Moped Law West Virginia

[frmdusk2dawn]

Hello all,

i am am a newbie here and recently relocated to WV. What kind of license is required for a 49cc or 50cc in  the state WV? I called the dmv, but got conflicting answers. Any information will be greatly appreciated.

[Deleted]

www.moped2.org/laws/west-virginia.htm:

Hmm. 50cc, 30 mph top end, no manual gears, helmet, no side-saddle riding (!), nothing about licensing in the "moped" code itself.

But then!:

www.dmv.org/wv-west-virginia/other-types.php

registration req'd; "call ahead for fees".


Sheesh; some help, huh?

In the WV motor vehicle code itself, "mopeds" (i.e., < 50cc) are separately defined, implying that fees and licensing have their own category, but I just spent a half-hour wandering around inside the WV codes and and can't find any definite answers about rider licensing for mopeds.

[90GTVert]

From this site : drivinglaws.aaa.com/laws/mopeds-other/

"Valid license required. Minimum age is 16.

Required safety equipment includes: headlamp, tail lamp, stop lamp, mirrors, horn, muffler, and brakes."

I'd assume from that just a regular driver's license.

[Deleted]

Thank you, Brent; Triple A to the rescue.

That's the thing about state codes: they're written by lawyers for lawyers, with no regard to providing clear & straightforward answers to the public (for whom they work).

That confusion of legal syntax and usage can - and has - extended to local constabulary itself. Street cops often don't know the law. For years in the city of Washington, DC, their patrol sergeants and their Watch Lieutenants didn't know the law, either. Before enactment of the "moped" tag and decal laws in MD and VA, riders from those states often resorted to carrying around a laminated copy of the code when riding in DC, but were nonetheless subject to long & arduous traffic stops while unaware patrol officers tried to get answers.

And then there's the wholesale ignorance of local DMV offices...and "information specialists" at state DMV hotlines...

[90GTVert]

When I got pulled over on the TaoTao for riding it like I stole it I asked the 2 officers if my registration sticker ever expired. I hadn't seen it mentioned anywhere, so thought maybe they'd know. They had no idea. One called dispatch who said they didn't see any expiration date, so they assume it doesn't. Things like that seem like they'd be need to know info for officers and it doesn't seem like it would be that difficult to educate them that there is no expiration, or at least since everything is computer driven these days have this sort of thing in some sort of tab or sidebar or some system for easy searching of at least the very basics.

At that rate though, when I registered the TaoTao I went to the MVA and was told they don't register scooters. This was after speaking with a representative from the MVA via email to be certain I had everything I needed prior to going and that the branch did registration of mopeds/scooters. The lady at the MVA spoke to her manager who also said they don't do scooters there. I ended up paying a Honda shop to file the paperwork for me so it cost a lot more than it should have. I then spoke with the MVA rep via email when I got home and she said they should have done my registration at the MVA and that she would get in touch. Later she said she explained how it's supposed to work to the manager there and the manager would brief the other employees. This was probably 8 months after the need for registration for scooters went into effect in MD and that far in they were still clueless.

[Deleted]

Heh heh...when I went to register my wife's Vino under the then-new moped law, I was apparently the first in my DMV's office to do so.

Even though cartons and cartons of "moped" plates were stacked behind the counter, staff soon discovered that the statewide computer system had not been upgraded to handle moped registrations.

We all got to sit around for a few hours while they called the DMV Intergalactic HQ at the state capital, so they could do a system modification on the fly...and that's Your Tax Dollars in Action...

[FrankenMech]

I went to my local police station and asked what I needed in Kansas. Beat cops don't have the time, interest, or resources to do research at a traffic stop. They just want to write a ticket to 'justify' the stop. An officer in the local PD office that was familiar with motorcycle regs researched it on their computer system and figured out no registration or insurance was required. In Kansas a simple driver's license was required along with a helmet under a certain age. The local DMV is clueless, they just want $$$$. Many websites, including 49ccscoot, just list the erroneous info found on the KS highway patrol and other websites.

Sheriff officers and highway patrol officers are all Nazis though. Without insurance they will a immediately arrest and impound regardless of what the law actually says. It costs more to bail out and recover the scoot than several years of insurance costs so I carry insurance. Insurance was hard to get because nobody ever heard of insuring a 'motorized bicycle' as they are classified in Kansas.

Living in Kansas is Hell, like living in Germany when the Nazis were in control or living in the Mideast or anywhere with the Daesh or Muslims in control. It seems the whole US midwest isn't much better though.

[garyq]

In MA we are required to carry the "registration" paper. On it it lists what a Moped/scooter is, and some rules of the road specific to mopeds. One allows mopeds to pass traffic on the right. Once when doing so I was stopped by a traffic cop and I politely informed him it was legal, showed him the paper, etc. After conferring with another cop he came back to me and thanked me as he said "I learned something today". But I have also been stopped by other cops in other cities for doing the same, and their attitude was STFU or be ticketed and towed. As they say YMMV.

[kawasakirider92]

Hi I'm new and I got a moped last year but dunno what the laws are on 49cc mopeds besides a lady at the DMV telling me rudely that My moped isn't allowed on the road due to being a 49cc...

[FrankenMech]

Hi, Just go to the local PD and ask them to find out what is required. Maybe they will even print out the relevant info for you...