E-scooter casualties soar as children 'are given speeds they can't handle'

Critical care doctors are calling for urgent regulation of private electric scooters after three children were killed this year.

- Jon Ungoed-Thomas

Emergency teams at UK hospitals have warned they are seeing an increasing number of serious accidents involving children, some suffering life-changing injuries. Hundreds of accidents involving children falling off e-scooters or colliding with other vehicles are not being recorded in the road casualty figures, medics believe.

There have been 48 deaths in England and Wales since 2019, according to figures compiled by a transport safety group.

It is illegal to ride a private e-scooter on public roads in the UK. Trials for e-scooter rental schemes, such as those by Lime and Voi, were introduced in July 2020 while they were evaluated by officials for their safety and contribution to the transport network. The trials have been extended four times and are now due to finish in May next year, but campaigners argue that there should be urgent introduction of regulations for the designs and use of private e-scooters.

Some e-scooters that are illegal to drive on public roads are being marketed to children by UK online retailers, without prominent warnings that they are not allowed on roads and public spaces. Debenhams is selling one e-scooter with a top speed of 7mph, described on their website as “a great way for kids to satisfy their need for speed”.