no one is safe: publicization of a private comment about the scooter

A gentle reader writes:

If this was in Russia, I'd say the mechanic who low-balled your scooter just wanted a bribe in return for the permit (hence, perhaps, the low-balling). But can't you just give the scooter to your friend as a gift, just leave it for her? And then she could return the favor by giving you a gift of however much she agreed to pay for it. (If she needs a new registration for it, I recommend going to a different mechanic -- but no longer with a financial transaction, just as a formality.) The two of you would be making a fruitful contribution to what in Russia is called the "tenevaya ekonomika [shadow economy]."

Gentle Reader,

The mechanic who low-balled my scooter is a long-term neighbor of the person buying the scooter, and serves her entire family’s scooter needs, as well as the scooter needs of many other neighbors in this neighborhood where a lot of people know one another. This is probably why he low-balled my scooter, if it is indeed a low-ball—he doesn’t need me on his side. But it would do no good for him at all to be known as a guy who has to be bribed to do something other people do for free: Taipei does not lack for motor scooter mechanics. Giving the scooter as a gift does not solve the problem, which is not actually a problem of selling but of entitlement—the “formality” is the thing that we are having trouble formalizing.

The scooter is still titled to me but I no longer have the right to transfer the title, which, to me, is what’s funny. If the scooter does enter the informal economy (and I’ll know in about an hour whether or not it will), it will be as a piece of property titled to someone who cannot be held responsible for it, but untitleable to anyone who would be wiling to be held responsible for it. The only thing to be worried about, in this case, would be something happening with the scooter that would potentially influence my visa status next time I want to get in to the country; although given that the people who issue residence permits don't know that residence permits are required to buy or sell motor vehicles, somehow I doubt that the various branches are that well integrated.

Okay, off to see how informally we can formalize the formalities.

UPDATE: The Mama and I went to the DMV, filled out the form, and went upstairs to where the title transfers are done. We explained our situation to the two nice boys at the information desk. One of them looked grave and said, "Oh, that is a big hassle." He stepped out from behind the desk and went to look for someone with the authority and knowledge to deal with this hassle. The Mama said, "We were told to talk to Mr. Lai." Yeah, the boy said, but Mr. Lai is not here right now, and neither is anyone else who I know would be able to deal with this problem. Listen, why don't you just take a ticket, wait your turn, and explain your situation to whoever you get; maybe they'll be able to help you. Otherwise you should wait for Mr. Lai.

We took a ticket and waited our turn, and explained our situation again to the man behind the desk. Every time I explain this situation I get a little better at it, a little briefer. Oh, he said, looking very puzzled. This is really a big hassle. I don't know what to do. He looked over at his neighbor, who was at the desk for handicapped licenses, and explained the situation to him much more efficiently than I had originally put it. "Just use her passport number," the neighbor answered. "You have a passport, right? But no residence permit anymore? But a visa? Okay, just use your passport number. Here, I'll do it for you, come over to this desk."

It turns out it's a perfectly rational system, as long as you happen to bump into the right person.

(Incidentally the process of title transfer involves only the title, not the sale: we were not asked how much the scooter was being sold for, nor any other information about it except its license plate number. So I think my comment above, that the problem is (was) not the sale but the entitlement, is right.)