On August 30, five departments including the Ministry of Commerce jointly issued the "Implementation Plan for Promoting the Trade-in of Electric Bicycles," organizing compliant electric bicycle manufacturers and their qualified products to participate in consumer trade-in activities. This marks the first time the state has introduced a trade-in policy specifically for electric bicycles.
Enhanced Discounts to Boost Consumer Benefits
The implementation plan requires local governments to coordinate and utilize relevant funds to support consumer trade-ins, formulate detailed rules for electric bicycle trade-ins based on local conditions, and clearly define subsidy standards and methods.
Consumers who turn in their old electric bicycles registered under their names and purchase new ones are eligible for subsidies. They are encouraged to buy new qualified electric bicycles produced by enterprises that comply with the "Electric Bicycle Industry Standards."
Electric bicycle retailers, manufacturers, and recycling companies are encouraged to jointly conduct trade-in activities, offering stacked discounts to consumers. In addition to the trade-in value of their old bicycles, consumers will also receive subsidies for purchasing new ones.
Considering that lead-acid batteries currently account for nearly 80% of the batteries used in electric bicycles in recent years, and are relatively safer and more affordable, the policy will provide appropriately higher subsidies for consumers who trade in old electric bicycles with lithium-ion batteries for new ones with lead-acid batteries.
If consumers still prefer to purchase electric bicycles with lithium-ion batteries, the batteries must meet the requirements of the "Safety Technical Specifications for Lithium-Ion Batteries Used in Electric Bicycles." Since the national standard will officially take effect on November 1 this year, consumers can trade in for lead-acid battery electric bicycles before November 1, and for either lead-acid or lithium-ion battery electric bicycles after November 1.
Additionally, local governments may use fiscal funds to subsidize consumers who turn in electric bicycles and batteries with high safety risks.
Strengthen Supervision of Electric Bicycle Sales to Protect Consumer Rights
The implementation plan also specifies requirements for the supervision of electric bicycle sales. Enterprises and e-commerce platforms are required to sell qualified products that comply with national standards and prohibit illegal modifications to effectively safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of consumers:
Urge electric bicycle sales enterprises to establish and implement an inspection and acceptance system for incoming goods, strictly examining product qualification certificates and mandatory product certification information.
Require relevant e-commerce platforms to use automatic detection technologies and blocking/removal measures to eliminate information related to illegal modifications. They are strictly prohibited from publishing information such as "bypassing mutual recognition protocols," "removing speed limits," or "increasing battery capacity." The sale of electric bicycles, batteries, chargers, and other products without mandatory product certification is also forbidden. Sales pages for electric bicycle-related products must clearly state "Illegal modifications are prohibited."
Severely punish, in accordance with the law, illegal activities such as selling electric bicycles that do not meet mandatory national standards, lack mandatory product certification, or involve unauthorized modifications like altering original adapters, removing speed limiters, adding external battery brackets, modifying battery compartments, or replacing batteries with higher-capacity ones before sale. Cases suspected of criminal offenses will be transferred to public security authorities.
Streamline channels for reporting defects in electric bicycle products. For products identified as having safety hazards, defect investigations will be promptly conducted. If defects are confirmed, producers will be urged to implement recalls in accordance with the law.
