How the E-bike Registry works
The registry ID, the stolen check, and what it does and doesn’t prove
Every registered bike gets a 12-character ID, e.g. EB-E7K3-M9P2-XV. It is human-readable, URL-safe and carries a check character, so a mistyped ID is rejected instead of resolving to the wrong bike.
Structure
- Prefix — always “EB”, marks a Timbrica E-bike Registry ID.
- Vehicle-type letter — E (e-bike), S (scooter), B (bicycle), M (moped), C (cargo), O (other).
- 8 random Crockford base32 characters + a position-weighted check character.
The check matches on the frame / serial number with separators and letter case removed, so the same bike is found however the number is typed. It reports whether a bike with that number is registered and whether it is flagged stolen.
Every public passport is read-only JSON, and the serial check has a machine-readable endpoint. No key required.
Bike shops and second-hand marketplaces can embed the stolen-check widget free of charge. Paste this snippet into any page where buyers should be able to check a frame number:
<iframe src="https://timbrica.com/en/ebike-registry/widget" width="100%" height="300" style="border:0;max-width:460px" title="Stolen e-bike check" loading="lazy"></iframe>
✓ Shows: that a bike with a given frame number was registered, by which account and when, its declared details, and whether the owner has reported it stolen or recovered.
⚠ Does not prove ownership: anyone can register any serial. It cannot confirm a seller is the rightful owner. Treat a record as a dated claim and a useful signal — not a guarantee. Conflicting claims on one serial are shown, not hidden.
