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How to import a bike?

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C1REX
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PostPosted: 13:17 - 03 Dec 2015    Post subject: How to import a bike? Reply with quote
It's slowly coming the time when I want to replace my bike for a newer model.

When the British Pound being so strong it looks like a great option to buy abroad.

UK price for NC750S - £5999
Polish price - £4300 Shocked ... and you get a Honda top box for free. Cool

What are the others costs?
Can I use Polish warranty in UK?
What paper work needs to be done?

Is it any easier/harder to buy brand new one or used one?
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Yorkshire Geek
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PostPosted: 21:56 - 03 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
VAT at 20% so £860.
VCA fee of £100 to certify the bike is suitable for use in the UK.

Other then that I don't know, presumably some sort of transport.
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iooi
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PostPosted: 22:59 - 03 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
Exchange rate on the payment for £ to whatever at the other end.
Cost of travel. Flight out and then ride back.

6% Import duty, 20% VAT.
Total import duty & taxes due: £989.00

Then any costs to bring to UK spec.

I think you need to save a lot more than that.
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Rogerborg
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PostPosted: 23:17 - 03 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
https://www.gov.uk/importing-vehicles-into-the-uk/vat-and-tax-vehicles-from-within-the-eu

Says you should be able to reclaim the Polish VAT at 23%, or about £800. I have no idea what you'd do if the seller just said "What bike?"

Is that Polish price OTR, including VAT and any other taxes and costs?

Presumably you'd be paying import mugging and VAT on the pre-tax price of about £3500? So £910 to pay, £800 to reclaim.
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P.addy
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PostPosted: 00:17 - 04 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
While you are in the UK might as well buy one from here Laughing
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C1REX
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PostPosted: 07:11 - 05 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
Paddy. wrote:
While you are in the UK might as well buy one from here Laughing


There is £1700 difference. Even with all additional costs I still probably will be save money.
I won't be the first one doing it.
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iooi
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PostPosted: 07:14 - 05 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
C1REX wrote:

There is £1700 difference. Even with all additional costs I still probably will be save money.
I won't be the first one doing it.


Don't forget al the hours of frustration with DVLA getting it sorted....

And you won't be the last that thought it was a good idea..... Then did it and found it was more trouble than it was worth Karma

Before you go ahead and do it. Just run a insurance quote. Remembering to state its a "Import" and see how it compares Thumbs Up
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Pete.
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PostPosted: 07:54 - 05 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
C1REX wrote:
Paddy. wrote:
While you are in the UK might as well buy one from here Laughing


There is £1700 difference. Even with all additional costs I still probably will be save money.
I won't be the first one doing it.


Yeah we had a Polish guy at work came into the country pretending to go on a tour of famous football stadiums, went straight to work illegally, got a phone contract and kept claiming on the insurance for replacements to his his brand new phones that he wasn't even removing from the packaging but selling back home in Poland for £300 a pop.

Now you want to add to our balance of trade deficit AND expect any warranty issues on a bike you bought back home to be dealt with by the UK importers just to save yourself a few quid AND you want someone else to figure it all out how for you? Next thing you'll be buying all your tyres and service items overseas too.

You're living over here for a good reason. Try supporting the country you came to live in.
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Rogerborg
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PostPosted: 13:18 - 05 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
Now, now, we're all loyal happy citizens of Europe. The single market is the original point of the exercise and I have no hesitation in using it.
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C1REX
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PostPosted: 18:18 - 08 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
Pete - what the difference if I buy a Japanese bike here or abroad?
There is import tax, road tax and insurance to pay here and it will be serviced in Honda Chiswick. I don't service bikes myself so can support British economy. Sorry for not choosing Triumph. Sad

How it's related to illegal action of a guy you know?

I really don't mind what country the bike is coming from but Poland seems to be the best candidate as it's cheap (no € yet) , fairly close and language is popular.

Still not sure if it's worth the trouble. Some people also recommended me to buy in Italy but there is no much saving and there is no nc750s with manual transmission.
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Jayy
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PostPosted: 18:58 - 08 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
Always remember this Polish guy and his mate who would turn up once a year to a mates place and buy second hand bikes from him. They would load about 15 up and drive them back to Poland.

There's definitely money to be made doing that, not on one vehicle though.
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sickpup
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PostPosted: 19:19 - 08 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
Pete. wrote:
Now you want to add to our balance of trade deficit AND expect any warranty issues on a bike you bought back home to be dealt with by the UK importers just to save yourself a few quid AND you want someone else to figure it all out how for you? Next thing you'll be buying all your tyres and service items overseas too.

You're living over here for a good reason. Try supporting the country you came to live in.


Would actually be good for the trade deficit as less money would be leaving the UK and there is a Euro wide warranty syastem on all new vehicles sold within the block.
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i1301243
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PostPosted: 19:47 - 08 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
Wasn't that long ago that the boys and girls were sailing over to France on mass and buying UK spec cars from Europe because we used to get ripped off. I recall the UK dropped its prices shortly after it was exposed on Top Gear (iirc, I'm fairly sure it involved that Quentin Wilson bloke) and showed how easy it was.

Don't see why it would be any harder in the modern day.

Edit: See here for what I was on about
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Pigeon
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PostPosted: 20:33 - 08 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
C1REX wrote:
Pete - what the difference if I buy a Japanese bike here or abroad?


Sorry to poke my nose in, but for one thing who get's the commission for the sale, which franchise books the sale, and which franchise pays the corporation tax and employee taxes, which employee then goes out and spends money in which economy.

The thing is, it is your money and of course you can do what you want with it. And for decades the Brits have been importing things because they don't want to pay over the odds.

From the 70's we switched to Jap bikes because brit bikes were worse and more expensive.
But with limited competition and poor exchange rates, grey import bikes were a massive deal in the 90's.

Looking around mine, and most others homes, 99% of our stuff is made elsewhere. And many FTSE350 companies seem to spend a lot of time and money avoiding paying tax in this country.

In the end I agree, that people can't be surprised if jobs evaporate and public services deteriorate if their isn't funds from taxes to pay for them. That being said, like most people, I'm too selfish and want my ill earn't £ to go as far as it can.

Short termism wins.

However you end up with it, hope you enjoy your new bike Smile
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sickpup
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PostPosted: 22:28 - 08 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
Pigeon wrote:
The thing is, it is your money and of course you can do what you want with it. And for decades the Brits have been importing things because they don't want to pay over the odds.


Oddly this is completely irrelevent as long as the money saved is spent in the UK then there is virtually no loss to the UK economy. In fact it may be a net gain.
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Vracktal
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PostPosted: 00:19 - 09 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
Won't the speedo be in KM if you buy from another EU country? That and the headlight might point the wrong way (iirc some faired bikes have headlights that point to the nearside same as with cars)
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mudcow007
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PostPosted: 12:14 - 09 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
wont the bike be a left hand drive though, you know an have the throttle on the other side....might take some getting use too
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c-m
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PostPosted: 12:46 - 09 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
If you buy from a dealer you can just spec the bike to UK specs before it even leaves the showroom.

I've been tempted by an import (used) from Jersey, but ultimately don't think it's worth the hassle.
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Rogerborg
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PostPosted: 12:57 - 09 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
mudcow007 wrote:
wont the bike be a left hand drive though, you know an have the throttle on the other side....might take some getting use too

https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2015/12/03/16/2F07FFE600000578-3344709-image-a-102_1449161611631.jpg
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GONE: HN125-8, LF-250B, GPz 305, GPZ 500S, Burgman 400 // RIDING: F650GS (800 twin), Royal Enfield Bullet Electra 500 AVL, Ninja 250R because racebike
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MCN
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PostPosted: 19:19 - 09 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
mudcow007 wrote:
wont the bike be a left hand drive though, you know an have the throttle on the other side....might take some getting use too


Bikes from India you mean.

Very Happy
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Pigeon
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PostPosted: 21:04 - 09 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
sickpup wrote:
Pigeon wrote:
The thing is, it is your money and of course you can do what you want with it. And for decades the Brits have been importing things because they don't want to pay over the odds.


Oddly this is completely irrelevent as long as the money saved is spent in the UK then there is virtually no loss to the UK economy. In fact it may be a net gain.


I'm not the sharpest tool in the box, just a bit of a tool generally.
But as an example, if we don't make a bike but import it, then all the jobs associated with making that bike don't exist surely. So the person with cash buys an import, the profit that the franchise would have got, and the profit the manufacturer and all it's suppliers would have got goes to an overseas franchise and manufacturer and suppliers.
Bob has saved £1500 and may spend it down the pub in the UK, but we've lost the other £3500 and thus the death of the British motorcycle manufacturing business.
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talkToTheHat
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PostPosted: 22:20 - 09 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
The question is do you have to return it to the dealership you got it from or at least one in the same country for the warranty to be any use?

What about recalls?

Are you planning on riding it over? Is there a 600 mile break in service?
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C1REX
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PostPosted: 02:54 - 10 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
talkToTheHat wrote:
The question is do you have to return it to the dealership you got it from or at least one in the same country for the warranty to be any use?

What about recalls?

Are you planning on riding it over? Is there a 600 mile break in service?


- I've checked that already and the warranty is for the whole Europe.
- I don't plan to ride it. Delivery is too cheap for about £150-200.
- Recalls should work the same way but I haven't confirmed it yet.

Few other info I've got.

- NC750 has symmetric light and digital speedo so nothing to change for UK.
- It's parallel import (bike is also available in UK) and there shouldn't be any difference in insurance cost.
- Poland seems to have the lowest prices in Europe by significant margin. Switzerland is OK but not as good. Ukraine is much more expensive than UK.
Most other countries (especially EUR € zone) has almost the same prices as UK.
- There is also an older model NC700S available for extra savings.


Paperwork is a challenge and takes about 4 weeks.
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Rogerborg
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PostPosted: 08:48 - 10 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
Hmm, Poland are still on the Zloty so the price might be legit - it does appear to be the OTR price.

I'd want to be pretty assured of getting the 23% Polish VAT back though before going any further.
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C1REX
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PostPosted: 09:59 - 10 Dec 2015    Post subject: Reply with quote
Rogerborg wrote:
Hmm, Poland are still on the Zloty so the price might be legit - it does appear to be the OTR price.

I'd want to be pretty assured of getting the 23% Polish VAT back though before going any further.


From what I know you don't get it back. You just don't pay VAT again here.

Not sure if there is a way to buy it without VAT and pay it here.
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