Warning to those buying e-scooters for Christmas

It is illegal to use a privately owned e-scooter on public land

Police have issued a warning to people thinking about buying e-scooters as Christmas presents.

Humberside Police said the public should consider legal issues surrounding the vehicles before gifting them to loved ones.

Currently, it is illegal to use a privately owned e-scooter on public land, although some towns and cities offer rental schemes for driving licence holders.

Insp Neil Hutchins, from the force's roads policing team, said: "The last thing we want is for people to be spending good, hard-earned money on these devices, only for them to be taken off them at a later stage."

In September, more than 20 illegal e-bikes and e-scooters were seized during a police day of action in Grimsby.

Insp Hutchins said: "Whilst they are fantastic bits of kit and might be the perfect gift for Christmas, the realities are there's some legal implications to purchasing one for your loved ones."

The use of e-scooters is allowed on private land with permission of the landowner, the force said.

However, it is not possible to get insurance for privately owned e-scooters, meaning it is illegal to use them in public spaces or on roads and pavements.

Insp Hutchins said if people use the vehicles in banned locations, they could receive warnings or fines, or have their e-scooter seized.

Humberside Police figures show e-scooters were involved in 80 road traffic collisions between April 2022 and March this year.

Insp Hutchins said: "They don't comply with road traffic safety protocols and, as a result of that, you're more likely to get hit by a vehicle or potentially use the device on a footpath and then maybe collide with a pedestrian.

"It's for these reasons that there's legal implications to using them in public areas."

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