Scooter: it won't start

The scooter refuses to start, neither on the electric starter nor the kickstart (if it has one). As with a motorcycle, the approach is to rule out simple, free causes before taking anything apart. The scooter's first specific quirk: the brake safety switch. Nearly all scooters only allow the starter to engage if a brake lever is pulled (a switch under the lever) — this is check number one, and a very common "breakdown" is really just an unsqueezed brake or a faulty switch. After that, the same logic as a motorcycle applies: a dead battery (the starter won't turn, but the kickstart may still work), running out of fuel or stale fuel (common on a scooter that's rarely used), a fouled, flooded, or dead spark plug (no spark), and, more rarely, a failed starter motor or its relay. The distinction comes from simple tests: is the brake pulled? Does the kickstart get it going (which isolates a starter/battery problem from an ignition/fuel problem)? Does the dashboard light up normally (battery condition)? Urgency threshold: no danger, just a stranded scooter. Always start with the safety brake and the battery/dashboard condition, then fuel and spark plug, before suspecting the starter. The vast majority of scooter no-starts get solved by these basic, free or low-cost checks. The kickstart test (starts on the kick but not the button) is especially valuable: it immediately isolates an electric-starting problem from an ignition or fuel problem.