Are Dirt Bikes Road Legal in The UK?

Dirt bikes are a great way for younger riders to get some biking experience, but what are the laws and regulations surrounding them in the UK?

So, Are Dirt Bikes Road Legal?

Dirt bikes are not road legal and should not be driven on public roads or in public places; this includes places like footpaths, forests, parks, car parks, beaches, etc.

However, dirt bikes can be made into road legal motorcycles with a bit of physical adaptation and paperwork; so if you want to ride your dirt bike to the destination instead of loading it in a truck or towing it, this is the article for you.

Also read our guide to towing your motorcycle.

Why aren’t dirt bikes road legal?

“Scramblers and quads are motorised leisure vehicles designed for off-road use. You mustn’t drive one on a public road unless you’re at least 16 years old and have a driving licence. You can only drive one on private land if the landowner allows you to drive there.”

Nidirect

Dirt bikes are built for off-road use; they serve a different purpose than regular road-going motorcycles and are considered to be ‘leisure’ vehicles.

Motocross

Dirt bikes are used in the sport of Motocross and are produced to be most suited for off-road tracks. 

This means things like headlights, number plates, and a horn are all unnecessary additions that add weight and serve no purpose to the rider. 

Manufacturers, therefore, produce dirt bikes without all these road features and focus more on giving the bike the right knobbly tyres, suspension systems, and gearing; this can make the bikes highly unsuitable for everyday road use. 

Two-strokes

Some dirt bikes still use two-stroke engines, which can be used off-road and for racing. Emissions regulations, however, have meant that road-legal two-stroke motorcycles are nearly extinct, with only older models seen today on the street. 

Two-stroke engines allow a lot of power to be produced from smaller-capacity engines. This is super useful for off-road bikes where plenty of torque balanced with low weight is needed for riding over muddy tracks and doing jumps. 

Do you need a license to ride a dirt bike?

No, you do not need a licence to ride a dirt bike off-road, so children and young people can get into motorcycles very early, provided they are riding in the right environment. 

Note: You do need the correct licence in order to ride a dirt bike on a public road or in a public place, which we will look at next. 

Can you make a dirt bike road legal?

All is not lost. It is possible to convert your dirt bike into a road-legal motorcycle, but there are some legal requirements that you need to meet, and this will mean your bike will need to be adapted.  

Legal requirements 

To ride a dirt bike on public roads, you must first be at least 16 and have the following:

• Driving licence (or provisional) and you must have completed your CBT, read about licensing laws
• Insurance for the bike – compare insurance quotes
• Motorcycle tax
• Number plates
• Lights (headlights, tail lights, brake lights)
• Indicators
• Reflectors
• Horn
• The bike must meet legal noise and gas emissions restrictions 

What you need to do

• Make the physical changes and additions add lights, horn, etc. 
• Obtain a Certificate of Newness from the manufacturer. This will have all the specs of your bike to inform the DVLA, including the engine capacity and year of manufacturer. Check out this link on Yamaha’s website, which takes you through the process. This can be called a Certificate of Conformity or Year of Manufacture Letter.
• Take the bike for an MOT; if you meet all the legal requirements and have made the appropriate adaptations to the bike, then it should be a straightforward exercise. If you put the bike through and it fails, you will at least know what else needs doing. 
• Apply for a NOVA declaration. You first do this through the HMRC, which is then used to apply for UK registration with the DVLA.
• Once you have your NOVA, you can apply for a V55/5 log book with the DVLA.
• Your logbook will give you the bike’s registration number, so you can go and get a number plate.
• Lastly, get some insurance and tax, and you are good to go.  

Some are easier to convert than others, so consider your needs

While converting a dirt bike for road use isn’t impossible, it can be tricky, and you may find yourself pouring your money into the project. 

It is worth noting that some dirt bikes are really built for the sport of Motocross, and therefore fixing things like headlights may be trickier than you first thought, and you might not have many points on the bike to fix things to. 

Gearing on a dirt bike can also be different from a road-going motorcycle, where you want lots of down-low punch for quick blasting up hills and jumping off-road. You will need taller gears on the road to keep up with traffic and do higher speeds for longer. 

You may also need to change your suspension system to get an adequate feel of the road, as on-road is a different experience from riding on off-road surfaces. 

While converting your beloved dirt bike for road use might sound like a good idea, it might be worth looking into something more purpose-built for the best of both worlds, a dual-sport motorcycle. 

Dirt Bike or Dual Sport

Today there are many dual sport options on the market that are excellent off-road and make good road-going bikes too. 

It all comes down to your intention with converting your dirt bike for road use. If you plan on just riding it to the track or private off-road field and then going hard in the dirt, it makes sense that you would want a more off-road inclined bike. 

However, if you plan on using your dirt bike to commute on and put down some serious road miles, you might be better off considering purchasing a dual sport as it is more suited and practical for this purpose. 

There are even distinctions between the types of dual-sport motorcycles so that you can narrow your choices even more. 

For example, the Honda CRF300 Rally is a dual-sport motorcycle ready to go the distance and compete in the Dakar rally. However, the CRF300L is still a dual-sport but more focused on hitting the trails. 

Final Thoughts

So, while we can’t ride our dirt bikes legally on the road, we don’t have to give it all up as we can convert them to make them road-legal.

I love dirt bikes, and I love when someone wrenches on their bike to come up with something completely one-off and suited to them. 

However, if you don’t have the time, patience, or inclination, then you might be better off keeping your off-roader as it is and looking into a dual-sport that can fulfil your riding needs on the tarmac and dirt. 

Related

Also, see

• Best electric motocross bikes
• Best pit bikes
• Road legal quads