What happens if you crash a rental scooter in Vietnam?

The first 10 minutes after a crash

Get yourself and others out of traffic, check for injuries, and call help before anything else. Vietnam's emergency number is 115 for an ambulance, 113 for police. Keep your helmet on until you are sure of your condition. People come first; the bike and the paperwork can wait.

Move off the carriageway if you safely can, switch on hazard lights or stand the bike where it is visible, and check yourself and anyone else for injuries. Adrenaline masks pain, so don't assume you are fine because you can stand up.

Call 115 for an ambulance if anyone is hurt, and 113 for traffic police if there is injury, a dispute, or significant damage. In a tourist area, asking a nearby shop or hotel to help interpret and call can speed things up enormously.

Do not flee the scene if someone is injured, even if you feel responsible or panicked. Leaving an injured person can turn a civil matter into something far more serious. Stay, help, and let the process happen.

• 115 — ambulance
• 113 — traffic police
• Helmet stays on until you've checked yourself over
• Don't leave the scene if anyone is injured

Document the scene and tell the rental company

Once people are safe, photograph everything: both vehicles, positions, damage, the road, and the other rider's details. Then call your rental company right away. Honest, prompt reporting protects you under your rental agreement and helps sort out who pays for what without surprises later.

Take wide and close photos of both bikes, the damage, skid marks, the road layout and any street signs. If there's another party, photograph their bike and, politely, their licence plate. Avoid signing anything you can't read or admitting blame on the spot.

Contact your rental operator immediately. A good operator will talk you through next steps, help with translation, and tell you exactly how damage is handled under your agreement rather than springing a bill on you afterwards.

Keep every receipt and document from a hospital, pharmacy or repair. You'll need them for any claim on your own travel-medical policy and for a clear, fair settlement with the rental company.

• Photos: both bikes, damage, road, plates
• Don't admit blame or sign unreadable documents
• Call the rental company before arranging repairs
• Keep all medical and repair receipts

Who actually pays — the honest breakdown

Three separate things can cost money: the other person's injuries, your own medical bills, and damage to the bike. Each is covered differently, and none of them is a single 'fully insured' safety net. Knowing which layer applies before you ride keeps a crash from becoming a financial shock.

Injuries to someone you hit are meant to be handled by compulsory third-party liability (CTPL) cover that comes with the bike — but it protects the person you injure, not you, and it can be refused if the at-fault rider has no Vietnam-recognised licence. In that case you may be personally liable for the rest.

Your own medical bills are covered only by your own travel-medical policy — if it's valid for what you were riding. A rental 'Collision Damage Waiver' (CDW) is a contractual cap on what the operator can charge you for damage to their bike; it is not insurance and does not pay your hospital costs.

Damage to the rental bike is governed by your rental agreement and any CDW you bought. A waiver limits your exposure for the bike, but it is a contract term, not a policy — so always read what it actually covers.

• CTPL — protects whom you injure, not you; can be void if unlicensed
• Your travel-medical policy — the only thing that pays your hospital bills
• CDW — a contractual cap on bike damage, not insurance

Why riding legally and insured changes everything

If you were riding illegally — without a Vietnam-recognised licence — a crash gets much worse. Most travel-medical policies are void when you ride illegally, and the CTPL payout can be refused. Vietnam recognises only the 1968 Vienna Convention IDP; a 1949 Geneva permit is not valid for a petrol bike over 50cc.

Vietnam recognises only the 1968 Vienna Convention International Driving Permit. A 1949 Geneva Convention permit is not valid for a petrol motorbike over 50cc. So riders from the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea, China, Singapore, Spain and Ireland cannot legally ride a petrol bike over 50cc here.

Under Decree 168/2024, riding without a recognised licence is fined VND 2–4 million for a bike up to 125cc, or VND 6–8 million for over 125cc, plus a 7-day bike impound. The person who hands an unlicensed rider the bike faces a separate VND 8–10 million fine under Article 32.10.

Riding illegally can also void your travel-medical policy, leaving you to pay your own hospital costs in full. That is the real reason legality matters after a crash: it decides whether your insurance still stands.

There's a clean, legal path for everyone: an electric scooter rated 4 kW or under needs no licence and no IDP, for any nationality. If your licence isn't recognised here, that — not a petrol bike — is the honest way to ride and stay covered.

• Only the 1968 Vienna IDP is valid; a 1949 permit is not, for petrol over 50cc
• No recognised licence can void your travel-medical cover
• Decree 168 fines: VND 2–4M (≤125cc) or VND 6–8M (>125cc) + 7-day impound
• A ≤4 kW electric scooter is licence-free for every nationality

Hospitals, embassy and getting home safe

For anything beyond a graze, go to a hospital — don't tough it out. Da Nang has international-standard facilities used to treating travellers. For serious injury, lost documents or repatriation, contact your embassy or consulate. Your travel-medical insurer's 24/7 assistance line should be your first call for guidance on where to go.

Da Nang has hospitals and international clinics accustomed to treating foreign visitors, including Family Medical Practice and Hospital 199. For minor road rash, clean and dress wounds properly — infection in a humid climate is the most common avoidable complication.

If your injury is serious, your documents are lost, or you may need evacuation, call your travel insurer's emergency assistance line first, then your embassy or consulate. They can advise on hospitals, payment guarantees and, if needed, repatriation.

Be honest with medical staff and your insurer about what happened. A good rental operator will support you through this — helping with translation, the rental side of things, and pointing you to the right help — so you can focus on recovering.

• Go to hospital for anything beyond a minor graze
• Call your insurer's 24/7 assistance line first
• Embassy/consulate for serious injury, lost documents or repatriation
• Clean wounds promptly — humidity makes infection the main risk

Frequently asked questions