I am looking to buy a motorcycle (A Suzuki GSXR-750 to be precise) and am spending about £4k and that will get me a 3 - 4 yr old model, however the same money will buy me a new or nearly new one in the States, I just have no idea of how much it would cost to ship or even how to go about it? any advice gratefully received, Thanx!
2007-08-06 04:03:42 · 6 answers · asked by redmartovski 1 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Motorcycles
You will need to get in touch with a shipping agent in the U.S. They will organise everything to get the bike over to the U.K. This will cost you approximately £1,000.
You will then have to pay import duty, V.A.T. and brokerage fees to actually get the bike into the U.K. This will be approximately 30% of the total value of the bike, including the shipping fee. If you paid £4,000 for the bike, for example, these charges will add an extra £1,500.
To get the bike registered on the road, it will need to pass an S.V.A. test, obtain a certificate of conformity and get a number plate. This will total around £750.
So, your £4,000 'bargain' has cost you an extra £3,250 to get over here and on the road in the U.K. A brand new U.K. model GSXR-750 will cost you just £8,000.
You have now discovered why no-one bothers to import bikes from America any more (unless they are very, very rare). It's just not worth it...
2007-08-06 09:54:10 · answer #1 · answered by Nightworks 7 · 3⤊ 1⤋
Twisted Ace has answered a lot of points already - I am not 100% sure if you will need a full SVA though as the GSXR-750 is already a homologated model on UK roads - but I stand to be corrected. The shipping and import tax and duty elements are correct though and you will need to have it indvidually inspected and registered of at least some kind. If they give you a Q plate on it (or what ever the uquivalent may now be) then you will also pay much higher insurance on it. Also remember that depending on which part of the USA it comes from then it may not be a full power spec unit either.
2007-08-06 21:21:20 · answer #2 · answered by ShuggieMac 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I think motorcycles qualify for the standard VAT in the UK, which is only 20% so it's not as much as quoted by some others. You will still have to pay for registration and get the SVA and those combined will probably cost more than the shipping. I'd estimate the shipping costs between £650 and £1250 depending on the company. Some are cheaper than others.
2014-10-13 07:14:14 · answer #3 · answered by Jason 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Early this year I was quoted $500 by a well respected dealer in New York to crate and ship a Triumph back to the UK. Admittedly it was via slow boat but £1000 is way too high
2007-08-08 00:13:13 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
i lived in the usa and bought a new cbr 929rr in 2001 for 8600 dollars which would hav been bout £5000 so i would say it would be worth it i didnt hav to pay duty as i had it reg in my name for 6 months so dont know how much that would be i dont think it would be £1000 to ship it as i shiped a contantoir for 2000 dollars as for moting it u just need an english plate on it nothing else needs to be changed
2007-08-08 09:30:52 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
you should email customs & excise at www.hmrc.gov.uk. you will need all the bike details and the price of the bike before and after tax. find a dealer who ships bikes and get a price from them first then email hmrc with this and they 'should' tell you everything else you will have to do. they are good and fast at replying to emails.
Good luck and happy biking.
2007-08-06 08:30:34 · answer #6 · answered by brenda m 1 · 2⤊ 0⤋