E-Bike Trade-In Progress: What's New?

What's new with the electric bicycle trade-in program?

Reporters recently interviewed in Guangdong, Jiangsu, Hebei, Yunnan, and other places found that on the basis of national guidance, local implementation, and merchant participation, some areas have seen a small peak in the sale of electric bicycles, the market is gradually heating up, the replacement process is being further simplified, and the policy effect is gradually being released.

Subsidy funds used in various places exceed 66 million yuan

The latest data from the Ministry of Commerce shows that since the five departments jointly issued the "Implementation Plan for Promoting the Trade-in of Old Electric Bicycles for New Ones" in August this year, as of October 22, 30 provinces have issued implementation details, using more than 66 million yuan in subsidy funds.

Reporters learned through interviews that there are differences in the amount of subsidies, the way subsidies are given, and the number of times consumers can enjoy subsidies in various places.

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The amount of subsidies varies. Some provinces stipulate a subsidy of 500 yuan per vehicle, while others have set a gradient subsidy based on the value of the new car purchased. Jiangsu stipulates that for the purchase of a new electric bicycle priced below 2000 yuan (excluding), a subsidy of 300 yuan is given, for a price between 2000 yuan (including) and 3000 yuan (excluding), a subsidy of 400 yuan is given, and for a price of 3000 yuan (including) and above, a subsidy of 500 yuan is given. Several provinces have made it clear that the residual value of the old car can be deducted from the purchase amount of the new car, and it is not included in the subsidy.

There are differences in the way subsidies are given. In Yunnan, consumers return and cancel old electric bicycles, and when purchasing a new car, the settlement platform automatically calculates the subsidy amount and deducts it; in Guangdong, consumers need to first scrap the old car and cancel the old license plate before purchasing a new car, and finally fill in the relevant information into the small program to apply for the subsidy, and the subsidy funds will be issued to the personal account in one lump sum.

The number of subsidies also varies. In Guangdong, each person can apply for a subsidy at most once. In Yunnan, for each old car returned and canceled and one new car purchased, one can apply for a subsidy, with a maximum of 4 subsidies per person. In Hebei, each person can participate in the trade-in activity at most 3 times.

In addition, the policies issued by various places have clearly encouraged the exchange of lithium batteries for lead-acid batteries. For example, Jiangsu proposed to increase the subsidy by 100 yuan on the basis of each subsidy standard for consumers who return old lithium-ion battery electric bicycles and purchase lead-acid battery electric bicycles.

Lan Shiyou, the executive president of the Guangdong Electric Vehicle Chamber of Commerce, said that this trade-in activity for electric bicycles encourages and guides the core components of the electric bicycles on the market that are aging or have safety hazards to be replaced with electric bicycle models that meet the new national standards, to meet the needs of residents' consumption upgrading and continuously improve the quality of life of residents.Sales of trade-ins have reached 460 million yuan

The reporter visited the Yadea electric bicycle store located on Qianxing Road in Kunming City, Yunnan Province, where a citizen named Yang Jie was handling a trade-in transaction.

Yang Jie said that according to the assessment, the residual value of the old vehicle is 415 yuan, and the government subsidy is 500 yuan. To buy a new vehicle priced at 2799 yuan, only 1884 yuan is needed.

"Young people mainly care about appearance and intelligence when choosing, but the most popular are still the basic models with high cost-performance ratio," said Ou Shunli, the person in charge of the Tailin electric bicycle franchise store in Nanhe District, Xingtai City, Hebei Province. In terms of battery types, consumers mostly choose electric bicycles with lead-acid batteries, which are more cost-effective with subsidies.

Xue Fengnan, the store manager of the Yadea Lianfang Road flagship store in Congtai District, Handan City, said, "In the past, electric bicycles could sell a dozen a day during the peak sales season. After launching the trade-in activity, more than 30 can be sold every day, doubling the sales volume."

According to Shao Qing, the head of the commercial circulation service section of the Handan City Bureau of Commerce, the first batch of electric bicycle trade-in activities in Handan City involved 140 stores, selling 4760 electric bicycles during the National Day period, with sales of 12.35 million yuan and subsidies of 2.14 million yuan. Currently, efforts are being made to organize the selection and supplementation of electric bicycle stores.

Statistics from the Ministry of Commerce show that as of October 22, a total of 2,993 electric bicycle trade-in activities have been held across various regions, recycling 176,300 old vehicles and selling 176,300 new vehicles, with sales of 460 million yuan.

The reporter found that due to the recent introduction of the policy, sales in some stores have not seen a significant increase.

Guo Laijian, the Guangzhou operation director of Yadea Technology Group Sales Co., Ltd., said that recently, there has been an increase in consumers coming to inquire about electric bicycle trade-ins. It is hoped that the cancellation and licensing process for electric bicycles can be further optimized, subsidies can be accelerated, and more consumers can be attracted to participate.

Further standardize and simplify to improve convenienceElectric bicycle trade-ins involve multiple stages such as production, sales, and recycling. During interviews, it was discovered that many businesses and consumers are looking forward to simplifying the related processes to enhance the convenience of trade-ins.

Recently, the Ministry of Commerce and four other departments issued a notice regarding the subsidy conditions, process management, and recycling-related matters of electric bicycle trade-ins, guiding local departments to further clarify and standardize these procedures.

Some places have actively taken action. The Nanjing Municipal Bureau of Commerce has announced the first batch of 1,029 stores participating in the electric bicycle trade-in activity. Community grid workers and fire volunteers from Zhaotong, Yunnan, have entered communities, streets, and shops where people are densely populated to explain the details of the relevant activities face-to-face with the public. Guangdong has established a registration system for the scrapping and recycling of electric bicycles to increase transparency in the scrapping and recycling process.

At the Yade Electric Vehicle Changxing Road flagship store in Tianhe District, Guangzhou City, reporters saw consumers filling out purchase information under the guidance of store staff. The store manager, Lv Tingwei, said that the store arranges sales personnel to follow up on trade-in orders throughout the process, providing good service.

Some places have taken measures to strengthen the storage safety of the recycling process. Ou Shunli said, "After the old vehicle is recycled, we first place the battery according to the required specifications, and then contact the company for on-site recycling. This way, it saves space and reduces fire hazards."

Lan Shiyou said that the electric bicycle trade-in involves a long chain and many links, and digital technology can be applied to further simplify the process, improve recycling efficiency, and enhance the public's sense of gain.