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[TheRan]

Hey all, I don't own an electric bike yet but I'm looking to change that soon, it's something I've always wanted to experience. I'm currently on L plates and while I want to get my full licence eventually it's not the most convenient process, but with Zero now doing 11kw models that I could legally ride now I'm considering getting one of those. However after reading all the horror stories about people trying to get electric bikes insured, people with full licences and more experience than me, I wonder if it's actually possible for me.

Has anyone ever heard of another rider on L's getting insured on one? Any recommendations for insurers to try, are there any that specialise in electric bikes? I haven't tried any yet as I'll need to phone up as it seems like no online quote services have the 11kw models listed (or they're listing them under their peak power).

[Crissa]

Why would they care about the size of the battery pack?

Weird.

Good luck!  I just had to call, but I'm in the US.  So it was weirdly cheaper to get a stand-alone policy than attaching it to the other bike or our car.

-Crissa

[TheRan]

11kw refers to the continuous power output (over 30 minutes), not the battery capacity which is still 7.2 or 14.4. Peak power is still the same but is irrelevant when it comes to licencing. Here in Europe an 11kw bike can be ridden on an A1 licence, or here in the UK it can be ridden with L plates after completely a CBT which is roughly similar to the MSF course in the US.

[Fred]

There's only one way to find out - try to get a quote. The only insurers I know of doing electric bikes in the UK are Lexham and Wicked Quotes. See what they come up with.

[Crissa]

11kw refers to ...

Oh, thanks!  I was confused

Ours are rated mostly by clamped top speed (or physical engine size) and number of wheels for licensing.  Some of the new rules for bicycles use peak energy output but it's really inconsistent over here.

-Crissa

[TheRan]

There's only one way to find out - try to get a quote. The only insurers I know of doing electric bikes in the UK are Lexham and Wicked Quotes. See what they come up with.

Thanks. Gave Lexham a go and they quoted me an impressive (for me) £1k, only double what I currently pay for a bike a quarter of the value. I'll give Wicked Quotes a go as well to see if they can beat it but even if they can't I'm happy with Lexham's quote so insurance shouldn't hold me back from getting the bike.

11kw refers to ...

Oh, thanks!  I was confused

Ours are rated mostly by clamped top speed (or physical engine size) and number of wheels for licensing.  Some of the new rules for bicycles use peak energy output but it's really inconsistent over here.

-Crissa

Euro and UK licencing can get quite confusing. The A1 licence (or riding on L plates) is also restricted by engine capacity to 125cc but of course that doesn't apply to electric bikes. There are even lower moped/scooter licences for 16 year olds that are even further restricted to 50cc and a design speed of under 30mph. The A2 licence is based on a power limit of 47hp, a certain power to weight ratio, and a restricted bike can't have more than 94hp in unrestricted form (so no restricted busas for example). The full A licence is completely unrestricted.

[Crissa]

California has Class 1, 2, and 3 powered bicycles; stand-up scooters; mopeds; three-wheeled vehicles; and then motorcycles.  We have four classes of bike lanes and two types of licenses and a helmet law which applies to kids on all of these and adults only on mopeds and motorcycles.

And I don't even know why we have two classes of licenses, since the test is the same for both and one is restricted to mopeds and the other isn't but you literally can't get one without passing everything for the other.  And I don't know why we need to have three categories for electric bikes when they effectively can all share the same paths.  Or why there's not rules for using the other 'motorcycles' crossing the paths or what reasoning to give them different speed ratings.

https://www.eluxbikes.com/post/2018/08/24/rules-of-the-road-ab-1096-regulates-e-bikes-in-california

@-@

[Richard230]

California has Class 1, 2, and 3 powered bicycles; stand-up scooters; mopeds; three-wheeled vehicles; and then motorcycles.  We have four classes of bike lanes and two types of licenses and a helmet law which applies to kids on all of these and adults only on mopeds and motorcycles.

And I don't even know why we have two classes of licenses, since the test is the same for both and one is restricted to mopeds and the other isn't but you literally can't get one without passing everything for the other.  And I don't know why we need to have three categories for electric bikes when they effectively can all share the same paths.  Or why there's not rules for using the other 'motorcycles' crossing the paths or what reasoning to give them different speed ratings.

https://www.eluxbikes.com/post/2018/08/24/rules-of-the-road-ab-1096-regulates-e-bikes-in-california

@-@

What I have always wondered is who enforces all of these rules and if they do, don't they have something better to do?   

[Crissa]

Worse, each kind of bicycle, motorcycle, moped, and scooter have different speed limits!

Stand-up scooters are limited to 15mph except where specifically posted for scooters - and some towns ban them or limit them to 5mph.  Etc.

I don't know, I don't even know how they're supposed to tell the difference between a Class 3 bike and a Class 1 bike since they look identical, have the same licensing requirements, and barely have any speed differences.  Sure, a class 3 is 50% faster than a class 1 but I can get my non-assist bike up to that speed.  And under-sixteens can have those!

@-@

[Richard230]

I heard yesterday that the CA state legislature just sent the governor some 1000 new laws (presumably not taking any old ones off of the books), most of which he will approve. Who can possibly remember, understand, comply with and enforce so many laws?  I have no idea how many of those relate to the motor vehicle code.  No doubt some do. The only proposed law being reported in the news was vetoed by the governor. It was a law that would have allowed San Francisco to charge up to $10 to drive down its famous crooked street, which is a big tourist attraction.   

[Crissa]

None of them simplify this, but our governor did sign a few that allowed the scooters and class-2 and class-3 e-bikes.

So it's at least the right direction, even if it's messy.

-Crissa