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Home » protips » Bike Shipping – Dirt Rider Magazine

Bike Shipping – Dirt Rider Magazine

By: pete peterson

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

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<p>Buying or selling your bike doesn’t have to be a local affair. With eBay, Craig’s List, Cycle Trader and all the dirt bike forums, you can search for bikes from one end of the map to the other. The trick, then, becomes getting bike to buyer and money to seller, but not necessarily in that order.Our reader bike build (“Reader’s Rule!” in our September ’10 issue) necessitated two distant bikes reach the DR offices and then make their way back home. We enlisted the services of J.C. Motors and Federal Transport, and everything went off without a hitch. So we took the opportunity to get some good advice from those companies’ Clint Lawrence, President, and Jackie Taylor, Manager Motorcycle Relocation, for anyone shipping a dirt bike, whether buying, selling or taking a distant ride vacation.<strong>Buying</strong><br />
<strong>Clint:</strong> Have a phone conversation. If you can’t reach the seller before they get the money, you’ll never reach them after. And speaking with someone helps you get a good sense of the person you’ll be buying from. Also, verify their information before sending money (never cash).<strong>Jackie:</strong> Have an inventory taken at the origin load, and have the seller fax or scan and email you a copy of this form that they’ve signed so you will know what to expect.<strong>Clint:</strong> Be cautious of someone acting as an “agent” representing a seller (or a buyer, if you’re the seller) or anyone who is not the true owner of the vehicle. Steer away from sellers who claim the motorcycle is being stored somewhere, especially when dealing with someone outside your country.<strong>Clint:</strong> Get a copy (fax or scan) of the title, front and back, from the seller prior to purchase.<strong>Jackie:</strong> When shopping for a carrier, get a quote that includes price and transit time. And ask what happens if the bike is not loaded or delivered within that quoted transit time.<strong>Clint:</strong> Research what’s required by your state to transfer title from the state in which the bike is registered. Start with locating your state’s governing agency with an Internet search for “Motor Vehicle Registration (Your State).”<strong>Jackie:</strong> Shipping insurance is not scam insurance, it is transit coverage. Carriers will cover any damage caused during shipping, not a bike’s misrepresented condition (externally or mechanically) by a fraudulent seller.<strong>Clint:</strong> Don’t use money transfer services, such as Western Union, to pay for online purchases, and be wary of anyone who accepts only this type of payment. Also, a seller (or buyer) who insists on using a particular escrow company to handle the transaction is probably trying to steer you toward a fraudulent escrow services site.<strong>Jackie:</strong> At delivery, be sure to inspect your new purchase and note any exceptions to the original origin report (that you received from the seller upon shipping).<strong>Clint:</strong> Do not let your new purchase sit for long waiting for the transport company to pick it up. The less time that goes by, the greater the chance you will receive your bike in the condition in which it was sold to you.<strong>Selling</strong><br />
<strong>Jackie:</strong> Before establishing a load date, be sure the unit has been paid for and the payment has been cleared. A cashier’s check is no longer cash per the banks. It can take five to seven days for your bank to advise if a check was good and the money is truly in your account. Make sure the buyer is aware of this time period.<strong>Clint:</strong> Fraudulent buyers sometimes overpay with a check and then request a refund for the difference, possibly taking your motorcycle and some cash at the same time. Printing phony cashier’s checks has proven to be quite simple for scammers.<strong>Jackie:</strong> Allow an entire day for loading and unloading. Moving is not an exact science. Some local agents can provide an hour precall. It is important you be there on site to release or accept.
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<p><strong>Clint:</strong> It is almost never the seller who pays the shipping costs. Shipping costs are usually paid by the buyer.<strong>Ride Vacation</strong><br />
Wouldn’t you love to tell your bike, “Meet me in Florida for the Alligator Enduro”? Yeah, that’d be great, but you’d better arrange the shipping if you really expect to see your bike there; bikes are really bad at booking their own travel.<strong>Jackie:</strong> Hotels normally will not accept shipped bikes. They don’t want to be responsible for accepting the bike’s arrival condition.<strong>Jackie:</strong> Usually you must pick up and hand back your bike at either a local shipping hub (usually only open on weekdays), or many bike shops will allow a bike pickup or delivery. The pickup and drop-off can be at different hubs or shops in different cities and states, for vacation point-to-point rides.<strong>Jackie:</strong> Your shipper can coordinate your pickup and drop-off. Be sure to speak with the local contact you’ll be dealing with at the hub or bike shop, so they are ready for you.<strong>Jackie:</strong> You can ship a muddy (but dry) bike, but it makes it nearly impossible to check for damage on pickup, so you may void your right to a claim if there is shipping damage.<strong>Jackie:</strong> A bin of gear, tools and parts can ship with the bike provided it fits on the same pallet, and there is an additional charge for this.<strong>Clint:</strong> Gear can ship with the bike as long as it is secured to the bike.<strong>Rates Estimate</strong><br />
Below are some one-way, major city to major city estimates to give you an idea of shipping costs. Many factors can increase these costs, such as remote locations, and of course prices can always change… But there might be a few ways to lower costs, too. Be sure to ask about discounts for AMA members, round-trip rates for vacation rides and multiple bike discounts.<em>Up to 500 miles: <strong>$175 to $500</strong><br />
500 to 1,000 miles:<strong> $465 to $600</strong><br />
1,000 to 1,500 miles: <strong>$575 to $675</strong><br />
Over 1,500 miles: <strong>$645 and up</strong></em><br /><strong>Web Resources</strong></p>
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<li><em>J.C. Motors:</em> <a href="" rel=”nofollow” onclick="javascript:window.open(

www.motorcycleshippers.com, 949.419.0555, contact: Clint Lawrence

Federal Transport: www.funtransport.com, 800.747.4100, contact: Jackie Taylor

For an estimated value on a vehicle: nada.com

To verify a seller’s identity, address and phone: dexknows.com

Free address verification: google.com/maps

For a vehicle history report: escrow.com

A service to verify, photograph and video a distant bike to confirm condition: verifyyourbuy.com

For making safer payments: paypal.com and escrow.com

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