Headlamp for France + insurance

  • Thread starter Thread starter paul1961
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paul1961

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Hi I am in the process of moving to France and want to take my GSA with me. Does anyone here know if the headlamp needs changing as I will eventually get a carte gris and officially export it there.
Also any advice on insurance would be helpful. :thumb
Paul
 
I had to change my headlight when I and my GS moved to France, but some get away with it.
It can be a very tortuous process this re-registering lark but again some get away with it and wonder what all the fuss is about.
Insurance is expensive in France but that sort of balances out as there's no MOT and no road tax.
Have a look around on one of the Anglo French forums and do a search on here as well as this question has cropped up before.
Bon chance.
 
Thanks for the response. I agree a lot of ex pats do chance thier arm I think we can leagally get away with it for 6 months but then you have the hassle of coming back to the uk for MOT's and not really sure how long you would get away with riding in France with english insurance as most only cover you for a max of 90 days in one trip...:blast
 
Insurance wise, Gomez has just taken a Carol Nash policy out for 12 months for his open ended trip around Europe, cost around £70 with full repatriation, breakdown etc.

Enjoy France :beerjug:

Morticia
 
Depends how old your bike is. If it has an EU certificate of conformity then you should have no problem, but if not then you're in for, at best, a lot of hassle. My experience is that, without a CoC registering a vehicle in France is essentially impracticable.

Bear in mind that your local prefecture is a law unto itself - documentation whci might be accepted in one area may not be accepted in another. The local prefectures have little experience of such registrations and its much safer for them to say no than yes. People regularly go to court over stuff like this - the rules appear clear, but the prefecture simply say no and prefer to have the decision made by a court.

Courage.

PS remember your UK insurance remains valid for legal risks anywhere in the EU.
 
Hi Paul 1961
I have imported two UK bikes now ,2002 FJR and 2010 GSA ,And had no problems
Getting them French plated .

1. Get a CofC from BMW UK should be free ( BMW France will sting you ! )
2. take your Sales Invoice to the tax office in France If you don’t have one just make one up. And ask for a Quittus Fiscal , You will need proof of address in France , passport . And V5 some times .This is free
3. Take you Quittus Fiscal , proof of address (Utility bill, ID ,C of C, V5,and some form of payment to the Prefecture.
4. Ask for a Demande de Certificate Immatriculation fill it in wait your turn pay and they will give you a paper A4 Carte Gris to allow you to get your reg plate then within a week the Full Carte Gris will turn up.

Most French Assurance company’s will give you cover on you UK plates until you get the Carte Gris .
As for changing head lights and Speedo I have never had to , I even sold the FJR to a French Gendarme.

A Few helpful sites to help you find out some of the general day to day tings you may need to know
http://www.totalfrance.com/france/forum/index.php

http://www.completefrance.com/cs/forums/

http://dordogne.angloinfo.com/forum/default.asp

And you could have a look at this
http://www.bikeclubfrance.com/index.php

shan
 
shan said:
Hi Paul 1961
I have imported two UK bikes now ,2002 FJR and 2010 GSA ,And had no problems
Getting them French plated .

1. Get a CofC from BMW UK should be free ( BMW France will sting you ! )
2. take your Sales Invoice to the tax office in France If you don’t have one just make one up. And ask for a Quittus Fiscal , You will need proof of address in France , passport . And V5 some times .This is free
3. Take you Quittus Fiscal , proof of address (Utility bill, ID ,C of C, V5,and some form of payment to the Prefecture.
4. Ask for a Demande de Certificate Immatriculation fill it in wait your turn pay and they will give you a paper A4 Carte Gris to allow you to get your reg plate then within a week the Full Carte Gris will turn up.

Most French Assurance company’s will give you cover on you UK plates until you get the Carte Gris .
As for changing head lights and Speedo I have never had to , I even sold the FJR to a French Gendarme.

A Few helpful sites to help you find out some of the general day to day tings you may need to know
http://www.totalfrance.com/france/forum/index.php

http://www.completefrance.com/cs/forums/

http://dordogne.angloinfo.com/forum/default.asp

And you could have a look at this
http://www.bikeclubfrance.com/index.php

shan
Click to expand...

To add to Shan's post,

If your bike is not yet 6 months old or has less than 6,000kms on the clock you will need to pay import tax, so if this is the case then you should wait the six months and 6,000kms +

:beerjug:
 
Thanks folks really helpfull info here much appreciated. My bikes an 08 GSA and would hate to leave it behind. Regards Paul
 
Imported my Spanish reg 07 1200GSA to France, COC from BMW France was free. Spedo was only in KPH and lights were correct so had no probs at the prefecture, not sure if the lights can be adjusted or the spedo is in KPH and MPH on yours ? it will not restricting .
 
paul1961 said:
Thanks for the response. I agree a lot of ex pats do chance thier arm I think we can leagally get away with it for 6 months but then you have the hassle of coming back to the uk for MOT's and not really sure how long you would get away with riding in France with english insurance as most only cover you for a max of 90 days in one trip...:blast
Click to expand...

Not least you have the small matter of your declaration to your insurer as to where you lived and where the bike was regularly garaged.

It may never happen but if you plough into a bus queue of French schoolgirls and an American attorney's wife, someone is going to be taking a lot of interest in you and your insurance..... Probably in very technically exact French, not covered by a simple phrase book. But that is being very glum.
 
I don't know how to do for the insurance but for the headlight, there is my little experience.
I am french and i have bought a UK bike. After six monthes, I was sure I have to change headlight for a euro type. Others cars make me understand!
Now, i have a new headlight, and my UK one is on sale here... http://www.ukgser.com/forums/showthread.php?t=261406
 
Last edited:
Changing the speedo face

I too live in France and have registered my Kawasaki Versys, which is now for sale so I can buy a year 2008/09 GSA. I'll probably buy one in the UK and import to France due to the weakness of the pound etc.

Although not required for the import process, does anyone know if it is possible - and if so, how difficult - to change the speedo face from one with mph and kph to one with just kph? Once I've got the bike here I won't need mph and it'll make it easier to see what speed I am doing from a quick glance at the speedo.
 
If you have a CofC then you register the bike, there are no checks by anyone to see if you have changed your headlight or speedo. I have imported two R1100S's with CofCs from BMW UK which were free (BMW France wanted €135 each). The headlight on the S can be rotated to dip right after loosening three screws in the back of the light.
 
Nippy Normans supply Touratech, Wunderlich, Desert Fox and many other makes of accessories.
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