Danish bicycle VIN-system
Encyclopedia
The Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...

 bicycle VIN
Vehicle identification number
A Vehicle Identification Number, commonly abbreviated to VIN, is a unique serial number used by the automotive industry to identify individual motor vehicles. VINs were first used in 1954...

-system
is a system introduced in 1942 by the Danish government, providing all bicycle
Bicycle
A bicycle, also known as a bike, pushbike or cycle, is a human-powered, pedal-driven, single-track vehicle, having two wheels attached to a frame, one behind the other. A person who rides a bicycle is called a cyclist, or bicyclist....

s in Denmark with a unique code. The code is a combination of letters
Letter (alphabet)
A letter is a grapheme in an alphabetic system of writing, such as the Greek alphabet and its descendants. Letters compose phonemes and each phoneme represents a phone in the spoken form of the language....

 and digits
Numerical digit
A digit is a symbol used in combinations to represent numbers in positional numeral systems. The name "digit" comes from the fact that the 10 digits of the hands correspond to the 10 symbols of the common base 10 number system, i.e...

 embedded into the bicycle frame
Bicycle frame
A bicycle frame is the main component of a bicycle, on to which wheels and other components are fitted. The modern and most common frame design for an upright bicycle is based on the safety bicycle, and consists of two triangles, a main triangle and a paired rear triangle...

 and consists of a manufacturer code, a serial number, and construction year code.

Since 1948, it has been illegal to sell bicycle frames in Denmark without an embedded VIN. Because of this, insurance companies in Denmark will not pay indemnities for stolen bicycles without a VIN.

Location of the VIN

By default, the VIN is to be engraved
Engraving
Engraving is the practice of incising a design on to a hard, usually flat surface, by cutting grooves into it. The result may be a decorated object in itself, as when silver, gold, steel, or glass are engraved, or may provide an intaglio printing plate, of copper or another metal, for printing...

 into the seat tube or the down tube, but if these are made of such a material that hinders this, it may alternately be put on the bottom bracket shell
Bottom bracket
The bottom bracket on a bicycle connects the crankset to the bicycle and allows the crankset to rotate freely. It contains a spindle that the crankset attaches to, and the bearings that allow the spindle and cranks to rotate. The chainrings and pedals attach to the cranks...

. In very special instances, and only with the approval of the Danish National Police Commissioner’s Office, it may be applied by other means and on other locations.

The elements of the VIN

The bicycle VIN is constructed of three elements: a letter-block, a digit-block and a letter-block:
WXX 1234 Z


The first part (WXX) is the manufacturers-code, which is a 1, 2 or 3-letter block. If the code starts with a W, it is an imported bicycle frame. The second part (1234) is the frame serial number from that manufacturer. This can have any number of digits. The third block (Z) is a single letter code that identifies the production year. Certain limits regarding letters are instated for the VIN:
  • I is omitted as it can be confused with 1 (one)
  • O is omitted as it can be confused with 0 (zero)
  • Y is omitted as it can be confused with V
  • Since 1956 Q is omitted, as it can be confused with 0 (zero)
  • W is omitted, to avoid confusion with the manufacturer code (where W is reserved for imported frames)

Common manufacturer codes

This table shows examples of manufacturer codes, but is in no way to be considered a complete listing.
CodeManufacturer nameCodeManufacturer nameCodeManufacturer name
A-G H-P R-Å
AK Centurion (previously Åge Krøll) HN Hede Nielsens Fabrikker A/S RD Scandinavia Racing Discount
AR Raleigh
Raleigh Bicycle Company
The Raleigh Bicycle Company is a bicycle manufacturer originally based in Nottingham, UK. It is one of the oldest bicycle companies in the world. From 1921 to 1935 Raleigh also produced motorcycles and three-wheel cars, leading to the formation of the Reliant Company.-Early years:Raleigh's history...

 (previously
Vilhelm Nellemann A/S)
IA1 Ivan A Hansen REC Recykel ApS
AV Winther cykler (alias Anders Winther A/S) IC2 Ebsen Danmark A/S SI1 Søgreni cykler
AZ Jørgensø Import JE Jupiter S SCO (alias Smith & Co)
BA Banani (previosly Bent A Nielsen) JKH Jyde-Kompagniet A/S SS SCO (alias Smith & Co)
BL SCO bicycles sold in the Bilka supermarket chain
Bilka
Bilka is a Danish chain of hypermarkets. The first store opened in 1970 in Tilst, a suburb of Aarhus. The chain was founded by Herman Salling, but is now a part of Dansk Supermarked.-Name:...

 (see also
S)
JWG3 Cykelbanditten STE Stangerup Efterfølgere
BK Kildemoes (alias Børge Kildemoes) KM Motobecane
Motobécane
Motobécane was a French manufacturer of bicycles, mopeds, motorcycles, and other small vehicles, established in 1923. "Motobécane" is a compound of "moto", slang for motorcycle; "bécane" is slang for "bike."...

SX Saxil cykler (also see BN)
BN Saxil Bicycles (SX until approx. 2000) LL Sorte Jernhest TU Trek
Trek Bicycle Corporation
Trek Bicycle Corporation is a major bicycle and cycling product manufacturer and distributor under brand names Trek, Gary Fisher, Bontrager, Klein and until recently, LeMond Racing Cycles...

BT Taarnby a/s MB MBK TV Batavus
Batavus
Batavus BV is a Dutch bicycle manufacturer, owned by the Accell Group European Cycle conglomerate. Batavus Intercycle Corporation was the leading manufacturer of bicycles and mopeds in the Netherlands during the 1970s. During its most productive years, the company’s . Heerenveen plant employed 700...

CC Christiania
Freetown Christiania
Not to be confused with Christiania, Norway, another name for Oslo.Christiania, also known as Freetown Christiania is a self-proclaimed autonomous neighbourhood of about 850 residents, covering 34 hectares in the borough of Christianshavn in the Danish capital Copenhagen...

 Bicycles (also Pedersen-cyklen)
MR Ritter Import UR Urania cykler
CGE Cykelgear.dk N Nordisk Cykelfabrik A/S VI VIVA bikes
CK Jensen cykler (alias C K Jensen) NH Nihola Cykler ApS VEL Velorbis
CM Mosquito PA Pedal-atleten VG Grebart cykler
CS Christiania
Freetown Christiania
Not to be confused with Christiania, Norway, another name for Oslo.Christiania, also known as Freetown Christiania is a self-proclaimed autonomous neighbourhood of about 850 residents, covering 34 hectares in the borough of Christianshavn in the Danish capital Copenhagen...

 Bicycles
PD Styer-Puch A/S
Steyr-Daimler-Puch
Steyr-Daimler-Puch was a large manufacturing conglomerate based in Steyr, Austria, which was broken up in stages between 1987 and 2001. The component parts and operations continued to exist under separate ownership and new names.-History:...

   
DA FDB PF Peter From    
DB Rocky POL VIN provided by the police
Police of Denmark
The police of Denmark is the interior part of the Danish legitimate force providers...

 - usually for private import
   
DI1 Dibbern Cykler PL CREATE    
EE Egedesø (alias Everton) PR Pro Movec    
FAK Falcon PS Schrøder cykler    
GD Titania Cykler PY Python Pro    
GW3 G&W Cykler        

1: Even though I in general is not used, it appears that some brands are using it.

2: Even though I in general is not used, Ebsen Danmark A/S bicycles are in fact using it in their manufacturercode (verified).

3: Even though W in general is not used, it appears that some brands are using it.

Production year identification codes

A B C D E F G H J K L M N P Q R S T U V X Z
1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963
1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 - 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984
1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005
2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011                              

Example

Example:
BK 12345 A


This is a Danish made bicycle frame from the company Kildemoes, where the frame is serial no. 12345 and made in either 2006, 1985, 1964, or in 1942.
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