I never lend my scooter to anyone

[Spaguar]

I am not a fan of sharing things. Be it my pen, my shirt, garden tools, car or scooter, I don't like to lend or borrow anything.
My first moped was hardly a week old when a friend, not even a very good friend, persistently asked me and I finally agreed to lend him my moped for a very short test ride. We were both 14. This ended in him riding to a corner house, wrecked my bike. Luckily, he was not badly injured. He paid for the spare parts which I had to find, purchase and replace.
Another time, my older brother took my bike around the block. At the crossroad he ran into a taxi. Our father paid for the damages to a taxi driver and my brother fixed the bike to be rideable again. Luckily again, no bad injuries. I ended up with a bike that was wrecked twice.
My both daughters had several bikes from 50 – 500 ccm. They always offered me to try them and I always thanked them and declined. It was quite tempting when my neighbour offered me to ride his Harley, but again I said, "no thanks."
I have no problem renting a car or a bike from a r-a-c company or a tool from a hardware store. There is the contract, the insurance clear responsibility.
But I have finally (59) have learned to say "NO" when asked to lend something.
Now I have a 1-year old car and a 4 month old Forza. I love them both and intend to ride them for many years. If they get scratched or hit, it will be by myself. But I will not lend them to anyone and I will not feel bad about it.

[fish]

Agreed. Never lend a scoot or motorcycle to anyone. Never.
Fish

[Old Grinner]

I think you meant "lend"? To lend somebody something with the expectation it will be returned in the condition it was in when you "lent" it?

That said life is just full of disappointing experiences. Without disappointment there would be no joy. . .hence the "Yin" and "Yang".

I've lent things to people in the past trying to be a good neighbor and have had them returned damaged. . .and not a word mentioned to me about it by the borrower. I discovered it myself when I went to use them. So without trying to be harsh I don't borrow from others and in turn I decline lending things to people when asked. It's too bad it has to be that way but I take care of my stuff and try to make it last as long as I can and not everyone seems to share the same enthusiasm.

I definitely would never lend a scooter or motorcycle to anyone either.

However, if someone needed my help with something that would be different. . .like volunteering to help charity organizations or rescued animals.

[easyrider]

When it comes to family members and close friends I lend everything out depending on the item (personal).I also lend myself out to most anyone who needs a helping hand. I do ask them to clean up whatever they take ie tools, but most times I'll have to finish it to my liking.My scooter may be different as that can hurt someone if not tuned into rider safety. To my family I will lend most anything.

[87112]

I don't loan a thing whatsoever, tell them the agency where temp work is given out. If I can earn money using my body as a grunt so can you.

[you you]

When it comes to family members and close friends I lend everything out depending on the item (personal).I also lend myself out to most anyone who needs a helping hand. I do ask them to clean up whatever they take ie tools, but most times I'll have to finish it to my liking.My scooter may be different as that can hurt someone if not tuned into rider safety. To my family I will lend most anything.

Ditto. Why be selfish?

[Old Grinner]

When it comes to family members and close friends I lend

Yes, I have to agree about family or children.

That to me is a different situation and depending upon the situation you just have to use good judgement.

I was noting in the context of the borrower being non-family.

Don't mean to sound cheap but I've been ripped off more than once trying to be kind and generous.

Another issue is when you have to go chasing for your stuff because someone doesn't bother to return it. . ..

[Jge64]

I never look at it as family or non-family, I look at it is who is absolutely qualified to ride my scooter if they ask to borrow it. I have one or two friends that I would be happy to get my scooter to, if they showed me their insurance was up to date, and also that they had experience riding. 30 yrs sgo I lent my Honda CB 750 to my dad when I took it home for the holiday, and he assured me that it had been years since he had ridden, but he could ride, he immediately drove it into a curb and fell down and scraped the bike… Never again… Now one of my best friends who is fully qualified and owns three bikes, I'd give it to him in a heartbeat.

[Mel46]

I have a neighbor who borrows from everyone, but when it comes to lending it is a different story. One day I told him that he should purchase some tools to keep around his house for small jobs, such as a hammer and screwdriver.

His response: "Why should I? I can always borrow yours."

Of course, when he borrows things from me, he never returns them in as good condition as when I lent it to him. He has even lost things that he borrowed from me, and from others. He did this for 5 years, until we all got together to compare notes and decided that he was a "user".

We found out some pretty interesting things about his habits when we compared notes. Sometimes it is best to ask others about the person you are about to lend something to.

[Spaguar]

When it comes to family members and close friends I lend everything out depending on the item (personal).I also lend myself out to most anyone who needs a helping hand. I do ask them to clean up whatever they take ie tools, but most times I'll have to finish it to my liking.My scooter may be different as that can hurt someone if not tuned into rider safety. To my family I will lend most anything.

Ditto. Why be selfish?

I really don't find myself selfish. When it comes to my daughters and grandsons, I will gladly help them financially to purchase a reasonable vehicle of their choice. But I am not prepared to take responsibility if one of them gets injured on my bike. Besides, no one will take care of my bike the way I do. There's also a generation difference. Today's youngsters mostly (and rightfully) consider cars and bikes to be just vehicles that will get you from A to B. For my generation, that grew up in a communist country, owning a nice car or a bike was like a dream come true and I appreciate my vehicles with the same respect today. And I don't mind being this kind of dynosaurus.

[Mel46]

Heck, when I was a teenager (17) I was in the military. Having your own transportation was everything. You worked hard for the right to own and drive a vehicle. I swapped back and forth between owning a motorcycle and a car. I was far from rich, so I took good care of them.

Kids these days seem to have the attitude that if they crash their car Mom and Dad will just buy them another one.

[alx123]

Not sure why is this in the tech forum?

Anyway

I judge by the person's skill level when lending my bikes. I have riding buddies I would lend my bikes in a heartbeat. If anything happens, I would worry more about the person than the bike. If somebody is unskilled or unqualified to ride, I would politely refuse for their own safety.

[you you]

Not sure why is this in the tech forum?

Anyway

I judge by the person's skill level when lending my bikes. I have riding buddies I would lend my bikes in a heartbeat. If anything happens, I would worry more about the person than the bike. If somebody is unskilled or unqualified to ride, I would politely refused for their own safety.

Exactly.

[Mel46]

I have learned from experience that just because someone has a valid motorcycle license does not mean that they know how to ride responsibly. Look at the idiots on YouTube for good examples of those types.

[kramnala58]

Not sure why is this in the tech forum?

I moved it to PCX General, but I suppose it could have gone to Add-Ons>Off Topic

[Old Grinner]

I think that what we can all learn from this is that it's best to treat others how we ourselves would like to be treated.

That said, hurtful life experiences can have a lingering effect on our well being and outlook on life thus causing some apprehension and pause in our approach to certain decisions.

This subject contains a mix of responses which I think reflect a cross section of society.

I'm glad to see that there is still hope for humanity in the hearts of those who can rise above and take the higher road. It takes inner strength and the ability to forgive without prejudice. . .especially when one has had to pay for the thoughtlessness of some.

For others. . .time hopefully heals all wounds.

One thing for sure is that "safety first" is always a good way to go.

[WhiteNoise]

^ Like ^

Family
My brother-in-law and his son (my nephew) repeatedly say, "Bring that Scooter of yours over here, we'll ride it!" I reply (sounding like a broken record), "Uh, no yer not. Not on my scoot! Neither of you have a motorcycle license." Response, "aw you don't need a special license for that do ya?" I shake my head n smile, "yes you do, and as long as you guys don't have one, yer Not riding mine."

It NEVER Goes Over Big They snicker n pout. Walk away mumbling about me. I then add, "I hear yas and I just saved your hide and the cost of buying me a new scoot! How about that thought process!?"

No matter, I'm still the bad guy. Sigh, It is what it is

[Mel46]

WN, I have had that kind of discussion quite a few times. I have also found that even though an individual does have a motorcycle license, that does not mean that they currently ride. An older friend of ours brought her new boyfriend over to meet us. He saw our scooters and bragged that he had a Harley. After showing us his license, it was suggested that he take one of our scooters for a spin around the subdivision. Long story short, he proved that he couldn't ride.

[you you]

WN, I have had that kind of discussion quite a few times. I have also found that even though an individual does have a motorcycle license, that does not mean that they currently ride. An older friend of ours brought her new boyfriend over to meet us. He saw our scooters and bragged that he had a Harley. After showing us his license, it was suggested that he take one of our scooters for a spin around the subdivision. Long story short, he proved that he couldn't ride.

Over here we have a separate license for scooters and agricultural equipment.

How the heck can you brag you had a Harley. I suppose times have changed, homophobia was an awful thing.

[Mel46]

Well, I had a Harley once too. I have also had all sorts of other bikes, but if I don't feel confident about riding an unknown type, I will say so. I guess that some people feel that having a Harley is all they need in order to fit in the motorcycle world.

We have retired neighbors that also had a Harley once. Now they are 80 years old. I don't think that I would let them ride my scooter. Common sense goes with trust.