA and me in the last day:

From ARISA:
Your motorcycle insurance was expired in 14 Jun 2012.
The documents of your motorcycle must be updated before we can provide a green card insurance.
Please send us documents with valid date.

From me:
That date of June 14 2012 on my Ownership paper was the Canadaian Insurance expiry date I had bought in Canada. It is not valid in Europe. Any insurance I buy in Canada is for Canada only and not valid in Europe. The green card Insurance gives me liability insurance in the EU countries. I cannot buy Green Card Insurance in Canada that is why I must buy it in Europe from ARISA. You will see on the green card 1 PDF copy of last years Green card that I had coverage for 2 months from May 05 2012 to July 04 2012. I would now like to purchase it again from March 27 2013 to June 26 2013. I hope this is clear now.

Last year March 15 I bought the 2003 goldwing locally that I shipped to Europe. The BC Insurance Corporation of BC (ICBC) rep said that the BC insurance was not valid in Europe and made a point of putting that on my file. I had bought 3 months ICBC insurance from March 15 to June 14 because I need to ride the bike around and maybe to Vancouver when it would be shipped. On may 6 the bike arrived in Frankfurt and I insured it until July 4 , three months. I got to Portugal and stored the bike on July 4 and flew home July 6. I have attached my ownership and green card scans.

I sent these plus id etc to ARISA insurance in LUxemburg

here is a one day back and forth
From ARISA:
Your motorcycle insurance was expired in 14 Jun 2012.
The documents of your motorcycle must be updated before we can provide a green card insurance.
Please send us documents with valid date.

From me:
That date of June 14 2012 on my Ownership paper was the Canadaian Insurance expiry date I had bought in Canada. It is not valid in Europe. Any insurance I buy in Canada is for Canada only and not valid in Europe. The green card Insurance gives me liability insurance in the EU countries. I cannot buy Green Card Insurance in Canada that is why I must buy it in Europe from ARISA. You will see on the green card 1 PDF copy of last years Green card that I had coverage for 2 months from May 05 2012 to July 04 2012. I would now like to purchase it again from March 27 2013 to June 26 2013. I hope this is clear now.

From ARISA:
Without an intact insurance in Canadian we are not able to provide an green card insurance for Europe.

help

gopdebeek,
Have a look at post number 2 (and maybe number 3) in this thread:-
http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...nsurance-69292
The owner of the camp site in Bulgaria has been offering to act as an intermediary for green card insurance.

As for the insurance companies, such as ARISA, they never fail to amaze me with their business practices.
If all else fails, perhaps you can renew your Canadian insurance and get it emailed to you; this happens quite commonly in the UK when a bike is taken off the road for a while.

gopdebeek,
I believe--even if ARISA is asking you for proof of current valid/ 'intact' Canadian insurance to issue an ARISA policy directly--that any of the broker services linked above, including the Bulgarian, German (Knopf), or Italian (Mototouring), will be able to issue you a policy without having current Canadian insurance.
That's certainly worth trying.
Or, as Walkabout suggests, if all else fails, try to renew Canadian cover; but I don't think that will be necessary.

Insurance accomplished..motocampbg !!!!
 

Ivo at motocampbg in Bulgaria is getting me my Green Card insurance for 3 months for 140 Euros!!!

I sent a direct bank transfer in Euros because I am in France and have access to a French bank account. fee was 3.50 Euro at my end and 4 Euro at the other end. If you do this i would recommend sending 150Euros to cover his costs and at least buy a coffee for him. Ivo asks for nothing.
His email is motocampbgATNOSPAMyahooDOTTYcom Ivo will send his bank info if you want it.

Great service, nice people. He will send a scan of Green Card then snail mail the original.

My 100% endorsement.

Gys (pronounced Guys) Op de Beek

More green card woes
 

Ok, so I've just asked my UK bike insurer (Carole Nash) if I can have a green card for the countries outside of the EU I may visit. I was told I can, for an additional premium of course, but before he could give me a quote he would need to know which countries, fair enough, but also, the dates I would visiting each country...:confused1:

We went round in circles for a while but the outcome was they won't issue a green card card unless I can tell them, in advance, when, and for how long I'll be in each country. Surely this can't be right...? How can you know where you might be several months from now..?

Is it them or me that's confused here...? :helpsmilie:

Just bumping this as I still can't get any joy from Carole Nash and I'm leaving next week..! Guess I'll be buying my insurance at the borders..? ?c?

Is this Green Card Vaild for 4x4/cars or just bikes?
 

Is this Green Card Vaild for 4x4/cars or just bikes?

My Australian registered 4x4 is in Holland getting ready for a trip but I've yet to find a place to get my Green Card from. Can anyone advise? Thanks!