Can I rent a bike and drive (legally) with a UK CBT lisence?

[Miles97]

I’m going to be going to Thailand in January, and wondering if I can rent a motorbike (legally) while I’m there with CBT license (up to 125CC) from UK. Had no luck finding this info anywhere else ????

[Kwasaki]

If you can get a IDP with it should be OK. 

[VocalNeal]

Surely the question should be can I ride safely with CBT license? 

 

Everyone has to start somewhere but riding in Asia is not the the same as riding / driving anywhere else? 

 

I doubt the rental shop will know the difference or care. If it is a dodgy place                           take lots of pictures of the bike before you ride away.

[johng]

I'm not upto date on the latest terminology  but if CBT is  a "provisional" licence ie:  you use L plates  then I think technically you  can't rent a bike...however T.I.T  so the person renting you the bike  will most likely not care if you have a licence or not   and  plod will except a UK licence as long as it has a picture of a bike on it...the problems will come if you are involved in an accident..so as they say  "up to you"  if you want to take the risk..depending where you ride in Thailand the risk can be low  (out in the countryside)  or quite high Bangkok,Pattaya,Chaingmai,Phuket .

[Kwasaki]

1 minute ago, VocalNeal said:

Surely the question should be can I ride safely with CBT license? 

 

Everyone has to start somewhere but riding in Asia is not the the same as riding / driving anywhere else? 

 

I doubt the rental shop will know the difference or care. If it is a dodgy place                           take lots of pictures of the bike before you ride away.

Agree he needs to observe how bike riders use the roads here and to learn to ride safely here,  for starters no more than 40kph IMO.

 

A CBT license is given in UK to prove you have completed the provisional test and show you are are capable of riding on the roads. 

[seedy]

Just be aware that - DL from UK or here - rental bikes have the bare basic insurance coverage.

You damage the bike - you pay.

You hit anybody and coverage is very limited - excess, you pay.

Bike gets stolen - you pay.

That aside, many thousands have rented bikes and have had zero - or minor - issues.

Post above re: check bike over very well, take lots of fotos of bike to ensure past damage is made aware to the renter, and you will most likely be OK

[Gottfrid]

Sure! No problem. I think you even can fly an airplane in Thailand without a license or knowledge. It´s al about who you know.

[Moonlover]

Legally no! A CBT license is the modern equivalent of the provisional license of old and as such you have to display 'L' plates. 

 

You must have a full foreign license to ride legally in Thailand.

[Kwasaki]

7 minutes ago, Moonlover said:

Legally no! A CBT license is the modern equivalent of the provisional license of old and as such you have to display 'L' plates. 

 

You must have a full foreign license to ride legally in Thailand.

Or pay 200 or 400 baht fine depending where you are if you get stopped. 

[scubascuba3]

If your UK licence includes motorcycles the post office will issue the IDP with motorcycle endorsement. Police will just look for that or you pay police 400-1000

[Kwasaki]

54 minutes ago, Moonlover said:

Legally no! A CBT license is the modern equivalent of the provisional license of old and as such you have to display 'L' plates. 

 

You must have a full foreign license to ride legally in Thailand.

So is a Thai 2 year provisional DL. 

If OP can get a Thai DL when he arrives even better.

 

 

 

Edited November 27, 2021 by Kwasaki

[Moonlover]

42 minutes ago, Kwasaki said:

So is a Thai 2 year provisional DL. 

If OP can get a Thai DL when he arrives even better.

 

 

 

Yes, the 2 year license is provisional, but you do have to take the full test to get one, which is not the case with a CBT license.

 

It's a general convention worldwide that only a full license can be accepted for driving in a foreign country and the Thai 2 year one would not be acceptable abroad.

 

For the O/P to ride legally, which is what he asked, he would have to take the full test here in Thailand.

[JayClay]

17 minutes ago, Moonlover said:

For the O/P to ride legally, which is what he asked, he would have to take the full test here in Thailand.

Which, amusingly, is far less detailed than a CBT ????

[Moonlover]

28 minutes ago, JayClay said:

45 minutes ago, Moonlover said:

For the O/P to ride legally, which is what he asked, he would have to take the full test here in Thailand.

 

28 minutes ago, JayClay said:

Which, amusingly, is far less detailed than a CBT ????

I wouldn't know about that. Back in my day, we just got a prov' license, stuck 'L' plates on the bike off we went and learned how to ride!

 

50 years on and I still haven't had a formal riding lesson. ????

 

 

[Kwasaki]

1 hour ago, Moonlover said:

Yes, the 2 year license is provisional, but you do have to take the full test to get one, which is not the case with a CBT license.

 

It's a general convention worldwide that only a full license can be accepted for driving in a foreign country and the Thai 2 year one would not be acceptable abroad.

 

For the O/P to ride legally, which is what he asked, he would have to take the full test here in Thailand.

I think you unestimate the CBT test in UK today, when they say you can't fail is not really true because I wouldn't let anyone go on the road unless I thought they were ready, 2 days is not enough for some.

[johng]

2 hours ago, Moonlover said:

For the O/P to ride legally, which is what he asked, he would have to take the full test here in Thailand.

Ahh  but then the strange thing... take the test in Thailand and pass they issue a 2 year "temporary"  licence   after 2 years they will then issue a 5 year "full" licence.

 

The Thai driving test is  nothing like the UK test...orders of magnitude easier to pass in Thailand.

[Moonlover]

28 minutes ago, Kwasaki said:

I think you unestimate the CBT test in UK today, when they say you can't fail is not really true because I wouldn't let anyone go on the road unless I thought they were ready, 2 days is not enough for some.

I'm not underestimating anything. I've already stating that I know nothing about the CBT test. It came along long after I got my spurs. 

[Liverpool Lou]

5 hours ago, Miles97 said:

wondering if I can rent a motorbike (legally) while I’m there with CBT license

CBT isn't a licence, it's a course that prepares riders for the road so, presumably, you don't have a full licence?   If you don't have a licence you can't drive here, legally.

[Liverpool Lou]

5 hours ago, Kwasaki said:

If you can get a IDP with it should be OK. 

Can he get an IDP without a full licence?

[Liverpool Lou]

4 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

If your UK licence includes motorcycles the post office will issue the IDP with motorcycle endorsement.

Without a full bike licence?   Are you sure?

[Mutt Daeng]

22 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Can he get an IDP without a full licence?

No

https://www.gov.uk/driving-abroad/get-an-idp

Edited November 27, 2021 by Mutt Daeng

[Liverpool Lou]

12 minutes ago, Mutt Daeng said:

32 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Can he get an IDP without a full licence?

No

https://www.gov.uk/driving-abroad/get-an-idp

My question was rhetorical.

[Mutt Daeng]

5 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

My question was rhetorical.

Sorry, I'm a bit slow today. 

[CharlieH]

As with most things in Thailand, there is the correct answer, whats technically correct and what actually happens on the day.

They are generally poles apart !

 

As a foreigner, what matters is who and what you encounter on the day at the time. Roll the dice ! .........and always carry some cash.

[Kwasaki]

59 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Can he get an IDP without a full licence?

Dunno OP can ask. 

Only trying help him with what's it's like in Thailand when wants to ride a scoot/wave here which he can. 

[SheikYabodyline]

Last motorcycle test I took was in 1965. Part of the test in those days was, the examiner explained, for the examinee to follow a round-the-block route. At some point on that route he would be waiting for you, jump out into the road and expect you to come to a controlled stop. Naturally, if you ran over and killed the examiner you failed the test.

I believe the test these days is somewhat more sophisticated.

[seedy]

50 minutes ago, SheikYabodyline said:

I believe the test these days is somewhat more sophisticated.

When I got mine, you did the written test for a learners drivers license for a car.

This allowed you to ride a bike up to 100cc, and drive with a licensed driver in a car.

Full drivers license at 16 with a road test in a car, came with unlimited bike.

[Kwasaki]

1 hour ago, SheikYabodyline said:

I believe the test these days is somewhat more sophisticated.

In UK the motorbike testing it's very strict now, more so than the car test..

In Thailand the motorbike test as said the CBT in UK is a tougher test.

I would of luved being a kid in Thailand I was fined so many times in UK.