What kind of insurance will I need and how hard is it to obtain?

There are two types of insurance available. The first is liability, which will pay for the damage you do to other people or vehicles in the case of ana acccident. Liability insurance is required in almost every state in the country, and you would be foolish to try to operate a car without it. The second kin insurance is comprehensive which covers you for the cost of replacing your car is it is lost, stolen, or damaged in an accident. This kind of insurance is optional, and generally not worth the cost if you have a very inexpensive car. The exact amount and type of coverage in each kind of insurance varies slightly in each state.

Your insurability will depend on your age, sex, marital status, driving record, and if you have completed driver training (or a refresher) recently, nerally within the last two years. The amount one will pay for insurance will also be conditioned by the car which one wishes to insure.

The cost of insurance will also vary depending on the address at which you register the car. The cost varies by individual post code. In general, insurance costs less in the suburbs and countryside than in the city, and less away from the big industrial states. If you have a choice of addresses to use (f stance, a number of friends or family whose address you could use) ask them they live in a low or high insurance area. You can also ask the insurance agent, after explaining your situation.

You purchase insurance in six or twelve months increments. When you sell the car you can usually get some, but not all, of your unused insurance payments refunded to you. You need to check this out in advance when you buy the insurance, and also make sure that you can have the refund sent overseas if you will be leaving the country immediately after selling your car.

Don't I have to have an address in the USA to buy a car?

Yes and no. Yes, you must supply an address, if you are staying for any length of time in the USA, this should not be a problem for you. If, however, you are only staying for a few weeks, you should have no problem be use most States allow a reasonable time (generally 30 days) to register the car in your name. If you buy the car in California and sell it in New York days later, the car would not even be registered in your name. Only a transfer of title may be all that is required.

If you see that you may wish to stay longer than the transfer of title period, you may wish to register with a mail-forwarding service which will be your residence of record.

One such firm which has been discovered is Mail, Messages, and More, P.O. Box 2190, Pahrump, NV 89041-2190

Office Phone: 702 727 7311

Voice Mail: 800 722 7468

FAX: 702 727 7825

Mention of this firm at this point can not be taken as an endorsement. It has been known that the firm has been in business since 1993. Knowledge of their customer care quality is unavailable, at this point.

Information regarding additional services should be available in alt.privacy news group or on the WWW. Additionally, here is a book that may help you..

Does the insurance provide coverage for driving in Mexico or Canada?

Maybe but probably not. Some insurance companies will charge more if it is own that the car is going into Mexico while others will not insure at all. Some insurances will cover within a five kilometer strip along the border. It best to discuss these issues with your insurance agent of choice. The majority of insurance sold in USA will give one coverage in Canada.

If you are driving into Mexico, it is very easy to get short term insurance from agents on the U.S. side of all major border crossings. Driving without insurance is a serious crime in Mexico, make sure you have the proper coverage.

How do I find an insurance agent?

Check the WWW or ask your friends in the USA who they use. Insurance agents are licensed in their State to sell these products. Using a friend's recommendation, it is unlikely that you will find an unscrupulous agent. However, doing a little homework may save you finding that your insurance agent diverted your premiums for his own good. Find out what insurance company this person is selling to you. Ask for its rating. Generally you can feel safe if it is a "brand name" but know the insurance companies are administered by each individual State in which they wish to sell.

Insurance agents are listed in the yellow pages of the telephone book. It's generally a good idea to buy from an agent who represents a major insurance carrier. There are some fly by night places with low rates, but when the time comes around when you have to collect you may find that they have a "no pay" policy which they didn't tell you about when you bought the insurance.

Many insurance agents will not have experience dealing with foreign visitors. It's worthwhile to try to find one who has dealt with people in your situation before.

What should I do with the car?

Generally, your choices here are (1) sell the car, (2) abandon the car, or (3) ship the car home.

If you sell the car for more than you paid for it, you have done well. However, this will be hard to do without a fair share of planning. Should one want to buy a car in California and sell it in New York, one would want place advertisements on the Net and in print papers about a week before you expect to arrive in New York giving an 800 number with voice mail or paging service. Using this strategy, one can line up people to view the car beforehand. Be sure to obtain their name and phone number.

You can also sell cars by advertising them at youth hostels in the major entry cities, such as New York and Los Angeles.

There are special Auto Trader newspapers in almost every part of the U.S.A. Advertisements in these papers usually cost between $10 and $50.

Because there are many taxes and extra costs involved in selling an out of state car in California, never try to sell a car there unless 1) it is alrea registered in California or 2) you are selling it to another traveller who will immediately be taking it out of California to register it in another State. This is because of environmental laws in that State.

If the choice to ship the car home seems appealing, do your homework from you end as soon as you can. It will be there you should determine how much expect to pay in duty. Before you decide for sure if you want to do this, inquire of the services of a shipping agent who will provide the documentation and arrange the shipping of your new car home for you. One can find a freight forwarding agent or shipping agent in alt.business.import-export, misc.entrepreneurs.moderated, or from the International Small Business Consortium.

If you choose to abandon this auto, please let me or Lawrence Lustig know where it is and mail the title. :)