Greetings from Beijing!

[Desmo]

Just imagine the bike is in somebody else's name and you happen to have an accident or do something really wrong. The former owner to save his ass could say, for example, that you stole the bike from him, which will add into whatever wrong happened. Unless you leave the scene like a bat out of the hell, which would make it even worse, specially if you get caught. in this possible scenarios you will end up doing time in a chinese prison. I don't know, to me, riding illegally is just not worth it. I wouldn't do it in my own home country and certainly I wouldn't do it here, but many people don't give a sh:::t about it, mainly because they are unable to see the consequences, or they don't care, disrespect or simple ignorance...

[Desmo]

If you get stopped by an agent in possession of an illegal bike, plates, etc... Your bike will be impounded, your driving license revoked and you will have to pay a fine of up to 2000 RMB., if you add that to the price if a bike.... I think it is not worth it. All of that if you are NOT involved in an accident, because then it will become even worse.
Of course, in Beijing I have been witness to a miriad of exceptions, but this does not mean that it couldn't happen to you, as far as I know, policemen are no longer avoiding Irresponsible laowais as before, it could be a matter of good/bad luck.

[AndyCCAA]

Thanks for your thoughts.

But i think you got me wrong. I'm aware of this all, that's why i'll either ride legally or not at all. I was just looking for legal options beside buying a bike & registering a plate to my name here in beijing and renting.

[Desmo]

Sorry about that, it was not my intention to lecture anybody, although rereading my latest posts looks like it, he he he....
Many people, even people that have spent some time here are not completely aware of the consequences, specially when it is actually cheaper/easier to choose the dark side... Sorry if I was overstepping, I was just exposing some facts I was not aware of when I first arrived Beijing.
That being said, hope you find something suitable and enjoy the ride. I feel quite jealous! I have small kids so I won't be able to do some riding like that for a while...

[bikerdoc]

The vehicle and registration plate are tied to both a person (or business name) and their drivers license/ID card/passport number etc. This explains why the person (or business [aka work unit]) whose registered the plate appears in the PSB Traffic Management IT system, and is included on the motor vehicle registration card included in the 'blue' wallet. Anything official concerning the vehicle and it's plate often requires or needs the registered owner whether that be an individual or business, to either be present when dealing with matters (most of the time) and/or have someone (acting as an agent with appropriate supporting documents) present their drivers license/ID/Passport or other relevant documents etc. This doesn't need to happen with speeding or red light camera infringements as the person presenting to pay the said infringement is claiming to be responsible. This can depend naturally on the type of alleged violation, and importantly points being administered.
Keep in mind that every town, city, district, province is in actuality its own little kingdoOm slash empire, so what applies in one jurisdiction may not apply in another. See the example about Taizhou below.

When a vehicle is sold, the actual registered owner (individual/business rep) has to be present (presenting their ID card/passport) when completing a transfer to the new owner. If the new intending owner (buyer) is from out of the city or province then usually the original plate will be surrendered and the whole file related for to the registered vehicle held by that Traffic PSB will be provided in a stamped and sealed envelope which will be given to the new owner, who must present this envelope unopened to the relevant Traffic PSB authorities in the intended jurisdiction. There is a time limit allowable for this to occur (between 21-28 days from memory), and the envelope containing the file must not show signs of being tampered with. A temporary paper plate is also issued to cover this time period by the Traffic PSB from where the vehicle is being transferred from. Obviously this differs if the both the seller and buyer are individuals versus businesses etc and are located in the same jurisdiction. As does the rights of the owners where plates can be transferred and/or reassigned from one vehicle to another. That's why it is misleading to think that simply paying for a motorcycle or vehicle with a current valid and legal plate can simply be bought, paid for and shipped to the buyer without the two parties coming together, as both the registered owner and potential buyer MUST present to the Traffic PSB where the said motorcycle or vehicle is registered and being sold. The caveat to this being if the seller/owner is a business entity that may specialise in such activities.

If the vehicle is due for an inspection, it will be done at the time the bikes 'registered' ownership is being transferred, at the time of the transfer formalities. A transfer fee is also payable at this time. When I did this earlier this year it was a set flat fee, irrespective of the bikes 'declared' value.

This might also explain why it is problematic when attempting to deal with vehicle mandatory inspections, most of the time the registered owner has to be present, though a nominated person (e.g. car workshop/agent) can sometimes handle the re-inspection on the registered person's (owner's) behalf. After all any workshop/dealership 'worth its salt', requires a signature on a work order, which probably would suffice allowing the business to 'act as the owners agent', given that both copies of drivers license and passport are usually required - at least this is the case with my car. This is what I have done with my cars inspection years past including this past August. I have had the same done with a couple of my motorcycles in the past, where the local Suzuki motorcycle dealer/workshop have handled the inspections. However sometimes this is not allowed. As is the usual case, Guanxi plays a significant part as does one's location, as not all things are the same in all parts of China.

For example, in Taizhou, one can register a 150cc bike/scooter without needing a motorcycle drivers/riders licence. The Traffic police issue the bike/scoot with a white plate with black characters and alphanumerics. This plate is of slightly different dimensions compared to the standard yellow plate issued for motorcycles, and is for all intense and purposes legal. Not sure what would happen if one rides a bike with this type of plate into another jurisdiction. The plate though still needs to be obtained with suitable identification e.g. ID card/passport. In the areas connected to Ningbo that allow motorcycle registrations/plates, no such allowance is provided meaning all motorcycles with a regular petrol aspirated engine of any displacement require the user to have a motorcycle endorsed drivers license, despite Ningbo and Taizhou being in the same province.

Hope this clears any confusion...

[AndyCCAA]

Hope this clears any confusion...

Thank you a lot, this certainly does!

[Lao Jia Hou]

Another question about the vehicle registering: Can i just buy a B-Plate in beijing, take it with me to wherever to buy a bike and then just put the plate on? I just assumed there would be paperwork to be done in beijing to register the vehicle, but then again their system is so diffrent to what im used to :)

There are two "types" of B plates in Beijing:

1) Privately registered. The B plate/bike is registered to an individual person. For an individual to do this, that person must have a residency registration in one of the outlying districts of Beijing (e.g., Pinggu, Tongzhou, Hairou, etc). You probably live within the 6 major districts of Beijing, so this could not be done by you.

2) Company registered. The B plate/bike is registered to a company that has a main business address in one of the outlying areas of Beijing.

The 2nd option (company registration) is very common among motorcycle owners, both Chinese persons and foreigners. The reason is price - people do not wish to spend 60,000 rmb for an A plate (Nov 2013 price). A company-registered bike is 100% legal, anywhere in China, aside from locations with specific restrictions (e.g., in Beijing, you cannot ride a B-plated bike within the 4th ring road).

A company-registered bike is (of course) owned by you, and you will have paperwork showing that, despite the bike's registration being in the company's name.

The major motorcycle dealers in Beijing each sell thousands of motorcycles each year. About 60% of the bikes they sell are with company-registered B plates, about 20% with private B-plates, and about 20% with A plates. These large dealers know what they are doing, and have set up their sales operations so that they offer a one-stop purchasing/plating/insurance. They take care of everything for you, usually for a small "service" fee. As one example, Dadihengtong (the largest dealer in Beijing, with 8 outlets) charges about 800 rmb for company-registered B plates, including insurance & initial bike inspection. Another very large dealer (Qili Motors) is about the same. Stay far away from the smaller shops, unless you have a knowledgeable person with you.

When you want to sell your B-plated bike, you simply create a Bill of Sale between yourself and the buyer. MCM member Jaycee has kindly provided a template (click here). The bike remains registered in the company name, and does not have to go through the registration transfer process. If, by chance, you bought a used B-plated bike that was due for its inspection, you can easily do it yourself in Beijing (you do not need a company representative to appear). Alternately, the shops/agents charge a small fee to do it for you.

To answer your specific question about buying a B plate and taking it with you to a shop. No, you cannot do that. It is not necessary, though, because the reputable shops are set up to handle everything for you (as noted above). You could purchase an A plate, in advance, but that is a completely different situation, and should only be attempted by knowledgeable buyers.

ridechina makes a good impression on me, just wanted to know if there are other rental companys around with good reputition. Simply don't want to end up with a bike in bad condition putting me in uneccesary danger or having to pay unrealistic laowei-prices ;)

I do not know anything about ridechina, nor the rules that apply in the province in which it operates. What I do know, however, is that in the 3 years I have been struggling to get approvals for a WFOE (Wholly Foreign Owned Enterprise) that covers motorcycle rentals and tours (among other things within the business scope) ... we have researched several provinces and discovered that none have any existing 100% legal operations (that we could use as a reference). Recreational motorcycling is a very new thing in China. As one example of the struggles ... although we have WFOE approval for rentals, we cannot get the Traffic Management Bureau (a completely different government department) to register the bikes for business use (you will see on a bike's registration whether it is for personal, or business, use). We need business use, of course, to get the proper insurance. And in our research of insurance, PICC could not find any examples of motorcycle renting insurance, anywhere in its system (i.e., PICC didn't know how much to charge us, so it pulled a ridiculous number out of the clouds).

Lots of rental places operate outside the law, to varying degrees. But again, I do not know anything about RideChina - it wasn't operating when we first started our research.

[Lao Jia Hou]

Is the plate registered to a specific vehicle AND a specific person or just to the vehicle? (I mean, in terms of surveillance, speed traps ect registering a plate to a vehicle only wouldn't make much sense)

The plate belongs to a specific person (or company), but is attached to a specific bike. The plate stays with the bike for the bike's entire lifespan (in Beijing, it is now 13 years), unless the bike is sold to a buyer from another province (again, another confusing situation). Because the plate belongs to a specific person, when the bike is destroyed at the end of its mandated lifespan, you can take the plate and move it to a new bike. Not very important with an inexpensive B plate, but crucially important with a 60,000 rmb A plate.

When you sell a plated bike, the new owner transfers the existing plate registration into his/her name (except, as noted above, B-plated company registrations).

Traffic fines/points via cameras are the responsibility of the registered owner. If you ignore the traffic notice (sent by mail), and/or refuse to pay the fine, you will not be able to have your bike inspected (required on a periodic basis). If you were not the driver when the infraction occurred, you need to convince that other driver to fess up and pay the fine (and perhaps accept the penalty points). Because it is possible to say "someone else was driving ... and here they cooperatively are ... give them the points, and get the money from them", a cottage industry has developed where you can hire people to say he/she was the other driver. The going rate in Beijing, these days, is 300 rmb/point.

The plate belongs to the vehicle, that is why you can say: it was not me driving/riding the car/bike and somebody else can pay the fine. (Of course, you will pay that person)

Incorrect. The plate is attached to the vehicle, but the plate is "owned" by the registered owner (obvious case-in-point ... A plates). Like most western countries/states/provinces that also attach a plate to a vehicle, for the vehicle's entire lifespan, the plate's ownership transfers with the registration transfer between a buyer and seller. Again, with A plates, when the vehicle is disposed of (either through mandatory scrapping, or the permitted sale to another province), the registered owner keeps the A plate (he/she has 6 months to attach it to a new bike).

Finally, as noted by both Desmo & Bikerdoc, the rules/procedures vary from province to province, across China. Sometimes, widely varied.

[Kette]

Hi AndyCCAA,

I'm pretty much in the same situation as you: I'm German, came to Beijing three months ago to study Chinese (at Beiwai/BFSU - where do you study at?), will stay here till end of June at least, and just passed the driver's license test today. I also don't want to get a motorcycle to ride it around Beijing, but for traveling. So I'd appreciate if you share any further findings here.

[AndyCCAA]

@Lao Jia Hou: Thank's a lot for the detailed explanatioN!

@Kette:

Sure, will keep you informed when i got something new. Because of all the registering issues i'll probably won't buy but keep looking for rentals. Just PM me your wechat/weixin.
I'm at Tsinghua. You are also kindly invited to tag along if you want, already got 2 friends (both also german) on board as well (making buying even more difficult). We'll probably go for 2-3 weeks in Yunnan/Sichuan in february. Aren't quiet sure about the dates yet since we are not all certain about when we are requiered to be back to university for reregistering for next semester.
If everything goes well i'll probably go riding in july again :D

How long did it take for you between taking the test and signing up for it? Haven't scheduled mine yet but hope to get everything done within this year.
Where did you do the medical exam? Gonna try tomorrow with the hospital on campus, but since it's not on the offical list it would be good to know one in the neighborhood which definitly does it.


Another general question:
For January/February, does the weather allow to go to northern yunnan (Dali, Lijang) & sichuan (liangshan/leshan/chengdu) or would you advise me to stick to the south?