Korean Job Discussion Forums

[zombiedog]

I'm buying a car in about 30 days and I need to know what I need to do to make it all legit and legal.

I'm buying a used car from another foreigner who is leaving the country.

I am a U.S. citizen with a valid U.S. drivers license. I do not have an international driver's license. I heard you can transfer/exchange your U.S. license for a Korean one.

So the information I need is.

1. How to exchange my DL for a Korean DL
2. How to get insurance, any good companies that have English speaking agents?

3. Anything else I might be forgetting or missing would be much appreciated.

Thank you

[warmachinenkorea]

[young_clinton]

***********

[fustiancorduroy]

Contact the Seoul Global Center. They have lots of information on their website about driving in Korea:

http://english.seoul.go.kr/lh/residence/driving.php

You can also call them to help you through the process of obtaining your license. They also have contacts with insurance companies that cater to foreigners.

[Steelrails]

I'd recommend these guys for insurance

http://www.911ins.com/board.php?board=mainp

It's part of AIG, so that's good and bad. Good because you have that western security blanket, bad because who knows, AIG might crapout one day.

English was fine, down to earth, didn't try to upsell me on useless extras, emphasized than they have an English emergency line so if its 2AM and raining and you're in the middle of nowhere you can still call them and get your roadside assistance without having to worry about everything. Guy even came into work on his off day to help set up my policy.

As for buying a car, follow your parents advice- Low mileage, fuel efficiency, cheap to insure, cheap to maintain, buy a granny car, worry about resale value, don't buy something that has been tuned with rims and a muffler and was driven by a 22 year old. Don't buy a car to look cool. If you buy some sports car, your coworkers will likely put you in the "juvenile mindset" bracket. It probably won't work to pick up chicks unless you are talking Audi/BMW/Lexus/Infiniti/Mercedes. If you are buying one of those used on a budget, then you are getting some high-mileage time bomb that if something goes will cost you 1-2 months salary to fix.

Also, however much you plan to spend on the car and insurance, have 50% of that saved on top for unexpected maintenance, issues, and damages should something happen. Better to buy a cheaper, good value car with money in reserve than to blow your wad on something barely in range that if it suddenly needs a brake job will leave you eating ramen for two months.

Navigation systems are pretty much a must. You will already have plenty going on that you don't need to be fumbling with a paper map while trying to squeeze between two cars and not run over some ajumma.

If you drive in the city a lot, you might find yourself keeping a hand on the mirror folding button or your caution blinkers. There are a LOT of things to keep an eye on while driving here. Don't be afraid to take it slow in the beginning. Who cares if people honk at you and people say you drive like a wuss? Safety and the resale value of your car are more important.

You are a big boy or girl in a country with whack driving conditions and suspect regulations when it comes to insurance and damage claims and you might have to sell it quickly. Think like a some boring dweeb.

[byrddogs]

Make sure that you go to your local gu office with who you are buying the car from with ALL necessary paperwork to transfer ownership. At that time, they can also inform you if tax or any outstanding tickets are due. I strongly recommend doing this, especially if you are buying a car from another expat that is leaving the country.

[bigqt4]

First off as previous car owner in driver in Korea. Be careful. Like the previous poster said be sure to check if there are tickets. If there are tickets on the car find out how many and how much. I would suggest not buying but.... Buyer beware because when you leave if there are tickets you cant "junk" your car. However, you can sell your car (backasswards). Also, you need to have insurance before you purchase no exceptions. There will be taxes that you need to pay every 6 months. I did not have a license but I did have an international driving permit. PM me if you need more info I just left in March and I can tell you whati needed and did need for my car I purchased. Oh I purchased froma foreigner leaving Korea.

[Ruthdes]

I am also going to buy a car soon and I'm investigating insurance. Can anyone recommend any other good companies with English-speaking services? I've gotten a quote from AIG (linked by Steelrails above), but they seem a little expensive for what you get.

Also, would current drivers recommend getting personal bodily injury coverage? The guy at AIG seemed to think it wasn't necessary seeing I have the government-mandated health insurance, but if I ended up in hospital, I don't think that insurance would cover much. Would I be better off just upping my overall health insurance?

Thanks in advance!

[Swampfox10mm]

I give the nod to Educar for insurance. I had a good experience with them, and they provide a handy coverage info card for your wallet. Prices are pretty good. They were able to put me through to an English speaker (or have one call me back) when I had policy questions. I agree, AIG is expensive (it's now Chartis or something else).

As for health insurance:


This is my Samsung insurance agent, who came to my work to meet my wife and I. He brought an interpreter at our request, and had printed out documents in English at our request: 박근수 Phone: 02-3705-6851 or 011-419-1118

Website is www.samsungfire.com

Here is the Hyundai agent we got baby insurance from. My wife did it all in Korean. She came to our house. I believe she sells other ages too: 노괴레 02-2243-9838 or 011-9059-9247

[12ax7]

If you have a Samsung credit card, do it on their website and save 15% on the premiums, or at least that's what happened last time I renewed mine.

[Ruthdes]

Thanks for the replies. I'm most interested in a company that will offer an English language service with little hassle. It may be that I need to pay the extra for AIG/Chartis to get it. My Korean is ok, but I don't want to deal with misunderstandings if I'm in a sticky situation. Any more recs?

Any more opinions on the medical coverage thing? It adds about $100 to the car insurance premium over a year, so it'd be worth knowing about. From what I've heard from others, ending up in hospital with a broken leg can easily set you back a million won or two, even taking into account your regular health cover.

[CentralCali]

If you and/or the seller haven't done so already, go to your Gu office with a seal (도장 [do-jang]) already made. You can get one made in about 30 minutes at one of the do-jang shops in the vicinity of the Gu office. To register the do-jang now, the name on the do-jang must be exactly as it is on your ARC (except, of course, it's a mirror image of your name as you look directy at the do-jang).

When I registered the car I got in Korea from another foreigner, only at the final step were any of the bureaucrats aware that a do-jang for the paperwork is not required for a foreigner; a signature will suffice. The problem is there are a few more steps involved before simply going to the license plate office.

Want to know a real kicker? A signature's supposed to be all that's required nowadays even for Koreans!

[big_fella1]

[byrddogs]

[12ax7]

Insurance is so cheap and accidents are so common, do the smart thing: get full coverage. Going with basic coverage to save 50 000won per year is not the smartest move since the odds are pretty high that you will be involved in an accident if you drive here long enough...and the cops can be pretty creative on how they determine who's to blame (unless you were rear ended while you were fully in your lane, expect the cops to lay some of the blame on you). Besides, insurance doesn't go up much if you make a claim (30 000won-50 000won a year...insignificant when you remember that it can cost 5 million to fix a car).