Motor Scooter Laws & Motor Scooter License Regs

What You Need to Know About Motorized Scooter Laws

You'll need to learn about your local motor scooter laws when you buy your scooter. It's important to do your homework on motorized scooter laws and motor scooter license regulations if you want to avoid problems.

You'll need motor scooter license plates in most states...

If you've gotten to the point where you're researching this topic, then being a bona fide scooter owner and driver is almost a reality! And that's exciting, isn't it?

There are two components of scooter laws to consider and what you have to do is going to depend on your local motor scooter laws, but in most areas, you'll need both a motor scooter license (driver's), as well as a scooter registration and scooter license plate.

The best way to find out what's what in your area is to find your state's Division of Motor Vehicles website. At that site, you should be able to get answers to what scooter laws apply. However, deciphering those regs can be a bit daunting at times, so I've also provided a short overview of the local state scooter laws here on the site.

I think I mentioned elsewhere on this site that in my state (Idaho) anything on 2 wheels with a motor that rides on the street must be licensed and registered. But in Connecticut, I know that scooters with a 50cc or less engine size are not regulated. Knowing that could definitely affect your buying decisions!

NOTE: My site right now is mostly slanted to my US readers, because scootering in the US is what I know best. But for my non-US readers, rest assured I will be researching motor scooter laws in the rest of the world too, and posting information as I learn it. Meanwhile, if you can point me in the right direction to learn more about the laws in your country, feel free to contact me!

Motor Scooter Drivers License

In most areas, to drive a scooter on the road, you'll need to get a scooter drivers license, which is actually what is called a "motorcycle endorsement" added on to a regular driver's license.

The first step is to get your scooter/motorcycle learner's permit. In Idaho, all I had to do was study the motorcycle manual and then go to my DMV and take a written test. It was around 50 questions, I think.

One of the challenges I found was that the manual in Idaho is totally slanted to motorcycles... and motorcycles are quite different from scooters in several aspects, including the transmission and location of driver controls.

I've never driven a motorcycle and when I read the manual, I have to admit I didn't really pay close attention to some of the motorcycle-specific sections, such as shifting and clutch stuff. My scooter's automatic, so I thought it was stuff I really didn't need to know.

Unfortunately, my written exam asked a couple of questions about those issues and I missed one that I took a total guess at. So, my advice is study the entire manual... you never know what they'll ask.

Motorized Scooter Laws

Motor scooter laws govern motor scooter licenses, of course, which I covered above. They also govern how you operate scooters in traffic.

One adjustment I've had to make is to keep reminding myself my scooter is a motor vehicle, not a bicycle. At first, I kept finding myself gravitating to riding in the bike lane or being able to just pull off at the curb for a second.

But you have to operate your scooter like a car, sort of, driving in the middle of your lane, obeying traffic signals and signs, etc. Might seem obvious to you, but I've had to battle my instincts and experience as a bike rider.

My advice on learning about motor scooter laws is to study your state's motorcycle/scooter driving manual carefully. There are likely to be nuances there that you need to know.

I've put together a page on state by state scooter licensing laws, where you can look up your individual state to get an overview of your applicable regs. Each state has their own definition for the following terms, which governs the regs:

• Motorcycle
• Motor-driven cycle
• Motorized bicycle

Moped is another term you'll see, though most states seem to lump that in with motorized bicycles.

Scooter Registration and Tags

If you find as I did that your state requires you to register your new motor scooter, you'll need to find out the prices and how to go about it.

In Idaho, I had to go to a different office than where I took my written licensing exam. But it was super easy & fast. All I did was pay my fee (around $30, I think) and they handed over my paper registration and little motor scooter license plate. Yee ha!

On the state scooter laws page I mentioned in the previous section, you'll not only find info on motor scooter license requirements for each state, but also the motorized scooter laws that govern requirements for registering and insuring your scooter.

Please remember: I'm not the last word on motor scooter laws... I'm just trying to jumpstart you!