E-Scooters: Over half of casualties are outside trial areas

More than half of casualties from e-scooter accidents are found outside the zones where you are legally allowed to use them, according to new government figures.

Injuries ranged from cuts and grazes to fractures and head traumas, a report from the Department for Transport said.

Most of the casualties were e-scooter users, but almost a third were other road users, mostly pedestrians.

Seven e-scooter users died following collisions in the year to June 2023.

Road safety charity IAM Roadsmart said the figures were "shocking" and demonstrated there was a "wild west" culture on the UK's streets. It urged the government to speed up legislation governing private e-scooters.

The Department for Transport said it had extended the city-centre trials of e-scooters until May 2026 to gather more evidence and would consult "in due course" on possible new regulations including minimum rider ages and maximum speeds.

Currently e-scooters can be used within specially designated zones in more than 20 cities in England. Users sign up to an app and are covered by the operator's insurance. Scooters in those schemes are limited to a maximum speed of 15.5 mph and require users to have a driving licence.

E-scooters are also available to purchase, ostensibly for use on private land. However, they have become increasingly popular with commuters and teenagers travelling to school.

Transport charity Collaborative Mobility UK estimates there are 750,000 privately-owned e-scooters in use in the UK.

Nicholas Lyes, from IAM Roadsmart said he had seen e-scooters advertised online with a maximum speed of 47mph.

"E-scooters are becoming more sophisticated and faster. Legislation is already behind schedule and is not keeping up with rapid scale of technological progress.

"It's a bit of a free for all out there."

Seizing scooters

The latest report from the government's statistical service shows that in the year to the end of June 2023 only 524 out of the 1080 collisions reported took place within or close to trial areas.

The report could not differentiate between e-scooters that belonged to a trial scheme and ones that were privately owned, but did have a record of the location of the collision. While the total number of collisions was lower than a year previously, the report said not all police forces had submitted data, so the real total was likely to be higher.

Despite the rules governing e-scooter use, police forces are concerned that young people especially, are using them unlawfully and have warned parents against giving e-scooters as Christmas presents.

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More than 40% of the casualties recorded in the report were people under the age of 20.

Martin Usher from Lime Solicitors said private e-scooters were being used on public roads "with little to no resistance" and called for more action to ensure roads were safe "for all who use them".

While firms operating the city-based schemes were covered by insurance, Mr Usher said, those causing injury outside those trials would not be insured and anyone injured as a resultwould therefore be unlikely to have a route to compensation following an accident.

He suggested the government could consider requiring users to take training courses to earn licences, like moped and motorcycle users do, and mandate the wearing of helmets.

Current e-scooter rules

Users must:

• hold a provisional or full driving licence

• avoid riding on pavements

• ride within trial zones or on private land

• carry one person at a time

• not use a mobile phone

• not be intoxicated

The government is tightening up requirements for users of the trial schemes. From 5 December operators need to collect and verify images of their driving licences in case they are requested by the police.

A Department for Transport spokesperson said: "The law is clear - it is illegal to ride private e-scooters on roads, cycle lanes or pavements and rental e-scooters can only be used in trial areas.

"Those in breach can face criminal prosecution, fines of up to £500 and have six points added to their driving licence, as well as having their e-scooter seized."