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23 Jan, 2024/ by National Accident Helpline /News

New e-scooter law from 5th December

If you do not have an electric scooter, it is possible to hire one in one of the  e-scooter trial areas in the UK.  Where you do, you have to have a provisional driving licence. Amongst other rules, you must also ensure you:

However, a new law was  recently introduced for e-scooters on hire. This came into place on 5th December 2023. It says that if you rent an electric scooter you must give the hire place your:

  • name
  • driving licence number
  • a photo of the front of your driving licence

These details are stored by the e-scooter hire business and can be given to the police if necessary. This allows them to trace dangerous and reckless electric scooter drivers and should discourage drivers from driving e-scooters on the road. It should also stop those under 17 years from using e-scooters on hire and ensure those hiring them have an understanding of road rules. The rules are also in place to protect other road users from electric scooter riders.

E-scooter trial areas 

Despite the rules about riding your e-scooter in public places, some councils have specific public areas where you can ride them. The maximum speed you can ride is 15.5 mph. These are e-scooter trial areas. There are 23 e-scooter trial areas in England in total and these started in July 2020 by the Department for Transport. You must have a driving licence with a category Q to do so. One of the major places where there are e-scooter trials are:

  • Middlesbrough
  • Milton Keynes
  • Hartlepool
  • Northampton
  • Birmingham
  • Norwich
  • Cheltenham

London is also an e-scooter trial area, where you can ride an electric scooter in:

  • Camden
  • Ealing
  • Hammersmith and Fulham
  • Kensington and Chelsea
  • Lambeth 
  • Richmond upon Thames

Are electric scooter accidents common?

Electric scooters are dangerous due to the nature of an electric scooter. When you ride an e-scooter there is no vehicle body to protect you when an accident occurs. It is also difficult for other road users to spot you. 

In the year ending June 2023, 1,269 collisions occurred which included an electric scooter and  1355 casualties. Unfortunately seven people were killed in electric scooter collisions in the year ending June 2023. E-scooters are dangerous and accidents are common, and police have given e-scooter users warnings about the damage of electric scooters.

E-scooter safety tips: 

If you do hire an e-scooter or the use a private one becomes legal in the UK, here are some e-scooter safety tips for you:

Can you claim for an e-scooter accident?

E-scooters can be dangerous and an accident could be serious. Like any road traffic accident, a collision involving an e-scooter could result in serious injury and could even be fatal. You may suffer a personal injury as a result of an e-scooter accident as the driver, another road user or even as a pedestrian. You may be able to claim compensation when you suffer a personal injury through an e-scooter accident where it was not entirely your fault.  

When you start a personal injury claimwith National Accident Helpline, it is a straightforward process.  Our helpline advisors will listen to how your electric scooter accident happened to help you get you the compensation you rightly deserve. Then our expert solicitors will work with you to complete the claim

You can use our compensation calculator to work out how much compensation you might receive. You may also be able to make a no win no fee compensation claim. When you make a no win no fee claim with us your personal injury lawyer will take out insurance on your behalf that will cover all your claim costs and expenses including medical report fees, court fees and any barrister fees; so long as you comply with their terms and conditions, you won't have to pay any costs upfront, and there are no hidden surprises.

If you have suffered in an electric scooter accident you may be due personal injury compensation. So give us a call today at to make your personal injury compensation claim. Or, if it is easier, you can ask us to call you back here.

Last updated 23.01.24

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