Bike Shifting in Bommanahalli

What gets photographed at pickup

The crew walks round the bike and photographs it from every side, front, back, both sides, then closer pictures of the tank, the side panels, the mirrors and the exhaust. Existing scratches, dents and scuffs are photographed close up, so it's clear they were there before the trip.

Stand with the crew while they do it. Point out the marks you know about, the scrape from the pillar in the basement, the dent from a neighbour's scooter falling against it. If you know about something the crew misses, ask them to photograph it.

The odometer reading is worth getting in a picture too. It's a simple way to show the bike hasn't been ridden in between, and it takes two seconds.

Don't forget the parts people never look at. The underside of the exhaust, the lower edge of the engine casing, the rear mudguard, the edge of the seat. On a bike that's lived in Bommanahalli's packed parking, these are often where the old scrapes are, and they're also the places a dispute would be about later.

Ask for the photos to be sent to you before the crew leaves. Keep them somewhere you'll find them again, a folder in your phone's gallery or a message to yourself, somewhere it won't get buried in a chat that'll scroll away by the time the bike arrives.

Making the photos useful

Clean bikes photograph better. A layer of road dust hides fine scratches, and a bike that's been parked under a tree for a month is covered in more than dust. Wipe it down the day before, it makes the record far clearer.

Light matters too, more than people think. Bommanahalli basements and covered passages are dim, so the photos are taken once the bike is brought out into daylight near the carrier, away from the dark corner it was parked in.

If you want your own set, take them. Ten pictures on your phone the evening before costs you nothing and gives you a second record that doesn't depend on anyone else.

A short video works even better. Walk slowly round the bike with your phone, crouch at the sides, finish on the odometer. Your phone stamps it with the date, and it's quicker to scroll through at the other end than thirty separate pictures.

At delivery, compare them

At the other end the wrap comes off while you watch, and a second set of pictures is taken. Open the pickup photos on your phone and go round the bike side by side with them. Anything new gets pointed out there and then, written on the delivery papers ahead of your signature, and photographed.

Anyone who opted for transit insurance will find a claim rests on exactly that note and those photos. Even without insurance, a mark that's recorded at the gate is a clear conversation. One noticed a week later isn't.

If someone else is receiving the bike for you, send them the pickup photos in advance and ask them to do the comparison properly before they sign and wave the crew off.

Scooty shifting and the scuffs scooters collect

Scooters pick up more small marks than motorcycles, mostly on the front apron, the side panels and the floorboard edge, from being squeezed in among a dozen others in a PG basement off Hosur Road. That's exactly why the photos matter so much for them. A scuff that was already there and is on record is a non-issue. The same scuff, unrecorded, becomes a question.

The scooter's handling on the carrier is the same as a motorcycle's. Pictures first, then foam on the bar ends and mirror stems, a few layers of wrap and straps keeping it upright. It's lighter, so the cost usually lands a little under a motorcycle's.

Clear out the seat box and unclip the bits and pieces, a phone holder, a bag hook, the seat cover with the torn corner. They should be gone before the photos are taken, so the pictures show the scooter exactly as it travels.

Bike and two wheeler transport from Bommanahalli

Nothing can stand on Hosur Road itself, so the carrier loads from the service road or an inner lane we've agreed with you beforehand. Silk Board is right up the road, which decides the timing. City-bound bikes go early, before the junction locks. Southbound ones, towards Electronic City or Hosur, have an easier start whatever the hour.

Within Bangalore, to HSR, BTM or Electronic City, the bike is there the same day. Further away, Chennai and Hyderabad see carriers all the time and Kerala's cities are a regular run. Out-of-the-way towns can leave a bike waiting for a vehicle headed in that direction, and we'd rather tell you that upfront.

Ride it low on fuel the last few days, the tank gets emptied before loading. The crew needs photocopies of the RC and your ID card, never the originals. You'll have the price in writing with GST itemised after a free survey, and for a whole household going too, our Bommanahalli packers page explains that side.