Importing a used bike from USA uncooperative seller: how to avoid the 3 days wait?

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MarcosSantiago

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I found a used scooter in the USA which I'd like to get. Have been trying to import a bike or car for ages, never done it before. I thought I'd start with something small.

Anyway, this is the main problem... faxing the title to the border 3 days in advance.

Before I cross the border, US Customs wants me to fax the following documents, 3 business days prior to export

  1. U.S. CUSTOMS export worksheet
  2. Title
  3. Bill of sale

Seller do not want to fax the title and bill of sale unless I pay him first (I see his point, for him Canada may as well be Nigeria and he doesn't trust me). I don't want to pay him unless I see the bike first. Cause if I do, I'm buying blind and even worse, I may get there and there is no bike, my money is gone, and the guy say "who are you?"

You don't have this problem buying "new" from a dealer. Dealer will fax the documents and keep the bike for you 3 days or more, and "new" means new. But I'm talking used, and actual state of the vehicle may vary.

I want to go and see the vehicle.... close a deal if everything checks, and then drive back - right away. No 3 business day wait period.

Any suggestions? Anyone done that successfully?
 
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Importing a used bike from uncooperative seller: how to avoid the 3 days wait?

MarcosSantiago said:
I found a used scooter in the USA which I'd like to get. Have been trying to import a bike or car for ages, never done it before. I thought I'd start with something small.

Anyway, this is the main problem... faxing the title to the border 3 days in advance.

Before I cross the border, US Customs wants me to fax the following documents, 3 business days prior to export

  1. U.S. CUSTOMS export worksheet
  2. Title
  3. Bill of sale

Seller do not want to fax the title and bill of sale unless I pay him first (I see his point, for him Canada may as well be Nigeria and he doesn't trust me). I don't want to pay him unless I see the bike first. Cause if I do, I'm buying blind and even worse, I may get there and there is no bike, my money is gone, and the guy say "who are you?"

You don't have this problem buying "new" from a dealer. Dealer will fax the documents and keep the bike for you 3 days or more, and "new" means new. But I'm talking used. I want to go and see the vehicle first.... close a deal if everything checks, and drive back - right away. No 3 business day wait period.

Any suggestions?
Click to expand...

What's so special of this scooter that you want to import it?

Anyways, best thing to do, depending on the distance is to either make 2 trips, or make a trip out of it.
 
Re: Importing a used bike from uncooperative seller: how to avoid the 3 days wait?

deejizzle said:
What's so special of this scooter that you want to import it?

Anyways, best thing to do, depending on the distance is to either make 2 trips, or make a trip out of it.
Click to expand...

It is a rare Yamaha scooter, sold only from 2006-2008, approx 1,500 sold in North America. Pretty limited run.
 
Re: Importing a used bike from uncooperative seller: how to avoid the 3 days wait?

No dice.

They wont allow you to import it without going through the proper procedures.

You can however import it as parts, but it wont make it registerable here.
 
Re: Importing a used bike from uncooperative seller: how to avoid the 3 days wait?

If its a long drive there, then maybe make a trip of it. If its in a northern state and isn't a real long drive, make 2 trips :) Good luck
 
Re: Importing a used bike from uncooperative seller: how to avoid the 3 days wait?

you can likely store it at once of the mailbox services at the border, but I haven't done that myself. I'd never give the seller full price without seeing it. When I imported mine from the US, I gave the seller $500 sight unseen to show I'm serious, and he gave me the title, which was a bit of trust on both parts. I didn't want to drive 2x. If your seller isn't willing to do that, storing just over the border is likely your only route, or find a different seller. For the effort, the $ amount usually needs to be high enough to make it worth while for the hassle. I'll assume your doing it because you can't find one here.
 
Re: Importing a used bike from uncooperative seller: how to avoid the 3 days wait?

When I imported my car in april of 2011 (2012 mustang) I went and looked at the car first, and we passed thru Erie bridge on our way back. I asked the guy when heading back in the booth about the 3 day wait and he said i dont need to fax it ahead, just show up at the border with the paperwork. He could only speak for that bridge and not for the other ones for policy. few days later I did go back to Erie with my paperwork and new car, and imported it with no issues and didn't have to fax the paperwork ahead of time. (from reading on the internet at the time all i could find was the 3 day wait) so u might wanna call or stop by the erie bridge if ur close and ask em. The guy said becasue their more of a commercial bridge they didnt have the wait. This could've changed its been 2 years.
 
Re: Importing a used bike from uncooperative seller: how to avoid the 3 days wait?

Last car we imported was a 70 Datsun 240. Just showed up at the border with it. Told them we didn't know if we where going to buy it or not until we seen it. Just showed up and no problems.
 
Re: Importing a used bike from uncooperative seller: how to avoid the 3 days wait?

zeniceguy said:
Last car we imported was a 70 Datsun 240. Just showed up at the border with it. Told them we didn't know if we where going to buy it or not until we seen it. Just showed up and no problems.
Click to expand...

Did you stop over on the US side to have the car checked out before leaving or did you just go straight up to the Canadian side. The canadian's will let you in no problem, even if you didn't stop by the US side to have them check the car out for export. Heads up if you go back to the states though, they'll get quite mad if you didn't stop over before having the car exit. Ask me how I know lol.


To the original poster: American's are so used to just dealing with their own internal economy for so long their brains seem to fry if they have to deal with simple things needed to send their car out of the country. If the seller doesn't want to fax the paperwork to US CUSTOMS of all places, tell him to go pound sand and find another bike elsewhere. He's faxing the title to US Customs, what does he think you are going to do? Steal the bike via title fraud? Some people really... Maybe send him a link to the export procedure on the Customs website and tell him that all they are going to do is check the VIN to make sure the bike isn't stolen.

You will have to wait the 3 days to do it fully clean (i.e. on the US and Canadian side), but if you are certain the bike won't return to the US, you can bring it into canada legally. Have the seller fax over the paperwork to US customs and send you some videos of the bike. Pay him in cash when you go to pick it up, the bill of sale can state that the payment will be subject to X $ owed upon collection of the bike. If you don't like the bike when you see it, you can still back out, and just be out the cost of the trip.

Good luck with the transaction. I feel your frustrations having dealt with sending stuff to and buying from our cousins to the south too many times.

Edit: sorry, this turned into a bit more of a disorganized rant then i usually post. It's late, i'm tired and i've been burned selling to americans recently enough that i'm still ****** about it. If a mod sees this, maybe just delete it.
 
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Re: Importing a used bike from uncooperative seller: how to avoid the 3 days wait?

Sounds like some of you are confused about the process. The 72 hour wait is US policy and has nothing to do with you importing your vehicle into Canada; the 72 hours waiting is for US CBP to confirm that the vehicle isn't stolen, and is thus part of their EXPORT process.

As already mentioned, nobody on the Canadian side cares whether or not US CBP checked it. When the US side "exports" the car they don't even give you any paperwork, its pretty much a pass-thru process. An agent USUALLY comes out just to double check the VIN.

So to answer OPs question: no, there is no way around the 72 hour wait to EXPORT the vehicle from the US, however, if you don't give a damn about the American side, just cross over and do the import process without giving the US side a heads-up.
 
Re: Importing a used bike from uncooperative seller: how to avoid the 3 days wait?

mmmnaked said:
Sounds like some of you are confused about the process. The 72 hour wait is US policy and has nothing to do with you importing your vehicle into Canada; the 72 hours waiting is for US CBP to confirm that the vehicle isn't stolen, and is thus part of their EXPORT process.

As already mentioned, nobody on the Canadian side cares whether or not US CBP checked it. When the US side "exports" the car they don't even give you any paperwork, its pretty much a pass-thru process. An agent USUALLY comes out just to double check the VIN.

So to answer OPs question: no, there is no way around the 72 hour wait to EXPORT the vehicle from the US, however, if you don't give a damn about the American side, just cross over and do the import process without giving the US side a heads-up.
Click to expand...

Bingo

When I brought my US bike over in 2008 I did stop and do the export thing at Port Huron. However if I hadn't read the huge sticky on GTAM I wouldn't have even stopped. There is no mandatory export stop exiting the USA. You find a place to park and wander around until somebody asks what you're up to.

When I got to the Canadian side and was doing the paperwork I overheard someone ask a border agent about the US export law. The Canadian border guard replied that it was an American law and that Canada dosn't enforce it. HOWEVER if you ever take the bike back to the USA you could run into trouble.

I don't know what she meant by take the bike back to the USA. On a trip? To sell? I can see the problem if you tried to sell the bike back to the USA as it would end up with two registrations and one VIN.

I don't know what comes up in a traffic stop. Do they run a VIN or just the plate? As long as the bike isn't on a stolen or lein list I don't know if it would come up anyway.

PS Is the scooter on the approved list? If not it becomes a basterd. Not legal in Canada and the USA won't take it back.
 
Re: Importing a used bike from uncooperative seller: how to avoid the 3 days wait?

Not sure how far away you are from the border, maybe make it 1 1/2 trips? you could got pick up the bike and bring it to a holding warehouse near the border? Not sure how many shops are around that could do this? Tthen you could fax when convenient and just cross to pick up the bike as your schedule allows.

Like I said I know there are a number of warehouses that will accept deliveries for Canadian pick up, not sure how many could accomodate a bike. A friend of mine opened this place earlier this year: www.parceldonkeyusa.com just outside the Quessnston crossing. i understand they could hold a bike. you would need to contact them to confirm and check rates. Like aI said other places may be able to offer somethiong similar but I am not sure?

If you are coming back via Port Huron, check there to see if theer are any other similar services
 
Re: Importing a used bike from uncooperative seller: how to avoid the 3 days wait?

I payed a car lot 150 bucks they did all the paper work and got the bike to the canadian side, I went to customs, payed the tax and took the bike home.
easy as a tai hooker.
 
Re: Importing a used bike from uncooperative seller: how to avoid the 3 days wait?

If your using Queenston-Lewiston US custom, they prefer that you send them email stating the VIN, make and model of the bike. No need for the title to be faxed. You will still need the 72 hrs from the time you send the email.

Use this site to make a checklist and see the US custom part http://www.riv.ca/ImporterChecklist.aspx (I chose Q-L bridge)

"Lewiston Bridge/Niagara Falls
.
Buffalo, NY, US, 14210

Phone #: 716 843-8359
Hours: M-F 8-4
Additional notes:
Please email the vehicle information (description, make, model, vehicle identification number) for the vehicle(s) to be exported to CBP at buffalovinnyoffice@dhs.gov . CBP will confirm receipt of the email within 24 hours and provide the exporter with additional instructions."


I think it would not be a problem for the seller to give you the VIN vs the title. But make sure that you get correct VIN and its best to request a photo of the VIN on the bike .

I did not know about the email 2 yrs ago when I imported my last bike and they do prefer people using email vs fax at Lewiston US Custom.

You can go directly to Canada border to import the vehicle prior to exporting it from the US side and export it the next day, but you need to bring the bike back to the export office and they may still ask you to keep the vehicle in US Soil for 72 hrs.

Good luck.
 
Re: Importing a used bike from uncooperative seller: how to avoid the 3 days wait?

Every single person you talk to and article you read tells you to fax the title and give the US border 72 hours notice.

I have done 3 imports so far (1 car & 2 bikes) and have not done any of these steps. This is just for the US Customs to make sure the vehicle is not stolen and make sure no leans exist. The funny thing about this is that you do not pass the US Customs on the way out of the US!! You drive back and arrive at Canadian Customs only. "Apparently" you are supposed to backtrack and go to US Customs. I am not saying what I did was right however I have never had a problem and actually spoke to the Canadian Customs officer and she told me they are not connected with the US side and that is a separate issue I have to deal with them. She actually told me "Its too late now, you already drove by the US office".

I then completed the Canadian border RIV form and was on my way. If you go to the US side you have to abide by so many stupid rules and strict time guidelines. I arrived at 10pm with my bike at Canadian customs and walked right through.
 
Re: Importing a used bike from uncooperative seller: how to avoid the 3 days wait?

mmmnaked said:
So to answer OPs question: no, there is no way around the 72 hour wait to EXPORT the vehicle from the US, however, if you don't give a damn about the American side, just cross over and do the import process without giving the US side a heads-up.
Click to expand...

Why would anyone give a damn about the US side? I dont want to spread any false information here but what happens if you dont "export" your vehicle form the US?

I completed my first import 5+ years ago and have crossed the border countless times since in that vehicle with no problems.
 
Re: Importing a used bike from uncooperative seller: how to avoid the 3 days wait?

If you dont export it, the VIN is technically still registered as a US vehicle. If you cross the border and they look at the VIN and run it you will be in deep ****. They can and have confiscated and destroyed vehicles for this reason.

Your choice. If waiting 3 days is that much of a drag, go for it, just be aware that i would never risk riding/driving that car across the border.
 
Re: Importing a used bike from uncooperative seller: how to avoid the 3 days wait?

Bingo. Odds are slim you'll get busted, but if you do, bye-bye car/bike.

Considering how easy they make the process, I don't see why you wouldn't do it unless you absolutely can't schedule it in. One quick email 3 days ahead of your trip is all it takes now. Its even easier than before when you had to fax it.
 
Re: Importing a used bike from uncooperative seller: how to avoid the 3 days wait?

mmmnaked said:
As already mentioned, nobody on the Canadian side cares whether or not US CBP checked it. When the US side "exports" the car they don't even give you any paperwork, its pretty much a pass-thru process. An agent USUALLY comes out just to double check the VIN.
Click to expand...


US Border crossing put a stamp on the original title document. Canadian border crossing officer pointed out to me that they must see that in order to proceed with their work. Not sure if he would make a problem if the stamp wasn’t there. If others had no problems skipping the US export part of the process, well,… that could work after all, by I would personally not risk it. Imported 2 bikes following the RIV process and it was super smooth.
To the original post; negotiate with the seller and offer to pay him a deposit as a sign that you are a serious buyer. In return ask him to fax the title to the border crossing office. I have dealt with a hesitant seller when I bought my Honda 599 and once I offered to give him $200 as a deposit he was confidant and willing to cooperate. If seller refuses to cooperate I would look for another bike and somebody easier to deal with. Be prepared to lose the deposit if you are dealing with a shady character or if bike is not as described when you come to pick it up.
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