NMC monitoring the UK situation closely as End of Life regulations set to be extended to motorcycles within the EU
News that ‘End of Life’ (ELV) EU laws are set to be extended to motorcycles within the EU has led to several reports in the UK motorcycle media expressing concern and alarm about ELV regulations in the UK. The NMC is today clarifying the situation - that currently the UK’s own End-of-Life Vehicle regulations do not apply to motorcycles and neither will the new proposals being debated in Brussels - unless the UK decides to independently revise domestic ELV regulations.
As reported by one of the NMC’s partners in Europe, the Federation of European Motorcyclists Federations (FEMA), the European Union is developing regulations which will expand the scope of the End-of-Life Vehicles Directive to include motorcycles and other L-category vehicles, as well as increase recycling targets. ELV legislation dictates how vehicles are recycled, reused, and disposed of when they reach the end of their life. New proposals will also implement stricter battery disposal rules for electric vehicles, and shift more responsibility to manufacturers under Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) policies. The UK kept the original car and van-only regulations under UK law, which were introduced several years and were retained as part of the UK’s EU-Exit process, though not in a manner known as 'dynamic alignment', a process rejected during EU-Exit, where the UK would have automatically adopted revisions to EU law, as happens in EEA and EFTA counties.
The new regulations will initially apply only to EU Member States and its EEA and EFTA partners, but despite this, there is a concern that longer term, they could be ‘ported’ into the UK as part of an update to inherited domestic ELV regulations.
On the 17th June, the EU Council (Member State Governments) agreed their position which increases the level of ambition of the regulation, including in its scope heavy-duty trucks and two or three-wheel motorcycles and quadricycles.
One item of good news is that the Council agreed that the Regulation shall not apply to vehicles of historical interest as defined in Article 3, point (7), of Directive 2014/45/EU: ‘vehicle of historical interest’. This means any vehicle which is considered to be historical by the Member State of registration or one of its appointed authorising bodies. There are certain conditions, one of which is that the motorcycle must be at least 30 years old. In the UK, historic vehicle status is achieved at 40 years old. The Council is now ready to start negotiations with the European Parliament as soon as the Parliament adopts its position later this year.
However, strong concern remains regarding non historic motorcycles within the EU, particularly the ability for owners to repair and restore damaged or long term stored bikes, the potential impact on the trade in second parts and how an ‘end of life’ motorcycle could be either recycled or disposed of. There is also the question of how some motorcycles can survive to become ‘future classic barn finds’. There is also a potential immediate impact in the UK for those who source restoration projects from within the EU, as there is a suggestion that exports of ELVs from the EU to third party country restorers could become more difficult or not possible to do.
The culture of motorcycle repair, restoration and modification within the UK is a key feature and core part of the vitality of UK motorcycling. This is also the case across Europe. As FEMA reports, the motorcycle community already excels at reusing and recycling parts. In places like the Nordic countries and without motorcycle ELV regulations, over 60% of motorcycle parts are reused, compared to less than 15% for cars. Informal networks and workshops thrive on salvaging and repurposing components. Over-regulation could dismantle these successful systems. Without changes to the proposals, the law could force restorers to scrap bikes deemed ‘unroadworthy’, even if they are being brought back to life. Perhaps most troubling: the regulations could empower public authorities to decide when your bike is an ELV. If it’s declared irreparable you might have to scrap it via a specialist recycling centre, even if you want to restore it.
NMC Executive Director Craig Carey-Clinch said: “It’s important to recognise that in the first instance, these proposals will not on the face of it, affect the UK - they are EU proposals, not Westminster ones. Sadly, this distinction has not been made clear in several media reports about ELVs. However, the NMC recognises the potential threat that these regulations, once they become EU law, represent – with them possibly being implemented through the back door as part of a revision of domestic ELV regulations.
"As such, we fully support the work of the FEMA and also the FIM to ensure that the new laws that are eventually adopted, do not take away rider choice and decisions about the future of their own motorcycles once they are approaching the end of their ‘initially’ useful lives. Protections that allow the continued sale and trade in used components and restoration projects must also be put in place.
"The current UK ELV regulations for cars and smaller vans are managed across several government departments (but not the Department for Transport) and the NMC is liaising with these, so that a greater understanding of the long terms plans for UK ELV regulations can be gained and that the position of motorcyclists in relation to any future updated UK ELV regulations can be properly understood by the Government.”