RIV "Inspection" (Canadian Tire / Ontario)

[hfinkel]

How old is your car? I have a 2010 Honda and am wondering if it's worth driving across. Only positive is that it is paid off and drives pretty well. I might reach out to you if I do decide to go forward with the export. Will need some pointers on the export, import and insurance process.

Same for me. I just drove my 2004 Ford across on Wednesday morning from down south. Based on Black Book, declared value was a whopping C$4179 (woohoo!). But I am the original owner and have taken perfect care of the vehicle. It drives as well as the day it was born. No major repairs, ever, (knock knock). So I felt it was worth the trouble, even the $600 I paid to have factory DRL installed by the local Ford dealer.

I listed it on the B4 declaration of goods last July so it was a snap getting it through CBSA.

I'm wondering if I could have filed the title and everything except the Form 1 with RIV before I drove it across to shorten the wait for the RIV inspection form. I can tell already I should have started this a month ago as my US registration and insurance expires on the 31st. I won't even receive the RIV inspection letter until after both have expired. I guess I'll just have to drive nice and careful like to the nearby Canadian Tire for the inspection and get it registered pronto, thereafter?

 

[JayPinNC]

Same for me. I just drove my 2004 Ford across on Wednesday morning from down south. Based on Black Book, declared value was a whopping C$4179 (woohoo!). But I am the original owner and have taken perfect care of the vehicle. It drives as well as the day it was born. No major repairs, ever, (knock knock). So I felt it was worth the trouble, even the $600 I paid to have factory DRL installed by the local Ford dealer.

I listed it on the B4 declaration of goods last July so it was a snap getting it through CBSA.

I'm wondering if I could have filed the title and everything except the Form 1 with RIV before I drove it across to shorten the wait for the RIV inspection form. I can tell already I should have started this a month ago as my US registration and insurance expires on the 31st. I won't even receive the RIV inspection letter until after both have expired. I guess I'll just have to drive nice and careful like to the nearby Canadian Tire for the inspection and get it registered pronto, thereafter?

What state are you coming from? You can always renew your registration and then ask for a pro-rated refund on it once you get settled in Canada. Most states do that as far as I know. I moved from NC and did that. That stuff is handled at the county level where I lived and they send out checks the first week of each month. All they needed was an email with proof of my canceled plate/registration - which basically entailed emailing them my Ontario title+Registration.

Also - renew your insurance (even if you only pay for three months) - same deal there. Just show your U.S. insurance carrier the date of your Ontario policy (you can fax them your binder) and they have to refund you a pro-rated amount from that date to the date which you are paid up. I can't promise your U.S. insurance company won't take a small fee for it but, it beats being uninsured.

Also - most insurance companies will only cover you in Canada for 30 days TOTAL, over the course of a year. I found out the hard way. Be careful out there. I'm here to answer any questions as best I can based on my own experiences.

Pro Tip: It'll cost you an arm and a leg to mail your plate(s) back to the U.S. from Canada - and DMVs usually require the plate when you cancel your registration. Most DMVs have a 'lost plate' form that you can fill out in case you accidentally, cough cough, lose, cough cough, your plate(s). Hey, you may even miraculously, cough cough, find your plate(s) a few weeks later and be able to hang them on your garage wall!!

I don't know. That's just what I hear.

 

[hfinkel]

My car is registered in Washington state. Their DMV web site does not mention partial refunds as I have seen in other states I've lived in. Washington state's registration is so cheap, I'm guessing no one bothers. $53/year for my vehicle.

My WA insurance policy can be cancelled and refunded anytime, of course.

It looks like the RIV is going to take their own sweet time to issue the inspection letter issued so I suppose I will just continue on the WA registration and insurance in the mean time. No hurry, I'm guess, judging from what I'm going to pay ICBC.

When you write "Also - most insurance companies will only cover you in Canada for 30 days TOTAL," do you mean for a US register vehicle?

What state are you coming from? You can always renew your registration and then ask for a pro-rated refund on it once you get settled in Canada. Most states do that as far as I know. I moved from NC and did that. That stuff is handled at the county level where I lived and they send out checks the first week of each month. All they needed was an email with proof of my canceled plate/registration - which basically entailed emailing them my Ontario title+Registration.

Also - renew your insurance (even if you only pay for three months) - same deal there. Just show your U.S. insurance carrier the date of your Ontario policy (you can fax them your binder) and they have to refund you a pro-rated amount from that date to the date which you are paid up. I can't promise your U.S. insurance company won't take a small fee for it but, it beats being uninsured.

Also - most insurance companies will only cover you in Canada for 30 days TOTAL, over the course of a year. I found out the hard way. Be careful out there. I'm here to answer any questions as best I can based on my own experiences.

Pro Tip: It'll cost you an arm and a leg to mail your plate(s) back to the U.S. from Canada - and DMVs usually require the plate when you cancel your registration. Most DMVs have a 'lost plate' form that you can fill out in case you accidentally, cough cough, lose, cough cough, your plate(s). Hey, you may even miraculously, cough cough, find your plate(s) a few weeks later and be able to hang them on your garage wall!!

I don't know. That's just what I hear.

 

[JayPinNC]

My car is registered in Washington state. Their DMV web site does not mention partial refunds as I have seen in other states I've lived in. Washington state's registration is so cheap, I'm guessing no one bothers. $53/year for my vehicle.

My WA insurance policy can be cancelled and refunded anytime, of course.

It looks like the RIV is going to take their own sweet time to issue the inspection letter issued so I suppose I will just continue on the WA registration and insurance in the mean time. No hurry, I'm guess, judging from what I'm going to pay ICBC.

When you write "Also - most insurance companies will only cover you in Canada for 30 days TOTAL," do you mean for a US register vehicle?

$53? What did you register, a moped? Hang onto that as long as you can.

Why can't you use your stamped Form 1 to register your car? That's what I did. The inspector at Canadian Tire stamped my form, and I used that to register.

Yes, my U.S. carrier FINALLY told me (after may agent told me six months would be fine) that I'm covered 30 days TOTAL on my U.S. registration+insurance while in Canada. And with the repair I had to make after my safety inspection, I was over my 30 days, but because I had been canceled (they have to give you 45 days IIRC) my cancellation period covered me in Canada.

 

[hfinkel]

$53? What did you register, a moped? Hang onto that as long as you can.

Just a SUV. I suspect they recover the taxes through higher sales, property or gas taxes.

Why can't you use your stamped Form 1 to register your car? That's what I did. The inspector at Canadian Tire stamped my form, and I used that to register.

I did the same. I received my Form 1 from a CBSA officer when my car passed importation at the border, signed, sealed and stamped by CBSA. Then I registered on the RIV web site and started the process with them. When I initially input my car information (VIN, etc), RIV also generated a completed Form 1. This led me to wonder whether I could have registered on RIV before I passed the car through the border and have used the Form 1 that RIV completed at the border.

When RIV process was finished and inspected, I presented the final Form 1 received from the border for vehicle registration.

[/quote]

Yes, my U.S. carrier FINALLY told me (after may agent told me six months would be fine) that I'm covered 30 days TOTAL on my U.S. registration+insurance while in Canada. And with the repair I had to make after my safety inspection, I was over my 30 days, but because I had been canceled (they have to give you 45 days IIRC) my cancellation period covered me in Canada.

That would have been nice to know before hand.

The biggest problem I have had with this process is obtaining the claims history from Geico, my US insurer. The provincial insurance agency asked for a copy of my claims history with my prior insurer in order to qualify for their max 40% discount. The Canadian insurer lists some very specific requirements for the letter (they wanted it on insurance company letterhead, current date, cite the dates of coverage, the dates for which the claims history is being given, etc.

After forwarding the specific requirements to Geico, I received a fairly sloppy draft of a claims history missing several key requests. I then wrote back to Geico, citing what was missing and again requesting a claims history only to receive another letter that is again incomplete.

After about nine or ten incomplete responses from Geico, it seemed they were conducting their business with a second grade read, writing and and comprehension level and any further requests would be a waste of time.

I am astonished at Geico's lack of attention to detail. I still wonder whether their oversights were intentional or just carelessness.

I ended up handing a few different drafts to the local insurance agent who granted an initial 40% discount and forwarded them on to their central office for review.

 

[FSW_Applicant]

Just got off the phone with GEICO and was told that I would not get any coverage as I was moving to and not visiting Canada! I thought that GEICO would have covered at least for 30 days till I managed to get my more expensive coverage in Ontario. :'(

@hfinkel: Could you please share the name of the insurance agency you mentioned in your notes above? I would like to contact them and get the paperwork squared off as I am still in the US and plan to land in a month.

 

[hfinkel]

Just got off the phone with GEICO and was told that I would not get any coverage as I was moving to and not visiting Canada! I thought that GEICO would have covered at least for 30 days till I managed to get my more expensive coverage in Ontario. :'(

@ hfinkel: Could you please share the name of the insurance agency you mentioned in your notes above? I would like to contact them and get the paperwork squared off as I am still in the US and plan to land in a month.

I know people visiting Canada that have had no problems getting temporary coverage with a foreign driver license, albeit at higher rates.
This does not seem to be the case with US insurance companies. I suspect they will deny coverage to a foreign driver license holder or without a local address.

Geico has been my insurance company in us for eleven years. I bought the policy over the phone with their call centre.
If you have a US address, US driver license and US credit card, you should have no problem starting a policy with them.
I'm going to miss that $886/year for full coverage and registration
The same limits came in at about $500 above that with the max discount here up north.

Another thing that surprised me was that the basic, legally mandated liability with Geico in US amounted to about 35% of the total insurance bill in the US with around 65% of it was for the full coverage portion (comprehensive, collision, under insured motorist, etc). While the bill in Canada for comparible limits and deductibles, the basic liability comprised almost 80% of my total bill. The full coverage portion was lower.

 

[FSW_Applicant]

Thank you hfinkel: Could you please share the name of the local insurance agent who granted an initial 40% discount, you mentioned in your notes above? I would like to contact them and get the paperwork requirements before I complete my landing around Labor Day.

 

[FSW_Applicant]

Hi there. Do I need the Safety Standards Certificate to register my car (already cleared RIV process) or will just the Form 1 / 2 suffice? As for insurance, I seem to have got a quote for $300 / month, that too from my employer's group insurance. I should have factored that into my budget

 

[FSW_Applicant]

All done, got my registration, insurance & license plates. Thanks for the tips. They helped a lot!
+1

 

[rohitpapali]

Here's part of the continuation of my export/import story.

The RIV inspection took about 4...maybe 5 minutes.

I walked into Canadian Tire, found the guy, he asked me to show him the car.

He was looking at/for the following (as per my RIV inspection form...Form 2):

- Did you convert your car into a motorhome or travel van? Nope.
- Does it have a lift kit? (lift kit = no-go when it comes to importing into Canada)
- Metric speedometer? Check!
- Attach a miles odometer label if required (They should have done this to mine, but they didn't)
- Is there a french SRS maintenance label? Check! Thanks Volvo. If yours doesn't, you can get one from the appropriate dealership ($20ish but...I've heard of people printing their own on label paper and putting it on their car somewhere. Google it - there is an image out there somewhere.
- Functioning airbags? How would they know this without connecting to an OBD system? I didn't see the guy check on that and he certainly didn't connect my car to an OBD reader. (My airbags function as far as I know)
- Something about clutch interlocks for manual transmissions. Did not apply to me.
- Statement of Compliance Label? Check!
- Daytime running lights? Check!
- Electronic immobilizer system? WTF is that? Only applies to cars built after 2007 and with GWVR of under 10,000 lbs.

That was pretty much it.

He stamped the Form 2 and my Form 1 (white and gold copies are all that's left on your Form 1 at this point. White is for the MTO/province when you register and gold is for you because at this point you should be golden). He kept Form 2 and faxed it to RIV after I took a picture of it with my cell phone. A few hours later, I checked my case status on the RIV website using my Form 1 number and last 6 of my VIN, and it said that I was being sent a compliance sticker in the mail.

Reflective moment/inner monologue: Looking back and digging around online makes me think that I was supposed to get Form 2 returned to me even though the car passed and RIV's site says I've "successfully complete the inspection." Wondering if the MTO needs that form or if they can look it up to see my car passed. Hmmmmm. (Will let you know about that one. Or someone chime in and let us know.)

Pro tip: You don't have to wait for this compliance sticker to arrive in order to register your car in Ontario. Just bring your Form 1 with you when you register. (And maybe Form 2? Now I'm getting worried that I might need it - too late to call anybody about it right now.)

Now, as for the "order of operations" go when it comes to the whole export/import/inspect/register/insure thing, this is how I'm approaching/have approached it:

Export ($65USD for AES Direct)
Import ($199CAD + tax for RIV process - I didn't have to pay duty/taxes...you might have to.)
RIV Inspection (Included in RIV fee)
Safety + Emissions Inspection ($34CAD for emissions test and $94CAD for safety test)
Drivers License ($80CAD to exchange drivers license (good for 5 years) - does NOT include what it may cost you to prove two+ years of driving experience from your previous state, country, etc - my story on that will follow)
Insurance (I'm looking at $71/month)
Title/Plates/Registration ($98CAD for registration and $29CAD for plates. I'm adding my wife's name to the title, but I think that's free.)

As always, let me know if you have questions.

Hi, how did you get the form 2? I submitted everything online to riv and I paid the fees but I only got the form 1. I haven't exported the car yet.

 

[saddlepatch]

2004 Volvo XC90. CBSA put a value of $10,089.00CAD on the car. I still didn't have to pay anything.

And yeah, just PM/DM me or whatever.

Is that why you had to get emissions? Cause my understanding is that's only for cars 10 years or older? Also safety is not included with the RIV?