USA Insurance Cost - Is this normal?

Nemo

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Just been to the Motorcycle Express site and got the following quote. Before I pull the trigger on this I just thoughtI'd ask if this was normal by other people's experience.
 

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Whoops - forgot to say: 58years old, on a 3 year old 1200GS, for a 20 day trip - Colorado/Utah/Nevada/Wyoming/California
 
Seems to have increased a couple of hundred dollars from when we looked last year but that may be a reflection of the new provider after the GDPR nonsense.

Does your custom quote include breakdown and uninsured driver cover?
 
Hi http://www.ukgser.com/forums/member.php/1039859-ShakeyBMW The quote above doesn't include breakdown cover but it does include uninsured driver cover.

http://www.ukgser.com/forums/member.php/1014124-patzx12 yes, that's for my R1200 GS

Does seem a bit high to me - If I peg it back to 30 days I can reduce the premium but I'm not sure what level of cover I need

USA insurance is dodgy, you need loads of everything just in case. A couple of million third party. With the personal accident is that only $100k? seems low.
$100k would cover a broken little finger in the US.
I would talk to Sgt Bilco, he is the USA expert.
 
These are obviously the new rates coming in after last years debacle.

There have always been various levels of bike cover with premiums ranging from sensible to ridiculous so you have to pick the one you feel most comfortable with.

The way I see it is I make sure my own personal cover is as high as it can be including repatriation which is vital. This is seperate from the bike insurance.

The bike insurance is a different matter and it depends on how you see things. You can get basic 3rd party cover if you are prepared to lose you bike in the event of a big one or you can go the whole hog. I end up generally with a mid range so I feel happy that all will be OK if a big one happened.

The most important is insurance is against non insured drivers which is a huge issue stateside.

Also, teh breakdown cover seems a bit odd because they generally only cover you for teh first 35 miles of being collected. Seems bonkers but it's worth it as it covers the cost of being attended to and if you are 300 miles from somewhere, that cost can break you. A few years ago, one of teh guys on a trip of mine had an issue and the bill to come out and rescue him and move to a dealer was around $1000. If he had had the cover, for about $40, he woul have saved himself around $700.

I'm talking to another provider reference insurance so give me a few days and I'll see if they are cheaper.
 
Thanks Sgt bilco. The whole thing seems very messy at the moment. Even the terminology used confuses me as it all seems based on liability so it just seems to be inflated 3rd party only. I go in June so I'll hang slack for a bit and see if the market opens out a bit.
 
I’m going to run a quote through today or tomorrow and will let you know how I get on.
We have two bikes to insure. The way it looks is that Motorcycle Express will be offering separate policies for the USA and Canada.
Last time I went one policy covered both.
My memory tells me that I paid a lot less than the OP suggests but that my memory....

I’m not terested to see what else you find out Sgt Bilco. As ever, I and many others appreciate your efforts.
 
I just can't understand why an insurance company charges so much more for you to insure the same motorcycle here as I who live here? Complete coverage insurance including uninsured and under insured, liability, theft comprehensive, collision, some medical etc. would be around $350 per year.
 
I’m going to run a quote through today or tomorrow and will let you know how I get on.
We have two bikes to insure. The way it looks is that Motorcycle Express will be offering separate policies for the USA and Canada.
Last time I went one policy covered both.
My memory tells me that I paid a lot less than the OP suggests but that my memory....

I’m not terested to see what else you find out Sgt Bilco. As ever, I and many others appreciate your efforts.

Obviously that should say ‘I AM interested’ in what else you find out.
 
OK, the suspense was getting to me so I had to go through the forms to get a quote. I thought that the figures Nemo showed in the opening post looked a bit high......however....

A ten year old F800GS with a 51 year old rider. No adverse info, claims, convictions etc.
I put in the highest level of cover for liability and physical damage. $750K on each.

The quote for 180 days cover?? Sit down guys, lm glad that I was...$8563.26

That doesn’t cover riding in Canada, taking a passenger or for anyone else to ride.
I’m guessing that our second bike will be quoted about the same?

So, options. Try the insurance crowd mentioned elsewhere on here based in Mexico, wait for Sgt Bikco’s new findings or go somewhere else.....what’s the weather in South America like in May??
 
I would save a load of cash by following Bilco’s advice and getting the highest levels of personal accident / injury cover ....... and then not insuring the bike at all :p

On a serious note it looks like renting is getting more appealing . However , if it’s a long trip then buying is a good option. I didn’t seem to pay that much for bike insurance when I bought a nice used 11GS in 2004 for a 90day trip. I lost a couple of thousand dollars on it for a very a quick sale & in need of a service and tyres.
 
There is an option of buying a bike and get the dealer to help with the insurance.
Finish the trip and sell the bike to someone on here who wants to do a trip.
Or fly it home with Air Canada and flog it in the UK.
 
I don’t think that Sgt Bilco encourages to NOT have vehicle insurance.

Buying a bike in the US isn’t a simple thing for a visitor without a permanent address.

Shipping it back to the UK, simple, getting it registered....potential hassle.

There is no easy solution when you actually look in to this situation.

I’m not prepared to ride North America without proper bike insurance. 3rd party is OK but I want to be covered for damaging other people or their vehicles.
 
I was looking at doing a US trip next year, this Insurance issue is really putting me off, looks like it would be vastly cheaper to rent something like a Mustang convertable, If I go at all now, too many other interesting places to visit. :)
 
It’s a bugger all right. We are/were planning to go on to the US from New Zealand and the. Do the North to South thing ending up in Argentina.

Another thought was NZ to South Korea and then ferry to Vladivostok but Russian Visa can be difficult to obtain for more than 1 month. Also they like you to be in your home country when you apply.

Hopefully something will get worked out for the US insurance as we won’t be paying $8500 per bike for the six months that we can stay.....plus more for Canada.

I’ve emailed Motorcycle Express but may call them tomorrow for a chat as that may be easier.
 
A bit more info re pricing.

XInsurance (Motorcycle Express)
I have lowered the coverage to $50K per person and $100K per accident and the quote is now $2767 for SIX months. USA only and bike covered for damage etc. Quote price is per bike.

Segurogringo
For $200K combined liability (bodily and property damage) the quote is $475 for SIX months. This INCLUDES Canada. That’s a price per bike.
This policy is 3rd party only. We would have to cover the cost of damage or loss of the bikes ourselves.

The value of our bikes is such that we are happy to go with Segurogringo. A bit more investigation is required before we commit though.
 


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